Do we have to pay top dollar for school superintendents?

clifdog

May 24th, 2010
8:10 am

First!

s

May 24th, 2010
8:21 am

The school administrators in this state are not worth 100,000 pennies – let alone DOLLARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

John

May 24th, 2010
8:24 am

They get paid way too much, considering Georgia is usually at the bottom of educated states.

Old Teacher

May 24th, 2010
8:24 am

They are NOT CEO’s! This is not a business- we are IN the business of educating! As a teacher in a suburban county- shame on those superintendents that did NOT take a pay cut. Many of the top dogs (associate superintendents, etc) have cars and even GCPS has at least 1 bus supervisor that drives a county car on I-85 every school day all of the way towards Toccoa! I believe she gets off at exit 154 or 160- which are above the Commerce outlet exit. Gwinnett County taxpayers- you should demand that this stops! And Mr. Wilbanks- the county pays you back for your contribution to YOUR own retirement? REALLY?! Is that before or after tax dollars? As a teacher, why are we taking all of the hits?

Old Teacher

May 24th, 2010
8:26 am

Just a thought…..if this is a business….are we making a profit? Because if not, then the shareholders should fire you!!

John

May 24th, 2010
8:30 am

Maybe the Governor should take a look at areas that waste money on their superintendents and withdraw corresponding amounts in matching funds.

Dave from GT

May 24th, 2010
8:35 am

Cap the salary at $200K, give one – five year contract, then turn em loose! Repeat process.

The school boards need to take on more resposibiity at a lower level.

Too much executive BS going on here. It ain’t that complicated, Forrest!

frank

May 24th, 2010
8:36 am

The public school system has not progressed in the last 50 years. We still have teachers standing in front of a classroom lecturing students. The Military, Industry and a lot of Goverment agencies has gone to self paced, audio visual, etc as a more cost effective form of education-but not the public school system which is a self serving group like the post office (both dismal failures).

We do not even have a state wide schedule of subjects so that if a family moves accross county lines, the student is disrupted as the next county will surely be on a diffent subject.

Our public school system is a crime!!

Caroline Hardeman

May 24th, 2010
8:37 am

Teachers are pulic employees. They are compensated at a low salary because they are not supposed to be in this profession for the money. Why are the superintendents not considered to be public employees as well? If teachers are not in the profession for money, neither should superintendents. In the private sector CEO’s are suposed to make a profit to receive this much compensation. Where is the profit for the school systems?

DD

May 24th, 2010
8:48 am

We need to clarify excatly what we want from school administrators – both at the building level and at the district level. Most administrators aren’t trained well enough to run an organization as a CEO nor have strong enough teaching experiences to be an instructional leader. If we want to hire someone to run the organization efficiently, then we should go outside of education to hire an administrator. If they want administrators to be instructional leaders, they should demand that the candidates have, at minimum, the National Board certification in their specialities. In either case, they can hire someone else to be in charge of the other aspect, but right now most administrators aren’t good enough in either.

Monday, again

May 24th, 2010
8:49 am

Why don’t we go back to ELECTING our superintendents? They are not CEO’s. They are public servants. Give the public schools back to the communities they are serving.

AlreadySheared

May 24th, 2010
8:52 am

Yawn – the “more money than the president” straw man. Sadder yet, a companion “more money than the VICE president” straw boy?… straw bundle?.. piece of straw?

1) As previously noted, the office of vice president isn’t worth a warm bucket of [expletive deleted]

2) I’m certainly not one of them, but there are a ton of people running around Atlanta who make more than the president. Businessmen, ball players, musicians, RAP music entrepeneurs, for heaven’s sake
(please note for the record that I put music and rap into two separate categories). The market rate for superintendents is the market rate, just like for good left-handed pitching. How much the president makes has nothing to do with it.

Old Teacher

May 24th, 2010
8:52 am

DD- you got it right- they are NOT trained well enough. John- I think capped salaries are a great idea. I put this in a post earlier- but it did not get past the filters….I find it incredulous that Gwinnett’s superintendent has his contributions to retirement reimbursed. Actually, as a teacher in his county, I find it disgusting.

Understanding Atlanta

May 24th, 2010
9:07 am

This idea that public servants should not be well paid is hogwash. Superintendents in Georgia are in an interesting position in most cases. With them not being elected and having to answer to the school board, they often have their hands tied by the school board. Take DeKalb County, the school board members would get complaints from their constituents (parents upset their child hasn’t done what was needed in the classroom) about teachers not passing students that had failed. They would force the superintendent to do something about that, thus programs that make it hard if not impossible for a teacher to fail a student.

Why? Because the superintendent works for the school board and the school board works for the people. And the people get what the people want, especially in local elections. Thus the horrible test scores, lack of performance, and other issues with metro Atlanta public schools

realdawg

May 24th, 2010
9:08 am

No capping of salaries you socialists.

You are talking about a couple of administrators versus thousands of teachers. Comparing their salaries to the VP/President is very poor journalism. How about comparing to comparable school districts around the country. In Gwinnett, you have one of the top 10 largest school districts in the U.S.

Administrators ARE CEO’s and SHOULD report to the school board not the people for the very reasons we are going throught right now. Everytime the wind changes somebody wants to get out the ax. You want to really screw up our schools? Start canning the people that make them function every 4 years and see what happens. Funny how happy most were with the suburb schools systems until they had to cut some costs.

I hope the AJC takes the next steps and looks at other districts around the U.S. Saying that, administrators should be taking relative salary cuts.

Understanding Atlanta

May 24th, 2010
9:12 am

DD – You are right. I was having that discussion with a current teacher a few months ago. I believe the administration side of school systems should be run by those with expertise in that area.

Maybe the superintendent should be a figure head that looks good and can motivate faculty and staff, with a team (1 for administration, 1 for instruction, 1 for strategic planning) that gets the actual work done. A novel concept I know, but maybe worth a shot, instead of having superintendents be those with 20 years of classroom experience (which could be mediocre at best) and not know how to balance a budget, prioritize projects, or streamline operations to make money other programs.

Understanding Atlanta

May 24th, 2010
9:19 am

realdawg – I understand what you’re saying.

Question? CEO’s report to boards that are comprised of people that have in most cases done well in their field, proven themselves to be successful, and shareholders have confidence in their ability. What do we do with school boards that don’t exude that confidence? I’m a resident of DeKalb County and I DO NOT have confidence in the DCSS School Board. I beleive they are well-meaning in theory, but lack the skill to put it into practice and thus many of the issues we face. The fact they are well-meaning gets them re-elected, but the lack of good or even fair implementation of ideas steady puts us behind.

realdawg

May 24th, 2010
9:25 am

Understanding Atlanta-The reality is that schools boards are a very tough job. A good example of what to do would be to look at a school board like Fairfax in Virginia. You have very senior people that are/were educators, lawyers, accountants, long time active parents, etc. They have the experience and education to allow them to lead and properly manage the administration. When done properly the administration manages and recommends and the school board gives direction.

The harderest part is finding people like this and encouraging them to run.

realdawg

May 24th, 2010
9:26 am

This is what a school board should look like:

http://www.fcps.edu/schlbd/members.htm

James R

May 24th, 2010
9:29 am

Especially in Cobb, we need a professional to lead our school board with the vacuous members we currently have. Sanderson is worth every penny. With board members like Bartlett and Morgan who ask stupid questions that everyone already knows the answer to, just to look like they’re involved. Bartlett especially should be recalled. She’s proved she can’t be trusted. What else does she need to do to rise to the level of incompetency to warrant a recall?

Now if we could hire a competent attorney who doesn’t cost millions and who knew the difference between legal and illegal actions by the board. Ours apparently doesn’t, yet we pay an exorbitant cost for his suspect legal services. What do other school systems pay their attorneys?

Proud Black Man

May 24th, 2010
9:30 am

@ AlreadySheared

“(please note for the record that I put music and rap into two separate categories).”

You tea (insert the name that cannot be mentioned) never quit do you?

Proud Black Man

May 24th, 2010
9:41 am

@ realdawg

“This is what a school board should look like:”

All white. Is that what you are trying to say?

realdawg

May 24th, 2010
9:50 am

@ Proud Black Man – LOL, I didn’t even look at the pics. Guess that is a difference between you and me. I feel qualifications are more important than color.

John

May 24th, 2010
9:53 am

I have never been a school administrator. However, from what I see and know, they deserve every penny they get. Nobody has more pressure in a job than a superintendent or high school principal. And, in response to one statement, teacvhers in Georgia do not receive low salaries. That was the case 305 or 40 years ago but teachers today–and I am related to several of them, including my wife–are well compensated, especially when retirement and fringe benefits are taken into account. They also deserve every penny they get.

John

May 24th, 2010
9:59 am

We don’t need a un iform curriculum and a statewide list of subjects. I moved around quite a bit growing up, going to eight different school systems in four different states. I graduated with honors as the valedictorian of my high school class (and was glad I didn’t go to one of those stupid schools like the one in metro Atlanta who wiuldn’t let a student be valedictorian because he hadn’t attended there for five semesters.) I never had any problem catching up or adapting to a different curriculum or different teacher.

Lynn43

May 24th, 2010
10:07 am

The legislature had a chance this year to increase the level of competence of school boards, but they didn’t. All they cared about was the nepotism issue. They should have also include qualifications of a college degree (would have left out Handel) and no, if very little, pay. The School Board should not be your source of income and career. A person should be on the School Board (only) because they want to help produce a top school system.

