He was just talking about how special it was that the Superintendent of schools out in Fresno was giving back some salary. The person in this post will be overseeing a new special district, but I bet we can still compare the Detroit/Fresno apples to the Peoria oranges.
New chancellor could make $1.5M overseeing district for Michigan's troubled schools
The first chancellor of the new statewide special district for Michigan's lowest-performing schools could receive more than $1.5 million in salary and bonuses over his four-year contract, if he meets all performance targets.
John Covington, the departing superintendent of the Kansas City, Mo., School District, will be paid a $175,000 signing bonus and a $225,000 salary his first year as leader of the new Education Achievement Authority.
His base salary grows to $325,000 in the second year. And if he meets yet-to-be-determined goals, he could make more than $425,000 in each of the last two years of the contract.
As a comparison, the top salary for superintendents of the nation's largest districts ranged up to $329,000 last year, according to a study by the Washington-based Council of the Great City Schools.
The contract raised the ire of activists and unions.
But Steve Wasko, a spokesman for Roy Roberts, the emergency manager for Detroit Public Schools and chairman of the EAA board, said the contract was necessary to attract "top talent to what may be the toughest job in the country."
Covington could not be reached for comment. For his first year, he will be paid $225,000 and collect a $175,000 signing bonus. The base salary increases to $325,000 the second year. For the last two years, he can make an incentive-compensation payment of $50,000 to $100,000 per year.
He's also eligible for a raise in years three and four.
The contract also includes a retirement plan with immediate vesting, a $15,000-per-year supplemental insurance allowance for life and disability coverage and an $800-per-month car allowance.
His first-year compensation and the EAA's initial planning year will be paid through a nonprofit, according to Sara Wurfel, a spokeswoman for Gov. Rick Snyder. It's unclear what portion during that first year could come from taxpayers. Ensuing years will be funded by per-pupil state aid.
Henry Duvall, the council's communications director, said about a dozen large urban districts are looking for superintendents. "If you want the top person in the job, you've got to give some kind of incentive," he said.
Keith Johnson, president of Detroit Federation of Teachers, said the level of pay disturbs him, considering DPS employees have been asked to take pay cuts and make a "shared sacrifice." Source
8 comments:
Education is now just like big business where the CEOs make exhorbitant salaries while the salaries of people who do the "thinking" and the work are decreasing. The people who actually come in contact with children every day are the only ones who can make it happen, but they get comparatively little incentive to do it. It is their work that will determine whether or not the superintendents meet their goals and get their bonuses--that probably isn't much of an incentive for teachers to do their best.
Statewide district, not just Detroit... just how many schools is it? Could he be overseeing the largest district in the nation?
"The people who actually come in contact with children every day are the only ones who can make it happen"
Thus, all of Sharon's FOIA's, presentations to the board, blogging, etc., by her own accord, have no impact on educating the students of D150. It's just a waste of everyone's time???
Yes, the teachers are the only ones who can make it happen--if they are given the support to make it happen. Yes, the decision makers do have an impact--but it can be a negative impact.
Jon's comments have made me realize that some of our best superintendents actually did work "under the radar." The spotlight wasn't on them because they didn't micromanage. They saw to it that the teachers' teachings needs were met and then got out of the way. The most successful superintendents relied heavily on the advice of people (often teachers) for information about what was needed in the classroom. Certainly, when it came to choosing textbooks and instructional materials, the superintendent and/or the curriculum director formed groups of teachers to look over several possible choices of new textbooks. Teachers were given (and helped forumulate) the criteria for choosing materials.
It would seem that this administration has only one criteria for choosing materials--which of our friends is in the business of selling materials? Teachers were certainly not part of the process. New textbooks are extremely expensive investments--the decision making process is now flawed.
Well, since superintendents all set their salaries by benchmarking to each other, it will only be a matter of time before District 150 starts paying its superintendent a comparable $425,000/year or thereabouts.
The same seems to go for positions in the superintendent's "so-called cabinet." I believe those salaries keep going up to and beyond the level of the person who held the position before. Just because a person who has held a job for ten years makes $90,000 plus, the new person doesn't have to start from $90,000. Starting salaries for these positions should be established and followed.
Of course, new hires from North Carolina might not have been willing to risk coming to a new district at a lower salary--well sobeit.
Shame on Sharon for suggesting that administrators actually have a 'choice' about which textbooks are used in the classroom.
Here's the reality. Textbooks are very expensive. There are two states in this country with very large student populations...Texas and California. Textbook companies don't publish different editions for each and every state...they take the lowest common denominator - the 'edition' that will meet the greatest number of state requirements.
Add to that the connection between textbook publishers and standardized test publishers. It won't take a lot of digging to find out that many of the publishers of textbooks also have a hand in standardized testing. Here are some names...McGraw-Hill, Harcourt-Brace Jovanovich, Pearson.
To think that teachers have anything to do with curriculum selection is a fantasy. It's about matching curriculum to the weaknesses of the district on standardized tests.
So, we have administrators trying to keep funding in check via curriculum and test scores...because we can't lose fuding. And classroom teachers who know that what they're supposed to teach to get their kids to pass a test is a load of crap.
Given that equation, what entity is the priority? Student? Teachers?
I have a special education degree...I don't do the maths. Even I have it figured out.
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