AISD Money Issues

[HappyTexan]

Read this to make your stomach turn. And these are the people calling for the closures and layoffs.

KXAN Investigates | Superintendents enjoy super-sized benefits | KXAN.com

[Nomadic9460678748]

Originally Posted by HappyTexan

Read this to make your stomach turn. And these are the people calling for the closures and layoffs.

KXAN Investigates | Superintendents enjoy super-sized benefits | KXAN.com

That whole argument about the high pay being "necessary" to attract talent, where have I heard that before? Oh yes, the conversations surrounding CEO pay.

I am all for people getting paid what they are worth, but taking bonuses on a $200K annual salary (I looked them all up using the Texas Tribune Salary Database) when teacher's assistants struggling to live on $24K a year are about to lose their jobs is disturbing.

[HappyTexan]

Originally Posted by Nomadic9460678748

That whole argument about the high pay being "necessary" to attract talent, where have I heard that before? Oh yes, the conversations surrounding CEO pay.

I am all for people getting paid what they are worth, but taking bonuses on a $200K annual salary (I looked them all up using the Texas Tribune Salary Database) when teacher's assistants struggling to live on $24K a year are about to lose their jobs is disturbing.

What I found more disturbing were all the perks paid in addition to the high salaries..personal life insurance policies, purchase of additional retirement years, money to pay the taxes on the bonus money, ....

[achtungpv]

$200K to effectively lead a company of over 10K employees is actually a pretty *****ty salary even with all those perks. Even if you just look at large non profits and take out for profit companies, the salary is bad.

People always compare it to their own salaries and think it is outrageous but there's only a dozen people in Austin responsible for that many employees and those complaining aren't one of them.

[love roses]

At our last PTC meeting someone brought up Superintendent salaries. Ours doesn't make what Austins does, but someone on the board said that the Superintendent at her last school (in another state) was an elected position and unpaid (?) and if he/she didn't do their job satisfactorily, could be "fired" (voted out). The principal of our school handed out the proposal that the school board will vote on. So many people are going to lose their jobs and I don't think they were notified beforehand. We're only closing one school here, but the principal said Austin has it much worse, closing 15.

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by achtungpv

$200K to effectively lead a company of over 10K employees is actually a pretty *****ty salary even with all those perks. Even if you just look at large non profits and take out for profit companies, the salary is bad.

People always compare it to their own salaries and think it is outrageous but there's only a dozen people in Austin responsible for that many employees and those complaining aren't one of them.

I agree. Many superintendents are underpaid considering what they do and the kind of crap they deal with. School districts are over-populated with people that whine - teachers and pathetic parents.

Most of AISDs problems are not Carstarphen's. They are systemic and have been in place for a long time. She is in a very tough position and a car allowance is nothing.

[mimimomx3]

Originally Posted by achtungpv

$200K to effectively lead a company of over 10K employees is actually a pretty *****ty salary even with all those perks. Even if you just look at large non profits and take out for profit companies, the salary is bad.

People always compare it to their own salaries and think it is outrageous but there's only a dozen people in Austin responsible for that many employees and those complaining aren't one of them.

I don't have a problem with her salary, of course to equate the CEO of a private corporation with that of a public servant is nonsense, but I do think that a pay cut or reduction of benefits would be a symbolic action appropriate in light of what all of AISD will have to do.

[deanne76]

Originally Posted by HappyTexan

And because of that poor rural schools are able to get computers and other advanced technology to help their students get just as good as education as the richer school districts.

That is one thing I applaud regarding Texas; it gives the poor districts a chance to have current equipment.

No, they don't have the teen student day cares and they don't have parent assistants and they don't have football fields to rival UT but they have computers and AV equipment and access to software programs and can hire staff for after school tutoring and homework help.

Unfortunetly it isn't that simple. Austin is considered to be a "property rich" school district, so they give money back to the state....and lots of it. However, the picture that you paint above is not the same across the school district, speaking from experience. A large amount of their students are on free/reduced lunch and are considered to be economically disadvantaged. Not every school has high parental involvement. Not every school has the programs that you discussed above.

I say do away with property taxes and come up with something a bit more fair to help finance public education.