Sandy Springs Guy

May 24th, 2010
10:08 am

High results should be rewarded with high pay. When the school systems stop producing so many students ill prepared to function at a high level in society, they should be paid accordingly. Most private CEO’s are rewarded through stock and bonuses after they have accomplished their goals – perhaps the super’s should be paid after all the standard tests are graded and graduation rates are tallied.

Understanding Atlanta

May 24th, 2010
10:14 am

realdawg – That’s impressive, each board member brings quite a bit to the table. The hard part is getting the right caliber of people to run.

William Casey

May 24th, 2010
10:15 am

DAVE FROM GT is right: one 5-year contract for $200,000. Times are tough! Superintendents seldom stay more than 5 years anyway unless the compensation is exorbitant.

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
10:20 am

realdawg
May 24th, 2010
9:08 am

No capping of salaries you socialists.
——————————————————-
By nature, the public school system is already a social program. It is funded with tax payer dollars and has no real income. Therefore, capping the salaries of administration would be in line with the ideology of socialism. I hope you are not an administrator at one of our schools!

Shar

May 24th, 2010
10:21 am

Public bureaucracies should be capped at a reasonable (average of like areas, or geographic proximity?) per-capita level, and should be required to lose no less a percentage than public-facing employees in times of cutbacks. APS has absolutely no reason to have such a ponderous, incompetent, expensive bureaucracy other than the fact that nepotism and favoritism are rampant and the more bodies that report to a supervisor, the more power that supervisor has. None of it has anything to do with improving Atlanta students’ education.

With the cheating that has flourished under Beverly Hall, she should be summarily fired along with her vicious subordinates, and all bonuses returned to the budget as they are performance-based and the performance was falsely reported. APS needs to be forced to lose at least a third of central office administration, starting at the top.

lori

May 24th, 2010
10:28 am

Wow. That’s crazy. I know that we need to be competitive, but a car allowance, really?? I mean, with those salaries, can’t they afford their own car!! I think It’s kind of nuts that they make that much.

realdawg

May 24th, 2010
10:39 am

@Andrew Thomas – Schools derive funding from far more than just tax dollars (grants, fees, etc). There are social apects to schools but there are plenty of other market based forces that drive school function. Public schools are not “free” as prescribed under the socialist philosphy. Parents parent pay much far and above their taxes to have their kids educated in the “public” school system. Parents also have the choice to home school or use their hard earned money or child’s accelerated talent to seek out private schools. In some cases, they can take their tax stipend as use it how the wish to seek out the best solution.

I do sense your socialist tendancies by calling them “our” schools just like they are all “our” children. My children are not yours and neither is their school.

parents just dont understand

May 24th, 2010
10:41 am

“No capping of salaries you socialists.”

“Everytime the wind changes somebody wants to get out the ax. You want to really screw up our schools? Start canning the people that make them function every 4 years and see what happens.”

The people in the classroom are what really make this engine run. Really, all a super is: public relations and to a great degree most principals. Now dont get me wrong principals have to put out a lot of fires; you would not believe the way some “educated” folks behave.

As far as the election thing the top of our government has the chance of changing every 4 years and its worked now for well over 200 years. Electing a super would give more voice to the people about the kind of direction they want. The super could then ask if everyone wants to particpate in RTT or if not be willing to pay higher taxes to help fund education in their district.

AlreadySheared

May 24th, 2010
10:47 am

@PBM,

Having enough taste to be able to tell the difference between music and prurient, narcissistic, and misogynistic filth has nothing to do with politics.

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
10:48 am

@Andrew Thomas – Schools derive funding from far more than just tax dollars (grants, fees, etc). There are social apects to schools but there are plenty of other market based forces that drive school function. Public schools are not “free” as prescribed under the socialist philosphy. Parents parent pay much far and above their taxes to have their kids educated in the “public” school system. Parents also have the choice to home school or use their hard earned money or child’s accelerated talent to seek out private schools. In some cases, they can take their tax stipend as use it how the wish to seek out the best solution.

I do sense your socialist tendancies by calling them “our” schools just like they are all “our” children. My children are not yours and neither is their school.
————————————————

Public schools are funded by tax dollars. Publicly funded entities are social programs. If you pay $0 in property tax, you can still send your child to the public school system if you live in the district. No matter where those dollars come from, they were ultimately part of some tax program. You can argue until your blue in the face, but you show you lack of understanding of our system by your posts. How would the public school system fair if $0 tax dollars were used? When you can answer that question, I’ll continue the debate. Please educate yourself. I now pray you have no part in our education system.

Kdub

May 24th, 2010
10:49 am

It is about time someone brought this out. It is a down right disgrace that he makes that kind of money (Wilbanks). He would never survive in the corporate world. Instead he is a parasite on the backs of the tax payers of Gwinnett. Shame, shame on you and the local school board for allowing this to happen.

ChristieS.

May 24th, 2010
10:49 am

@ Frank:

“The public school system has not progressed in the last 50 years. We still have teachers standing in front of a classroom lecturing students. The Military, Industry and a lot of Goverment agencies has gone to self paced, audio visual, etc as a more cost effective form of education-but not the public school system which is a self serving group like the post office (both dismal failures).”

What you have failed to take into consideration is that all of your examples are ADULT education. These methods don’t work for children who don’t ALREADY have the requisite prior knowledge, much less fully-matured cognitive reasoning. Teaching children is vastly different than teaching adults. I’ve taught adults and I’m learning how to teach children. The two require vastly different skill sets, even if the same end result of “education” is the goal.

Karen

May 24th, 2010
10:50 am

Many of you forget the thousands of students who graduate GCPS and go on to be YOUR bosses, YOUR doctors, YOUR lawyers, YOUR small business owners, CEOs of large companies. And they got into colleges, universities, etc. because of a firm foundation.

Momof2

May 24th, 2010
10:54 am

I simply cannot see what the drawbacks of electing a superintendent are – as it is, the real tough decisions are not being made; the easy ones are. There might even be some drop in cronyism. And cap the salary – this should not be an enrichment opportunity out of line with the salaries of other civil servants at the same level.

d2

May 24th, 2010
10:56 am

Well we can think the state of Georgia for this mess. They took away our right to vote for the superintendent. Oh by the way, I was talking to my neighbors who put their house up for sale and sold–I asked them where they are moving to. They are both teachers and both got a job teaching in Arizona. They said they lived here all their lives but they need to make a living and need to go somewhere where they can get support from a state who believes in education. They told me of the voters in Arizona wanting taxes to help pay for educations I wish them the best of luck. I know another teacher moving to North Carolina because he is sick of Georgia.

maidenga

May 24th, 2010
11:06 am

they make more than 6 or 7 teachers put together. This story is unreal, maybe the job should be put up for election. Once the classrooms have 40 students in them, the teachers will not have any control and the students will be the ones to suffer for it. These big shots should be ashamed that good teachers are losing their jobs so they can keep their own over-paid jobs. this is a disgrace to Georgia. shame, shame, shame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wounded Warrior

May 24th, 2010
11:06 am

GA COUNTIES ELECT CORNORERS, WHY NOT ELECT SUPERINTENDANTS? They would have to prove their efectiveness, and term limits would also apply.

AlreadySheared

May 24th, 2010
11:07 am

Ding dang it!

I made it two thirds of the way there – I wish I had paid a little more attention to my riposte.

If I had only gone with “prurient, BANAL, and misogynistic”, I could have ended up with P.B.M.

Understanding Atlanta

May 24th, 2010
11:08 am

Maybe it’s because I’m young, but how would the dynamics work between the school board and superintendent work if they’re both elected. Would be like a Mayor and City Council – Where the Super is over daily operations and the Board over setting policy and approving the budget. If so, wouldn’t you run the risk of adding an additional layer of politics to the school system, school board vs superintendent in a blame game of who’s at fault.

Even the best CEO’s need a good board to work with

Wounded Warrior

May 24th, 2010
11:09 am

Grasscutters are making over $50k in Henry county…

d

May 24th, 2010
11:09 am

If $129,000 is enough for the state superintendent of schools, it should be more than enough for a local superintendent.

ChristieS.

May 24th, 2010
11:15 am

@d – I heard that!

Pompano

May 24th, 2010
11:19 am

We take people who wouldn’t even rise to being mediocre middle level managers in the Private sector and bestow these outrageous salaries & perks upon them.

Just another reason Private Schools outshine their Public counter-parts

TW

May 24th, 2010
11:20 am

This issue is typical the other detractors that keep our eye off the ball. Blame administrative salaries, blame failing teachers, blame the county in general – but don’t you dare point a finger at the CEO of education, Sonny Perdue.

In Sonny Perdue, the people of GA essentially elected a CEO who doesn’t like the company. And now that the company is tanking, you want to blame admin salaries?

geez…perhaps we deserve this…and the recession for being a bunch of morons…

geez…

Angela

May 24th, 2010
11:21 am

@Poor (Proud Black Man),

You still have not acknowledged that you have some real personal issues that go far back to your childhood. As I told you and can respect you because you have admitted that you do not like Blacks however, as I stated it has been my experience that most BOGGOT don’t even know why they dislike people of a different race. I also, told you that your heart is limited in its life span. Your blood pressure seems to rise 30 points each time you send a response to an e-mail.

@realdawg – the first problem with school boards most of them don’t have a clue on how schools really function much less have an education beyond high school themselves and if they do it is nowhere towards edcuation. I have a true problems with someone telling me what should be done in my classroom when they don’t even have a clue to what the reality is in a classroom.

I do believe that all higher level administrators salaries should be capped especially in the central offices. I don’t know of any position in those offices that is worth 200K. Those salaries should not be any more than 120K and that is with the super. My salary is capped after I reach a certain step and I in many way have more education and experience than many of the administrator in Dekalb’s administration offices.

@frank – I am well aware by your comments that you are not in anyone’s school system. Just for the record we have moved into the 21st and 22nd century with teaching and instruction. I teach second grade and my students are taught from day one how to be self learner. They are usually cut loose within the first two months of school and they do well. If you would investigate majority (if not all)of Georgia school systems have specific strategic learning programs and they all teach students to become self-learners.

Please Please people before you comment on schools and the systems please have the facts and believe me if you are not in one of the schools or systems (I mean empolyed) you TRULY don’t have the facts that you think you have BELIEVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! HUGS & KISSES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PR

May 24th, 2010
11:25 am

Does anyone else find it ironic that Andrew Thomas is dispensing advice about education and he does not seem to be able to grasp simple word usage like fare/fair and you’re/your? Please hand that man a mirror.

conservative democrat

May 24th, 2010
11:26 am

No administrator should make $1 more than the highest paid teacher in that system. Get a grip Georgia. Why would you think these people are more important than the Governor? These are not companies with shareholders and profits. These are bureaucrats. Hall was the one that thought it was a good idea to give teachers a bonus of $2000 if they could improve test scores. No wonder they were erasing wrong answers. Hawaii has one superintendent for the entire state.
These administration jobs could be filled with cops and accountants at $40,000 per year. The entire school leadership curriculum is a waste of time and money. If you don’t believe me, check it out for yourself. The research is clear. Look at what you’re getting for paying these top dollar salaries…the worst education system in the country…that’s what.

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
11:29 am

PR

May 24th, 2010
11:25 am

Does anyone else find it ironic that Andrew Thomas is dispensing advice about education and he does not seem to be able to grasp simple word usage like fare/fair and you’re/your? Please hand that man a mirror.
—————————————————-
Sorry I didn’t spend 10 minutes checking to make sure my post was to your standards of perfection. You understood the point, so move on.

PR

May 24th, 2010
11:34 am

@Andrew Thomas…Just making a point that you come across as very arrogant in your posts. Considering the nature in which you “correct” people, I found your careless mistakes interesting. I certainly hope it does not take you ten minutes to proofread a paragraph. Carry on

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
11:36 am

Though often times the people in charge do not seem qualified enough for their respective positions (or salaries), the real problem is rooted in the strange concoction that is public school. It is true that the fundamental idea and execution of public schooling is indeed socialist, but it is also true that the matter is not so simple: there are other forms of funding to consider, and the level of local control minimizes some aspects of the socialist agenda.

We must compensate good leaders accordingly, but we must also have the power to fire poor ones. The real problem stems from the school boards themselves; they should be doing a better job as stewards of their districts, but in-fighting and nepotism blind them to the task at hand. Yes, if these were private companies, many of them would fail and go out of business–and rightly so. That is where the socialism of public schools complicates the matter.

What is the solution? Some maintain that in order to have an educated electorate, we must maintain public school in some form or fashion. Though I don’t necessarily agree with that position, I respect the idea. Personally, I think that all public money currently pouring into education (local, state, and federal) should be returned to the citizens from which it was collected. A network of private schools will replace the public schools, motivated by profits in the form of increased salaries paid to successful employees. (It is important to note that I do NOT support merit pay. I think successful teaching and valuable experience can be defined in myriad ways, not just by test scores.)

Of course, there will be those who cry out that many of America’s poor don’t pay taxes, so they will recieve nothing with which to pay for their children’s education. I have two responses to this argument: First, it would benefit private schools to set up scholarships in order to attract the “diamonds in the rough.” Secondly, as for everyone else, I honestly couldn’t care less. I think we should do away with welfare, too. But that’s just me.

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
11:39 am

More than one paragraph = stuck in the filter?

I also want to point out how angry people get about our fast track to socialism, yet they feel that it is OK to place salary caps whenever it suits their purposes. As a teacher, I am NOT in favor of capping ANYONE’s salary. Though the system is socialist, we live in a free economy, one that trades value for value. We would do well to remember that.

d2

May 24th, 2010
11:47 am

disregard already sheared –it is a paid blogger by our wonderful state department of education

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
11:52 am

@PR
Do you have anything of substance to add to the blog debate? I imagine you would defend your bloated administrator salary 500 feet under the sea.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
11:52 am

“I know another teacher moving to North Carolina because he is sick of Georgia.”

Good luck to him. NC wanted me to teach year-round for $30,000 with a Masters degree. I might as well work at McDonald’s.

@ conservative democrat

May 24th, 2010
11:55 am

What a weired idea you propose.

PR

May 24th, 2010
11:56 am

@Andrew Thomas, I actually believe superintendents and many administrators are grossly overpaid, but I do not think the broken system will change anytime soon. While I agree with much of your message, I do not care for the delivery style. I will leave you alone, though. I obviously struck a nerve.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
11:58 am

I do agree that car and cell phone allowances are excessive for anyone who makes this kind of money. Also, the idea of reimbursing his own retirement is crazy. That should definitely be eliminated especially since it isn’t afforded to anyone else.

But Wilbanks, unlike other metro area supers, will actually be taking the furlough days right along with his staff. And he cannot receive a raise unless the other employees do. Since everyone’s salaries are being frozen, his pay will decrease just like everyone else. Gwinnett has also faired better than any other metro Atlanta district with regard to layoffs. Is he worth nearly $400k? That’s debatable, but with few teacher layoffs when compared to the rest of metro Atl, high graduation rates, and stellar schools clearly the man is doing something right.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
12:01 pm

@AlreadySheared: we don’t pay the salaries of businessmen, rappers and ball players. We do pay into the salaries for our president and superintendents. Come back when you can make sense.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
12:06 pm

“they make more than 6 or 7 teachers put together.”

Not just 6 or 7 teachers, but 6 or 7 teachers with 15+ years of experience. Those are the only teachers making $55k in this state. I have a friend with a PhD and 5 years of experience and she doesn’t even make that much.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
12:07 pm

“Grasscutters are making over $50k in Henry county…”

Clearly a lot of us are in the wrong field

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
12:08 pm

My post about the average teacher making $55k was eaten. Did it mention how many years of experience these teachers had? It should.

AlreadySheared

May 24th, 2010
12:22 pm

@Yelp.
I’m back. You DO pay the salaries of businessmen, rappers and ball players when you pay for their goods and services. There isn’t anything magical about tax dollars – they spend just like all the rest.

Until you find a way to repeal market forces in a free society, we’ll have to pay somewhere near the going rate for superintendents. Wishing it weren’t so won’t change it.

Crunk D

May 24th, 2010
12:30 pm

We sure are paying a whole lot of money to end up in LAST PLACE with Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi.

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
12:30 pm

AlreadySheared

May 24th, 2010
12:22 pm

@Yelp.
I’m back. You DO pay the salaries of businessmen, rappers and ball players when you pay for their goods and services. There isn’t anything magical about tax dollars – they spend just like all the rest.

Until you find a way to repeal market forces in a free society, we’ll have to pay somewhere near the going rate for superintendents. Wishing it weren’t so won’t change it.
—————————————————–
Taxation is forced by law, buying good and services is done by choice. When was the last time you were threatened with prison time for not going to a Brave’s game?

K Teacher

May 24th, 2010
12:35 pm

I don’t have a problem with a Superintendent making upwards of $200,000 to $300,000. I do have a problem with all of the underlings (asst. superintendents, lead teachers (IE: literacy coach, math coach, etc), curriculum specialists, etc, etc, getting paid $100,000 to fill up file cabinets coming up with more paper work that has nothing to do with the classroom or that directly affects or benefits our students.

K Teacher

May 24th, 2010
12:37 pm

Let us teach and stop changing things every couple years on the whims of a few who couldn’t cut it in the classroom or as an administrator.

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
12:37 pm

AlreadySheared,

There IS a bit of a difference: I choose to support various businesses by paying for their good or services; however, tax dollars are extorted from me by force–with the threat of imprisonment if I do not pay. I decide what to do with my money; the government decides what to do with OTHER PEOPLE’S money. I would argue that one spends his own money more wisely than he spends another’s money.

HS tchr

May 24th, 2010
12:46 pm

School systems are NOT corporations and don’t need a CEO style leader. I most emphatically do not believe that a super should be compensated as they are in the metro area. It’s ridiculous and has not directly contributed to a single point of improvement on any test of children’s success. When supers were elected, they were more responsive to and concerned about parents, teacher, and other voters. I understand why that changed, but I don’t think the result thas helped any.

When schools and sytems became corporate career-ladder professions, the undoing of public education was begun. How nice it is to know you can run a school system and get full contractual payment regardless of performance. What a golden parachute the taxpayers are providing.

In my district, thankfully, the super is a member of the community and regularly meets with parents, teachers, and school administrators. She is approachable, frequently in contact with all employees, and easy to get to if you need to speak with her. She doesn’t have, because our county can’t afford, layer after layer of underlings to further separate her from the people she serves and manages. You could double or even triple my pay and I wouldn’t go back to metro ATL.

d2

May 24th, 2010
12:47 pm

Already Sheared is A PAID BLOGGER-TRUST ME

Gwinnett HS Teacher

May 24th, 2010
12:50 pm

I believe Wilbanks is properly compensated based on the number of employees he oversees. Gwinnett is consistently among the best school systems in the state and exceeds national averages in most categories. If the county’s educational system is successful, why shouldn’t the individual “in charge” be compensated appropriately?

Bottom line, you get what you pay for.

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
12:54 pm

HS tchr,

“When schools and sytems became corporate career-ladder professions, the undoing of public education was begun.”

If you’re a teacher, statements such as this one confound me. Did I choose a life of indentured servitude when I became a teacher? Of course I knew the pay scale before I took the job, but I don’t remember assuming that I’d be stuck doing the same thing for thirty years with no hope of professional or financial improvement. We WANT teaching to be upwardly mobile; we WANT teachers to feel as though they can increase their pay; we WANT teachers to look towards the top of the system and think “why not me?”

Though I agree with many that merit pay is NOT the way to do it, I think a system CAN be put into practice that rewards teachers in some form or fashion. It might require a combination of professional development (including advanced degrees from reputable schools) and classroom observation/lesson plan creation and implementation, but I think it can be done.

This talk of salary capping and socialism is getting scary. It’s no wonder our country seems so content with its current direction. (I’m witholding further analysis until AFTER the election. I want to see if it really is an “anti-incumbant” year, or if people will fall back into the same old voting habits.)

Proud Black Man

May 24th, 2010
1:07 pm

@ Angela

I take no advice from the white right or their lapdog toms and sycophants.

d2

May 24th, 2010
1:09 pm

Guess what the superintendent and the board done in Macon, Ga. They forced teachers at four of the high schools to sign as part of their contract saying that they will show an increase in student performance as a condition for the hiring. Amazing–superintendents overpaid and power hungery too.

d2

May 24th, 2010
1:11 pm

should be hungry not hungrey—don’t worry someone will find fault wiht the typos I make.

john konop

May 24th, 2010
1:15 pm

We had Kathy Cox increase her staff at the DOE by 25% since 2006 and the local districts took care of high paid management while cutting teachers. This is not going to fly with voters.

Before we laid-off any teachers we should of done the following:

1) Cut the DOE by at least 50%
2) Cut all administrators salaries by 20% making over 6 figures.
3) Cut all administrators by 20%
4) Require all administrators to teach 1 class.
5) Charge a fuel fee to make bus service revenue neutral
6) Charge a fee for all extra activity at the school to make it revenue neutral
7) Put a freeze all new building and see if we can use cross utilize existing space ie high school class space for colleges courses at night.
Put a freeze on all travel and entertainment expense at the local level as well as the DOE
9) Increase lunch fees at a rate that it becomes revenue neutral
10) Solicit volunteer community help for office and class room assistants

It is very difficult to ask people to sacrifice when management will not do the same!

HS tchr

May 24th, 2010
1:24 pm

V- I’m a teacher and I’m all for teachers moving up and receiving incentives for better performance. What I don’t like is the notion that if you’re not shooting for a county office job, you’re just a useless wage-earner. I love being in the classroom and have no desire to leave- and haven’t after 22 years. In a corporate environment, if you’re not moving up in some way, then you’re nobody. Teaching is just not the same. There are those wonderful, beloved teachers who are perfect at what they are and shouldn’t feel bad because they aren’t interested in ever being anything else.

That was the only point I was trying to make. I think the pay caps are way beyond ridiculous. I hit the last step last year- didn’t get it and won’t get it this year, but maybe I will before I retire….I hope.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
1:26 pm

I never understand the premise that its ok to cut a superintedent’s pay from $400,000 to $125,000 and it makes the world fair. Teachers are complaining about furlough days and losing $2,000 dollars are more because of it, but yet find it acceptable to decrease someone esles pay by more than $200,000 plus thousands dollar. Why? To make them feel better. Teachers should not envy the successes of a superintendent. If the teachers blogging on this post are so effective and so great at their jobs then you should attempt to be a superintendent and walk a mile in their shoes. Criticizing those at the top is a easy thing to do, but moving beyond rhetoric and actually doing something takes more guts. If teachers are so conscious of pay and saving teachers job than those of you making $55,000 take a pay cut and save your fellow colleagues. Many of you won’t take the pay cut because it’s easier to reach into someone else’s pocket rather than your own.

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
1:27 pm

@john konop
You have great ideas. But, what you have proposed would require thinking that is different than our local districts current ideology. You are asking for administrators to make decisions that are in the best interest of the student.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
1:28 pm

I never understand the premise that its ok to cut a superintedent’s pay from $400,000 to $125,000 and it makes the world fair. Teachers are complaining about furlough days and losing $2,000 dollars are more because of it, but yet find it acceptable to decrease someone esles pay by more than $200,000 plus thousands dollar. Why? To make them feel better. Teachers should not envy the successes of a superintendent. If the teachers blogging on this post are so effective and so great at their jobs then you should attempt to be a superintendent and walk a mile in their shoes. Criticizing those at the top is a easy thing to do, but moving beyond rhetoric and actually doing something takes more guts. If teachers are so conscious of pay and saving teachers job than those of you making $55,000 take a pay cut and save your fellow colleagues. Many of you won’t take the pay cut because it’s easier to reach into someone else’s pocket rather than your own. Just a Thought

HS tchr

May 24th, 2010
1:35 pm

Guess I’m caught in the filter, AGAIN!!!

V- I’m a teacher, and I’m not saying there shouldn’t be incentives, raises, opportunities to move up. In a typical corporate environment, you’re either trying to move up or move out. I don’t think education should be that way. Schools do best when there are teachers in the schools for the long haul who know the communities they serve, and who are happy just being a teacher. Once upon a time, that meant you were respected on a level with a corporate exec. I think now you’re looked down upon if you’re not trying to get the next county office “promotion” or heading into leadership. We’re damaging schools when we encourage too much movement, and teachers are obviously the low man on the totem pole anymore.

That was my only point, I definitely think the salary cap is bull. I hit the last step last year, and might, MIGHT actually see that raise before I retire….I hope.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:40 pm

“I’m back. You DO pay the salaries of businessmen, rappers and ball players when you pay for their goods and services. There isn’t anything magical about tax dollars – they spend just like all the rest.”

Yeah, I willingly pay for those services. They aren’t deducted from my pay every month nor are they optional. While we’re discussing goods and servies I do have clues for sale

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
1:45 pm

Filter Done It Again

john konop

May 24th, 2010
1:45 pm

Andrew Thomas,

I think voters need to stand up and say enough is enough. And we may look at electing the School Superintendent.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:46 pm

“Though I agree with many that merit pay is NOT the way to do it, I think a system CAN be put into practice that rewards teachers in some form or fashion. It might require a combination of professional development (including advanced degrees from reputable schools) and classroom observation/lesson plan creation and implementation, but I think it can be done.”

How is this different from the national board certification supplement that was just axed by the state?

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm

@john konop: Speaking of bussing, I was quite flabbergasted to learn theat metro Atlanta buses all students. In my day, you walked if you were within a mile. No wonder our kids are fat and lazy. There are kids being bussed one block from the school! Elementary I can kinda understand (though we walked then, too, and survived) but middle and high school kids within a mile of the school should definitely be able to WALK. That would save tons of $ on fuel costs. But what I do I know.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm

Superintendent pay reflect their responsibilities. Teachers should not be for the reduction of anyones pay in education. It amazing teachers want to decrease the pay of superintendents by a $100,000 or more , but complain about their pay being reduced by $2,000 due to furlough days. Teachers are being hypocritics in this sense, they are angry at the general public for saying “Teachers make to much money and the Teacher Retirement is a golden parachute” but then teachers attack professionals in their field saying” Superintendents make to much money”. Teachers can’t argue both sides. If teachers made $250,000 would they be happy with a $100,000 pay cut? Heck NO.

john konop

May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm

GSU Student,

It is not about making the world fair it is about leadership. I have successfully turned around companies in the red. And the key lesson I have learned is the concept of shared sacrifice not only breads loyalty but also creates productivity.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm

*that, before the grammar police come for me.

john konop

May 24th, 2010
1:51 pm

Yelp ,

Very good point about walking!

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:52 pm

“Teaching is just not the same. There are those wonderful, beloved teachers who are perfect at what they are and shouldn’t feel bad because they aren’t interested in ever being anything else. ”

This is why I left the field, tapped out after seven years. I came in when NCLB was fresh and things just have not been the same since the almighty test reigns supreme.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:54 pm

“teachers are so conscious of pay and saving teachers job than those of you making $55,000 take a pay cut and save your fellow colleagues. Many of you won’t take the pay cut because it’s easier to reach into someone else’s pocket rather than your own.”

Many have taken the cut AND some, and many jobs have been saved as a result. Yet folks are still being laid on in some counties in spite of. Know what you’re talking about before blabbing.

Yelp

May 24th, 2010
1:57 pm

GSU student: many of the people posting here have agreed with your stance and some are indeed teachers. Many of the people who are dismayed by the salaries are NOT teachers, but ARE tax paying citizens. Did you even bother to READ the thread?? Good grief.

Gilmer County

May 24th, 2010
2:07 pm

We’ve been given 10 furlough days for next year and we have taken a 4% cut locally. However, NO ONE, I repeat, NO ONE, at the system level has had to take a cut because they negotiate their own contracts with the school board. Whatever happened to “leading by example?”

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
2:07 pm

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
1:50 pm
————————————————–
Do you pay property tax? How about income tax?

the prof

May 24th, 2010
2:09 pm

PBM isn’t black. I know who he is and he is a white person trying to bait you.

Proud Black Man

May 24th, 2010
2:10 pm

Who am I then? Your futile attempts at clairvoyance amuse me.

SeaIsland

May 24th, 2010
2:14 pm

Average income for a family of four (4) in America: $52,000. Why is a superintendent, any public servant, worth more?

In the shadow of financial Armageddon an outraged populace is beginning to stir.

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
2:16 pm

HS tchr,

I agree. Perhaps I should have clarified that “upwardly mobile” doesn’t have to be linked to your title. I would prefer to stay in the classroom, too. I like it much better in here.

Yelp,

Yes and no. I’m thinking of something done locally, on a school-by-school basis. To my knowledge, National Boards does not have a PLU or degree requirement. I’m also assuming (and I know what people say about assuming . . .) that the degrees and PLUs would be far more relevant than they are today–i.e., reputable schools and applicable professional training, not degree mills and pie-in-the-sky BS

V for Vendetta

May 24th, 2010
2:16 pm

what is with the filter today!?

younger_teacher

May 24th, 2010
2:23 pm

Why should superintendents make more than a governor or the vice president? Why should they be making almost as much as the president?? This makes no sense.

Doris M

May 24th, 2010
2:41 pm

Based on the performance of Georgia students, all the superintendents are over paid, especially Beverly Hall.

Felicity

May 24th, 2010
2:49 pm

Fred is over paid! I’m a parent who has no confidence in his ability. I’ve witnessed him not correcting administrators who don’t follow state and federal laws. The state will issue decisions against Cobb, and at the next board meeting he issues praise. He’s unfit to lead. Mandatory National Certification as a requirement for advancement and the online degrees are a joke. Administrators will hold a PhD, but has never and will never publish. Forget Obama’s salary, they are earning more than GaTech professors.

Casuality of RIF

May 24th, 2010
2:51 pm

Government in education….socialism? Let’s go back to teachers doing just that…teach instead of jumping hoops to do all the nonsense required by the powers that be. Reciting standards to student EVERY DAY does not add to their knowledge base other than knowing what the state thinks they should know. Posting standards on my wall wastes paper that my students could use to learn to read and write. Posting student work on the wall with teacher commentary takes time that a teacher should use to tutor a struggling student. RTI’s are another big waste of time, documentation of what I am already doing is keeping me from doing it.

As far as administrators, they aren’t CEO’s. I need them to bring some effective discipline policies and actions to the classroom so all students can learn. That is worth whatever they make…if they are effective anyway.

Sid Camp

May 24th, 2010
3:29 pm

Lets be honest;

Many administrators are those who flee the classroom because they can’t teach but they can earn a degree which somehow qualifies them for a management position. Thus the inherent failure of education.

Instead of the best managers, we get the best students. Instead of the best superintendents, we get the good ole boy network.

As for this person referenced in this piece. He is not worth the time or energy. He doesnt care about us, his teachers or his students. He only cares about being right and being in control. He is Mr. Potter from its a Wonderful life but without the charm.

oldtimer

May 24th, 2010
3:30 pm

When we are done being grossed out by superintendant’s high pay, we should examine principals, human resources, and every other postion. There are way too many overpaid people. Seems once someone is out of the classroom, the pay sky rockets.

Angela

May 24th, 2010
3:32 pm

@GSU Student,

Andrew Thomas made a good point by asking you those questions. While you are asking why don’t teachers step up, you might want to take a deeper interest in if you will be able to make a living at all. The Bushes are living quite well. The question is will you live as a peaseant or comfortable.

Also, just for the record the superintendents are not who does the work it is the teachers. Believe me the super would not have a job if we did not come to work and perform our duties. We as classroom teacher not only make the super look good but all of the other administrators.

BlueDawg

May 24th, 2010
3:34 pm

Presidents, Governors, Vice-Presidents are all constitutional officers. Their pay is determined by the respective legislatures. Superintendants are hired by school boards who have to compete for chief executives, which is what they are on the open market. You want a great executive to run your school system, it is going to cost money. That is one of the quirks of living in a free market society.

The risk of going back to direct election of Superintendnats is that a politicians first job is always to get re-elected. Do you really want that mentality driving policy for your local BOE?

DD

May 24th, 2010
3:51 pm

In Marietta City School, the superintended made $200+K in 2009, but no one else made more than $130K. It is definitely a much smaller system, but they seem to be doing pretty well, relatively speaking. I know a lot of people talk about small systems merging, but I wonder if a smaller system has its advantage – Marietta has only 3 Deputy/Assistant superintendent.

DD

May 24th, 2010
3:53 pm

As long as the superintendent is appointed, they will have to offer then $200K salaries. If you make it an elected position, they can limit the pay at a lower level. Of course, then we risk people who wants to get “power” and consider the superintendency as a stepping stone to a higher level political office.

Proud Black Man

May 24th, 2010
4:06 pm

@ Angela

“The question is will you live as a peaseant or comfortable.”

“Also, just for the record the superintendents are not who does the work it is the teachers.”

“We as classroom teacher not only make the super look good…”

Please quit tea (insert the name that cannot be mentioned). Your frontal lobes are about gone!

the prof

May 24th, 2010
4:06 pm

Shall I post your name, address, and phone number on this blog???

Sam

May 24th, 2010
4:40 pm

She doesn’t get a bonus unless she meets testing goals – how about not getting paid until you do?! WHY DO YOU NEED A $600 CAR ALLOWANCE? CAN’T AFFORD ONE ON 300K? In some counties, teachers are losing their houses and lives and these fat cats are no better than the jerks on wall street.

Hank Rearden

May 24th, 2010
5:11 pm

It’s just not very Christian for Georgia Republicans to crap on our kids like this.

Do they think throwing a ten in the plate on Sundays buys them the freedom to give others the finger the rest of the week?

@ GSU student

May 24th, 2010
5:28 pm

“Superintendent pay reflect their responsibilities. ”

I agree. But with responsibility comes accountability. I don’t think there is a parent/taxpayer in the metro area that wouldn’t agree that superintendents who are good stewards of our money should be adequately rewarded. We taxpayers pay the bills. I pay thousands and thousands a year in property taxes, sales tax, and income tax, and my child is not even in the school system anymore.

Parents/taxpayers don’t ask for much. We just expect for every child to have:
A reasonably sized classroom with a competent, well compensated teacher and access to abundant and cutting edge technology and science equipment.

In DeKalb Schools, we have a $1,000,000,000 (yes – a billion dollar) budget (that’s actual money we have coming in this year) and 97,000 students. That’s over $10,300 a year per student. We have the money to educate our students, but not to become a “jobs program”. Currently, in DCSS we have 8,500 admin and support, but only 6,800 teachers and we are eliminating teacher positions. We have declining scores, increasing class sizes and awful customer service. The buck stops with the superintendent, and he/she must be held accountable. Compensation is one of the most effective ways to bring about accountability. Another is to relieve the superintendent of his/her position.

I do not believe DeKalb citizens are the only taxpayers experiencing this “jobs program” mentality although our situation may be the most egregious. I have looked at the numbers of admin and support for other systems, and it is apparent that most metro systems have superintendents that have much to be accountable for as well.

Rewarding poor performance is not fiscally prudent. When you’ve worked for a few years (I spent 30 in education and 8 in the corporate world), you’ll realize that the bottom line really is what makes the wheels go round.

Dr. John Trotter

May 24th, 2010
5:55 pm

Superintendent Salaries Are Outrageous!

By John R. Alston Trotter, EdD, JD

Most of Georgia’s superintendents (and in other states also) aren’t worth metaphorically wasting a bullet on them. That was a metaphor. You have heard someone say, I am sure: “He ain’t worth shootin’.” Well, my grandfather would say: “He ain’t worth wasting a bullet on.” Now that I have cleared up the fact that I am not violent nor do I ever advocate violence, let me now say this rather categorically: Most superintendents have to eat a lot of “do do” to get in the position of being “vetted” by the good ole boy system that is somewhat self-perpetuating and incestuous here in Georgia — and I am sure in other states as well. Since they had to eat so much “do do” to be where they needed to be in order to be tabbed as the next “savior” for whatever school system is desperate (like when Atlanta hired Beverly Hall in 1999 — heck, she had made a complete mess of New Jersey!), these booger-eaters and butt-kissers then tend to think that they deserve these whopping salaries from the public trough. At best they are just the top educrat on the educational totem pole, but they do not interact with any students. They issue top-down, heavy-handed commands as if this is some type of effectual “reform” (this is truly a worn-out word which I detest). All — let me repeat…ALL — so-called educational “reforms” which have been touted and ballyhooed through years have panned out to be abject failures, and I challenge anyone to defy this statement, especially these wannabe State Superintendents.

Yes, these school superintendents’ salaries (and benefits) are way out of line. Like I said, most of these creatures aren’t worth their salt when it comes to running a school system. I am sorry that you have to hear the blunt truth from me, but I don’t apologize nor vacillate one scintilla. They are the problems, not the “saviors.” Someone needs to stand up and say that Alvin Wilbanks, Beverly Hall, Edmond Heatley, Cindy Loe, Fred Sanderson, Crawford Lewis (and his interim replacement), et al., are naked as a jaybird. The educational emperors (and they do act like emperors, don’t they?) are naked. Why are people so afraid to point this out? I commend the Atlanta Journal-Constitution for shedding some needed light on the superintendents’ outrageous salaries and the concomitant behemoth bureaucracies which the superintendents establish to serve them, not the students. (c) MACE, May 25, 2010.

Fed up former teacher

May 24th, 2010
5:57 pm

What exactly does J. Alvin do? He has croonies or rather area superintendents over each cluster. I worked for Gwinnett for several years and I have never seen the man in person. He doesn’t visit the schools. He has never been a classroom educator. He worked for Gwinnett Technical school. He doesn’t know the first thing about what a kindergarten student needs or how they learn. I wish someone wouldn’t be so fearful of this corrupt school system and do some investigating.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
6:10 pm

Yelp – Yes I cared to read the articles and comments that followed. I have read many comments where teachers have bashed administrators for their pay. Great teachers and great administrators create a conducive enviroment for learning. The notion that a principal does nothing but twiddle his/her thumbs is crazy to me. Tax payers have a right to question salaries and I truly believe that. But the tx payers seems to be outraged at teachers or administrators making significant money.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
6:14 pm

Yelp- Teachers are not asking for their salaries to be cut to protect the jobs of their colleagues. Teachers pay are being cut(unjustly) due to things beyond their controls. Teaching is a fine profession and I stem from a family that has two principals and a professor in the family. I believe in education and I believe in teachers, but I am not a believer or cutting someones pay in which they earned solely because people believe teachers and administrators are second rate.professionals.

Support Staff

May 24th, 2010
6:28 pm

In Cobb County, the RIF criteria was that you were employed for less than 2 years, or had been in your current position for less than 2 years (regardless of how long you had been a county employee). The best part about this is that one of our Asst. Superintendents has been with the county for less than two years, and his wife moved to her new “position” (i.e. created just for her) in central office last year. Oh, and her husband is the boss of her boss. Both of them make over $100,000, and yet the 2 year criteria did not apply to them. The central office positions cut in Cobb had nothing to do with admin. There are various departments that fall under the central office umbrella, and those departments must determine who counts as a “cut” position. For example, 6 school social workers were eliminated, so that is 6 less “central office” employees.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
6:28 pm

Angela – You must give superintendents some credit.The superintendents I have come into contact with write grants for their districts and allocate resources so teachers can go to development classes and learn research based teaching strategies that are proven to be successful in the classroom. All superintendents aren’t perfect, just as all teachers aren’t perfect.I do believe that teachers are the backbone of a school system. Classroom teachers are the most important persons to students in a school system because they interact with the students on a daily basis. Teachers and administrators are both part of helping students be successful. A school without a strong administration that backs its teachers is not worth two cents

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
6:31 pm

Andrew Thomas – Yes I pay property taxes and income tax. Does my tax bracket dictate whether or not I get to have an opinion?

Andrew Thomas

May 24th, 2010
6:47 pm

@GSU Student
So are you a student or not?

HStchr

May 24th, 2010
6:57 pm

Blue Dawg- elected supers may not be the answer, but I do recall as a young teacher that they were more connected to and concerned about voters (parents, teachers, community members). The job was usually given to someone more involved in the community. You didn’t have someone swooping in from across the country who had no idea what the community was about and a lot less corporate layering of management to shield them from the actual constituents they served.

Yes they want to get reelected and thus are more concerned about system success. As it is now, even if they are awful and screw up royally, the system has to pay out the contract to get rid of them. That really bothers me.

another Hall parent

May 24th, 2010
6:57 pm

An elected superintendent would fix a lot of problems. What do we need to do to get this ball rolling?

Fed up former teacher

May 24th, 2010
7:08 pm

GSU student ummm our superintendent makes 13,000 dollars less than our President of the United States. He is only responsible for 1 single school system of roughly 149,000 students. Our president is over 50 states, health care, wars, bombs, our troops etc. Do you not see the big picture? Wilbanks shouldn’t make what he does especially when we have area superintendents to over see the Gwinnett school clusters.

HStchr

May 24th, 2010
7:24 pm

another Hall parent: contact your legislators and spread the word. That’s how we ended up with appointed supers. At the time, it seemed like a good way to reduce the politics of the position and ease often contentious relationships with the BOE. I was in Clayton county in those days and quickly got a bad taste for the whole process. Suddenly we had supers who were impossible to contact, who created layer upon layer of uselss positions for their friends, and who had to be paid more and more to be competitive with other systems and business. At one point, we were paying TWO contracts for supers who failed miserably. Like many systems, Clayton also began hiring supers with absolutely NO educational background, which only made matters worse. It is just not right that the superintendent, a taxpayer funded job, should not be directly, via votes, connected to the people he/she serves. We don’t pay teachers or anyone else based on business models, so why should the super be paid that way? Why should Beverly Hall get bonuses that teachers, who actually did the work, have no access to? Unfortunately, we are a long uphill battle away from getting the legislature to realize that the current system isn’t working and needs to be changed.

d

May 24th, 2010
7:43 pm

Fed up — for what it’s worth (and I attended GCPS when Wilbanks was promoted) Gwinnett Tech was part of the Gwinnett School System…. so basically they promoted a “principal” to be the superintendent. Compared to the crook he replaced, I’ll say that was an improvement….. but his time has long passed in my opinion. I worked for GCPS for a few years but left for DeKalb — a decision I don’t regret at all. Despite our problems, I’ve been allowed to teach a bit more — put the pretty pictures up on the wall the people making too much money want to see and go about my business helping students.

Anne Keegan

May 24th, 2010
7:58 pm

Take into consideration that a large # of tax paying citizens relieve the public school systems in favor of private education. There is no ’superintendent’, thus we save a bundle there. Perhaps if the county systems were abolished and returned to their neighborhoods, we could hire the amount of staff needed for our schools and actually rise to the distinction of higher than 49 or 50th in the union!

john konop

May 24th, 2010
8:04 pm

GSU Student

Looks like Andrew Thomas caught GSU Student!

Dr. Trotter tells the truth

May 24th, 2010
8:05 pm

While PAGE and GAE twiddle their thumbs and heap praise and accolades on educrats that time proves deserved neither, Dr. Trotter tells the truth.

Maybe that’s why so many who criticized him in the past turned tail and ran, when he challenged them by name to an open formal debate.

Lee

May 24th, 2010
8:16 pm

Wilbanks makes twice the money as his next in line. You cannot tell me that one of his direct reports could not step in and do just as good a job (or bad, depending on your perspective) as he.

Years ago, school systems began the practice of conducting national searches for superintendents. It began a merry-go-round of superintendents punching their ticket and always working for the next bigger piece of the pie.

My pet peeve, if you have an assistant superintendent and (s)he is not capable of stepping into the role of super, demote them and get someone who can. Fill the super positions from within and forego the national talent searches.

Hank Rearden

May 24th, 2010
8:35 pm

Dr. Trotter panders to teachers — that’s his schtick. He’d Throw his mother under the bus for a buck. Just another low-life lawyer who couldn’t make it in the real world.

Let's find out

May 24th, 2010
8:35 pm

Let’s cap superintendent pay at $125k for the next decade, and really see if student achievement drops in half.

Dr. Trotter tells the truth

May 24th, 2010
8:38 pm

There’s a long line of people who want to criticize Dr. Trotter. And what do they all have in common? When challenged to engage Dr. Trotter in an open, formal debate they all turned tail and ran.

But if people want to keep on arguing for the status quo, as represented by GAE and PAGE, by all means, continue to argue for education as it currently stands in Georgia.

Dekalbite

May 24th, 2010
8:42 pm

“An elected superintendent would fix a lot of problems. What do we need to do to get this ball rolling?’

Change the GA constitution for one thing.

Testimony

May 24th, 2010
9:04 pm

One look at the line of degenerates Trotter ‘represents’ reveals him to be the bottom feeder he is.

d

May 24th, 2010
9:13 pm

Just one note about the appointed superintendent thing, as Dekalbite states, we gotta change the Constitution. The Constitution was approved by Georgia voters, so we did that to ourselves. The only concern I have with electing a superintendent is that if we do it for a typical 4-year term is we’ll have politicians who are more interested in keeping their jobs than actually doing their jobs, or if they get voted out (or term-limited out), we’ll end up with people like our wonderful governor who doesn’t have to answer to anyone and we all see how many wonderful things Houston County is getting while the rest of the state suffers.

Hmmm

May 24th, 2010
9:38 pm

Complicated jobs require talented people. And, most often you get exactly what you pay for. This idea that we can have great leaders or teachers without reasonable compensation is baloney.

Can you argue that Hall’s getting almost three times Wilbanks’ salary on a per pupil basis was money well spent–sure! Should the Dekalb County Superintendent have been fired–yes. At 61% of their combined salaries and in charge of an additional 10,000 children, I would say say Mr. Willbanks is a bargain.

Are some systems top heavy with central office administration–yes. Should people be upset that schools in some counties cheated–yes! Will schools have to tighten belts like everyone else during the downturn–certainly.

However, Mr. Willbanks was just recognized as one of the top superintendents in the country while Gwinnett County received a national top honor as a Broad Finalist. Lumping all superintendents together is just plain dumb.

HStchr

May 24th, 2010
9:47 pm

d- not if we push for constitutional changes to make them answerable to voters. A super represents a much smaller population than the governor, and if we term limit them and require access to voters, we can circumvent a good deal of the “I’m here and you can’t do anything about it” mentality. I was very much in favor of appointing supers before the national talent searches began. At the time, the elected supers were often in direct conflict with the board and not always required to work with them. We can rewrite the laws/regulations to limit that and require consensus with and approval from BOE. We could require more voter input via special votes called for from the public, especially where money is concerned. It would take some detailed legislative work, but if enough people call for it, it can be done.

Hmmm, Hmmm

May 24th, 2010
10:29 pm

Well Hmmm perhaps the Broad Award isn’t the barometer it’s cracked up to be.

Look at past Broad Award finalists.

Houston-Home of Rod Paige and the “Houston Miracle”
Gwinnett-Home of Falsified Discipline Data
Atlanta-Home of the E-Rate Scandal, a major discipline scandal on par with Gwinnett, and possibly the biggest cheating scandal in Georgia’s history

If these are indicative, as the Broad Award would lead you to believe, of the top urban school systems in the country, imagine the horror shows that are the worst urban school systems in the county.

Trey

May 24th, 2010
10:47 pm

Where is the Pay Czar for the school system…?
Treat em like any other company that isn’t producing, fire them and bring in somebody who can operate the schools at at lower cost with higher outcomes. Having said that, I guess you should hold the teachers accountable first. I smell union issues somewhere with the teachers or admins…

Trey

May 24th, 2010
10:49 pm

If student enrollment drops when you lower their salaries can my kids get a voucher?

@ trey

May 24th, 2010
11:37 pm

No. When the superintendent and his administration tell teachers how to teach (in DCSS there are scripted teaching programs – teachers actually teach from a script – Springboard $1,400,000 and America’s Choice $8,000,000), and if teachers teach the way they have been told they have to teach, reading the script and giving the worksheets they have been told to give to the students and follow exactly what has been prescribed by their supervisors, then they should not be held accountable.

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
11:38 pm

Andrew Young and John Konop — You two must be one in the same. Because each of you love to comment on each others IDEAS and attempt to jump on others. Both of you have flawed logic. So since I am a student I cannot own property or pay income taxes? Some people have worked hard to get where they are and I am one of them. I’ve had an eBay store since my senior year in high school and I purchased a house near the college I attend versus paying outrageous rent to stay in a apartment. So yes I am a students and yes I pay taxes and yes I believe (Andrew Young and John Konop) are the same persons. If you don’t want to discuss the merits of my statements then why write for my attention at all? Anything else I need to school you two(one) on , I’ll be here for a mintue

GSU Student

May 24th, 2010
11:38 pm

*minute

ElemPal

May 25th, 2010
1:53 am

Let me start by saying I don’t want to trade places with my superintendent. You couldn’t pay me enough to do his job. (I am outside the metro area, so his salary isn’t listed) However, for those of you who seem to think that ALL administrators sit around all day and eat bon-bons – I would challenge you to follow some of us around for a day.

It seems that many of the bloggers want to put all administrators in the same mold. As an elementary school principal, my job is make sure my teachers can do their jobs effectively. If this means I take the student who is disrupting others to my office for some one-on-one tutoring, then so be it. If it means that I intercept the angry parent and solve a problem without disturbing instruction, then I do it. If I need to teach a class so the assigned teacher can visit the classroom of a peer, then it is done.

If I have a teacher who is ineffective, then I work with her, help her make changes, and monitor her progress, documenting every discussion so that children are not in the classroom with an ineffective teacher. And in between those things I work with the cafeteria manager to be sure everything is up and running for breakfast and lunch. I work with the custodial staff to take care of everything from the cleaning schedule to repairing the lawnmower. It is my responsibility to walk the grounds to be sure our campus is clean and safe.

I meet with the school council, the Title I committee, the parent involvement committee, the media committee, the school improvement team, the grade levels, and the student council, as well as any parent who shows up at my door.

I make home visits to speak with parents who cannot make it to the school. I collect clothing for students who have outgrown theirs. I solicit donations to help support the work of our school. I walk the halls and visit classrooms every day.

When everyone leaves for the day, I retire to my office to start the load of paperwork that must be done. Federal and state reports, local informational reporting, documenting of classroom visits, signing every application for sick/personal leave, checking purchase orders and funds (which can be a real challenge when there is no money!), monitoring reading and math achievement, planning professional learning, finding ways to recognize teachers and students for outstanding work, and updating my calendar to be sure I don’t miss an IEP meeting or an ESOL meeting, or a county principal’s meeting.

Then I leave the school, often making stops at Wally World or an office supply store to pick up supplies for the office or teacher projects since our county does not allow anyone other than the principal to use the school credit card or write a school check.

And now, at 1:40 am, I am finishing up some work and catching up on the newspaper.

One poster suggested cutting administrator salaries by 20%. I have already taken over 12% in paycuts this year – in addition to the 6 furlough days taken by all employees in my system. I am almost back to my salary of 5 years ago. I have degrees from reputable research institutions, 20 years of experience, and National Board Certification. I cry each time I have to announce another furlough day because I know what it is doing to my teachers – but as the sole support for my family – I also feel the pain.

So to those who think we are all sitting around counting our money, rethink this idea.

concerned

May 25th, 2010
2:16 am

DCSS supt Crawford Lewis was overpaid and we allowed this to happen. What will happen with his retirement if he is convicted?

Why does DCSS has a Senator working in the Central Office? Is Ronald Ramsey head of Internal Affairs for the DCSS and Senator Ronald Ramsey that send me emails?

Hmmmmmmmmmm wonder how much he gets paid!

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2:28 am

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john konop

May 25th, 2010
6:33 am

GSU Student,

First Andrew and I comment under our real names. Second you do not post under your name so we have no idea what you are hiding behind. Third even if you are telling the truth it does not sound like you pay much in Income tax if at all. Forth the school you attend is subsidized by federal income taxes and at your income level your 6% sales tax does pay for much. Finally money does not fall from tress and the State Superintendent job is paid by tax payers it is not a private sector job. Do you understand the difference? And if you do not, read ‘Wealth of Nations “ by Adam Smith and it might help you understand.

pay

May 25th, 2010
7:15 am

if you cut the pay in half of these super, highly quilified ppl would still jump on these jobs. as stated ealier “you cant do anything about me” is true. elected postions would be much better

pay

May 25th, 2010
7:27 am

seems some county office workers and DOE are busy on the blogs today: DD, bluedawg, gsu stu,

Classroom teachers are the most important thing

here is an example to hlp some

are you concerned with who is the fire chief while a fireman is pulling your a$$ from a burning building

catlady

May 25th, 2010
7:44 am

Perhaps each paper could publish how much goes into salary for nonteaching positions, broken down by local administrators, county level administrators, academic coaches, maintenance, janitorial, mean service, bus garage, IT, and how much of it comes from local taxpayers, stimulus money, and how much from state coffers. I think THEN you would see it hit the fan! The amount of local money that goes into these (sometimes) “reward” positions is phenomenal.

I’d also call on some of our local papers to have a functional audit of the positions, including teaching positions of those with family members and coaches and their spouses. I think it would be eye-opening to see that many of them have positions where their student contact hours are severely less than other similar employees.

catlady

May 25th, 2010
7:47 am

I am two for two today with the filter.

Teacher Reader

May 25th, 2010
8:59 am

Our schools are failing and we are focusing on pay? This does not make sense to me.

Our schools are failing because of these and other reasons:

1. The best person is not hired for a job. We have numerous people in my district who have no experience in the the job that they have, but they are a friend or a family member of a current or former school board member or other paid administrator and so they keep their jobs, while people who truly care about the education of our children have been let go.

2. We do not hold our students to high standards. School board members, Superintendents, Principals, and others want teachers to provide parents with customer service. They want parents to feel good about their children and if a parent thinks their child should get an A, then their child should receive an A.

3. There is very little discipline in our schools for the same reasons. We don’t want to upset parents or inconvenience them. We would rather allow kids to disrupt the education of others.

4. Principals are looked down on for having taken too many discipline actions in our schools. If a principal tries to crack down, than they are not thought of as a good principal.

5. Our CRCTs do not truly measure our children’s ability to read or perform math problems. When a child can get half of the 60 or 75 questions incorrect and still get a meets expectations, we have problems, because that type of score would earn a child an F in my class.

6. Not making children accountable for their actions. In my district, we have to give children multiple times to complete their work/homework. We are not able to give zeros or fail a child even when he has not completed his work. How is this helping the children?

7. School Board members who get paid for their office and do not take a pay hit, even though they have voted for others to loose their job and/or take furlough days.

8. Top heavy school systems that take away learning from our children.

9. Giving modified work to our special education students, instead of the instructional help that could help them to over come their disabilities and get them out of special education all together.

10. Buying programs, instead of allowing teachers to teach. Most programs do not work. The research done on them, are paid for by the company selling the product and usually have very small samples, which do not show very much in the long run.

11. Expecting teachers to take on and sponsor clubs and extra duties without wanting to pay them for their time.

12. The difficulty of getting rid of poor teachers.

13. The poor professional development that I have had as a teacher here in Georgia, compared to other places that I have taught.

14. Not checking up on how Title One funds are spent by our school. Are these dollars being used in the best, most effective way to help our children?

15. Not checking on Free and Reduced lunch forms. We have many principals and teachers guiding parents on how to fill out the forms, so that their school receives more funding. I have seen children whose parents drive a BMW getting free lunch-something is wrong when there is no checks and balances with this program and way of school funding.

16. Our grounds and maintenance people make more money than our teachers. This goes for many secretaries in our central offices as well.

I do not begrudge any administrator having their cell phone paid for or transportation allowances, for traveling from school to school. A principal, administrator, superintendent should not be paid travel allowances for getting to/from the school system from their home-this is called a commute.

When the cuts were made this spring in our schools, The people making these cuts did not take time to look at how these cuts could be made, so that they would have less of an impact on our children. Who could we let go of people in our central office and keep more teachers in our schools? The answer is yes.

Our school systems are producing children who are unable to compete in the Global Market. We are producing children who want to be taken care of, instead of finding ways to take care of themselves. In my fifteen years of teaching, I see our students are being dumbed down. I see expectations for children lowered.

I do not see our public schools getting better any time soon. My last day of teaching in Georgia was Friday. I will homeschool my children, so that I ensure they are able to compete in the World and have the ability to take care of themselves on many levels.

john konop

May 25th, 2010
9:01 am

ElemPal,

I suggested that any administrator making over 100 k take a 20% pay cut. Do you not think they should take a way higher percentage cut than a teacher making 40K? Do you not think a 40k teacher does not have bills as well? As far as the hours many managers in the private sector at that pay scale also work with similar dedication to their jobs. I take calls 7 days a week at all hours even before I became a CEO. If you work in the private in may cases that is the rules of the game.

Also if you taught 1 class a day it would not only save money put but you more in touch with issues your teachers and students face. This is called hands on management.

And you have to admit it was outrageous that the first cuts did not affect high paid management but instead focused on the core part of your budget teachers. And one 6 figure management cut represented 2 to 3 teachers. This is the same tough call people like me make everyday in the private sector.

Finally unless you are willing to sacrifice in tough times and focus on core essentials your employees will backlash. And as a tax payer I would rather have my dollars focused on the classroom than on non-essential management.

Dr. John Trotter

May 25th, 2010
10:03 am

Superintendents with the largest salaries? What do they have in common? They have kissed more butts, eaten more boogers, stepped on more surbordinates, and told more lies than the average administrator. Boy, it’s fun being a free man. I love it!

Bree

May 25th, 2010
10:28 am

I wish a large group of displaced teachers would get together and teach the administrators a lesson by forming their OWN schools, supported by businesses. We can be proactive and DEMAND that the buildings be given back to the taxpayers! Let them decide. This is a great opportunity for a movement to take place and replace the BROKEN system.

Understanding Atlanta

May 25th, 2010
11:03 am

Teachers should teach…when it comes to running a school system, I believe the problem we get into is we all of a sudden have teachers that are probably good inside the classroom, trying to be administrators of hundreds (for principals) and thousands (for school systems) people.

Being an administrator requires a different skillset than teaching. Balancing a budget, finding money in an already tight budget to keep programs open for students is an entirely different set of skills that running a single classroom. How do you handle conflicts among faculty? How do you handle irate parents? How do you handle a 20% budget reduction withou sacrificing instruction? These are questions a super has to answer. There must be a way to get the person with the right qualifications in, and I don’t think teachers are always best to fill the position. And yes I know the super is over the system’s curriculm and should bring in a team with expertise, but the Super’s expertise should be in administration.

IEP

May 25th, 2010
11:24 am

realdawg….As a graduate of Fairfax County schools, the child of a FCPS employee and a teacher in Cobb, I can tell you that Fairfax has it’s own set of issues. It is very poorly managed and the children are the ones harmed. Principals have free reign just like in our metro area and often abuse the power.

HS tchr

May 25th, 2010
11:31 am

ElemPal- you’re the example of exactly what most are talking about. In the rural counties, we’re all part of the process, even the super. You have to realize that in metro ATL things are much more political and much more corporate. They’ve had too much money for too long. Those like you and me, who are already in poorer counties, are used to doing a lot for nothing, and we’re used to knowing what our super is doing. You have to love the job to teach in the poorer counties. There are too many in administrative positions in the metro area who are just in for the money, the career ladder, and the corporate perks.

Angela

May 25th, 2010
1:24 pm

@Teacher Reader,

Yes, that is DCSS.

ElemPal

May 25th, 2010
2:28 pm

To John Knopp –
I have already taken what amounts to about 15% (cuts + furlough days). I don’t make over $100,000 but I WAS close. I didn’t say anything about teachers not having bills to pay or that they should take the brunt of the cuts. I did not say anything about administrators not taking cuts. In my county the cuts started with a pay cut by the superintendent. (a higher percentage than the rest of us) Then, the other administrators took a pay cut. Then, the furlough days started.

My purpose was to let some posters know that not all administrators sit around doing nothing. Most of us work very hard – just like our teachers. Most of us are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to take care of the students in our buildings – just like our teachers.

I can assure you, I don’t get a long list of perks. The perks that get me through the day are the hugs of the students and the respect of my teachers.

Having worked in the private sector for several years, I will tell you that I have never worked as hard as I do as an elementary principal. Like you, I take calls 7 days a week. I work whatever hours are necessary to see that the school operates smoothly and that my teachers have as little stress as possible. Oh yes, just so you know, I do co-teach a class.

I am not suggesting that the cuts be put on the teachers. I will take my cuts just like everyone else. I will make the sacrifices needed. Just know that not all administrators are unnecessary.

john konop

May 25th, 2010
3:31 pm

ElemPal ,

I do not think all administrators are unnecessary they are just not a core need over a classroom. And in most districts the high paid administrators did not take cuts.

……The AJC analysis found that while metro school districts have laid off “central office staff,” most of those cuts are lower-salaried jobs, not high-paid administrators. (Many of these folks function as cabinets to the superintendents, and I think few leaders ever want to get rid of their personal posses.)……

Also Kathy Cox grew the DOE massive staff by 25% since 2006 while teachers got pink slip and or cuts. As a tax payer why do you think this is good policy?

@ Teacher Reader

May 25th, 2010
8:57 pm

I know you must teach for DeKalb Schools just from your comments.

Understanding Atlanta

May 26th, 2010
9:27 am

Most people here are missing the mark. The success of a school system lies in the hands of parents. The best performing schools have GREAT parent participation. You can have a horrible superintendent, horrible principal, and mediocre teachers but with parent participation the school will succeed.

Why is that? DISCIPLINE. What schools lack now is discipline. Neither teachers nor administrators for that matter can overcome a student or group of students that lack discipline. I understand someone has to be a fault, and the superintendent is the likely fall guy because they’re at the helm of this big ship. But let’s look at the real issue, and it’s not those that read these blogs and play an active role in their child’s education. It’s those that don’t

Understanding Atlanta

May 26th, 2010
9:32 am

Why do we continue to blindly blame superintendents. Yes they are the highest paid employee of the school system and have ultimate responsibility. But let’s take a look at where student performance starts. HOME.

It doesn’t matter how good a superintendent is, it’s about parent participation. When I was in DCSS, my school’s performance didn’t increase until the school put a program in place to increase parent participation. We were in lower income community and put in a parent resource center to help with employment, job skills, and the such. This increased parent participation thus performance also increased.

john konop

May 26th, 2010
10:10 am

Understanding Atlanta ,

Why should we pay superintendent so much money if you think they very little impact on student performance?

john konop

May 26th, 2010
10:12 am

sorry,

Why should we pay superintendent so much money if you think they have very little impact on student performance?

Robin

May 26th, 2010
9:39 pm

Also, go to the website open.georgia.gov and look at the amount of money paid to the people who work in school district offices. There are a lot of Directors, Psychologists and Coordinators being paid top dollar. IF they were CEO’s with private companies, like many private companies here in Georgia then they would have already had a 30 to 50% pay cut, all perks gone and thankful they still have a job. LET’S TRIM THE FAT FROM THE TOP!! These Super Intendant’s and administration have not proven that they deserve what they make. Last time I checked, we were last or second to last in the country for Education. Oh, don’t forget to look at how much we pay for interpreter’s so that we can teach kids English at school. If I have to have to have my child potty trained before she enters Elementary school, then it’s the parent’s responsibility to have their child speak English.

NGSU

May 30th, 2010
1:11 pm

GSU Student: What you fail to see is the Supers don’t teach my kids, they have NO bearing on their success, even though they get incentives when scores go up. Why? I should get something because I allow my kids, who test high, to take the test, which give the Supers a pay raise and help the system/school look good on paper. That is backward, because the teacher who actually has contact with students get nothing. The Supers are the biggest illusion to effective school systems. Recent events show they take money, live like their CEO’s, but get paid with tax payer dollars, not dollars a company produces in a free market.

Why does education pay more to people who don’t teach, want out of classrooms, have very little classroom experience, and just because their in Administration, they are afforded higher pay? Pay the people that work daily with students, not those who run away from them!

Do we have to pay top dollar for school superintendents?

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Do we have to pay top dollar for school superintendents?

176 comments Add your comment

About Get Schooled

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Recent Posts

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More from the AJC

Are You or Your School the ‘Best In Class’?

Categories

College resources

All AJC blogs »

Tell us what you think about the site

Subscribe »

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Advertising

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