The Brigantine School Board just approved a 2 percent tax increase over last year. Nice.
According to reports in the Beachcomber News, residents are not happy. Scratch that. They are FURIOUS about the plan to hire a new school superintendent with a salary of $117,500, as well pay for two principals (elementary & middle school at approx $100k each), a curriculum administrator and a business administrator.
Anne Phillips; the Patron Saint of Brigantine Taxpayers, wondered why we need five high paid administrators …..as student population continues to decline.
Some new expenses for district include: new computer lab, new van to replace damaged one, a $760,000 upgrade school security system and $30k to replace five Smartboards.
Student enrollment has slipped to 756 regular students.
Enjoy the full story here…in Beachcomber News
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AGAIN common sense and failure to protect the fiscal health of the Island of Brigantine is over-ruled by Representatives favoring high salaries and over-spending. 5 over-paid individuals in executive school positions is unwarranted in a school district of 750 students in 2 adjoining schools. Combine the two schools with one Principal and NO Superintendent. WHY was this appropriation passed. Why is the good of the town continually overlooked in favor of highly paid positions? ….. AND why is the security system costing $760k? I am curious as to why voices of reason continue to be ignored.
Bonnie N. said it all. As a former School District of Philadelphia employee ( retired School Psychologist) having more than one Principal in a Kindergarten to 8th grade school ( K – 8 ) with 750 students would be laughable. And adding a Superintendent to the mix would be beyond laughable. And Brigantine students and parents , I can assure you, are no inner city Philadelphia students and parents. It would seem a Principal and a Principal’s Assistant would be able to cover the territory just fine. Just to add further credibility to the above, a discussion with a current School District of Philadelphia Principal, who is often called on to solve school district related problems, let me know that there is precedent in many New Jersey school systems in hiring a Superintendent / Principal to oversee a school system the size of Brigantine. The latter would seem the best recommendation to resolve this issue.
YES, Elvis has left the building… and common sense and common responsibility has left the Island. David Kahn comes with comments based on experience and comparison. Brigantine is an “island” NOT another planet… The administration and elected officials need to get the “house in order”.
No doubt the NJ School code requires that a school system has someone designated as a Superintendent. As far as 2 principals, maybe not, but that number of students is more than a one person show. Don’t forget, you want your principal to be an educational leader, making sure that instruction is carried out with fidelity. One person, with that many students, would end up being a builidng manager, with their time occupied with the administrative tasks that go along with running a building.
Perhaps the “required” Superintendent could do the admin tasks along with the other administrators, so that the Principal could lead the educational portion. A re-write of job descriptions seems like the way to solve the issue. It is not a problem, it is a fiscal issue. Do more with less is the sign of the times. We all have to do it with our personal resources. Government, with all of it’s intelligent sources, is quite capable of the same. So, let’s encourage them to make the necessary choices to function within the available parameters. Is it a fact that a superintendent is required?
http://www.districtadministration.com/news/high-percentage-nj-school-districts-changing-superintendents
“According to the NJSBA, retirements accounted for 51 percent of the 170 instances when districts changed superintendents last year. In another 21 percent of the cases, the superintendent moved on to another district. Newly hired superintendents who replaced an interim superintendent accounted for 16 percent of the turnover. Other reasons cited by the report, included superintendents who resigned or died, or a school board agreeing to share superintendents with other districts.”
“Superintendent contracts are capped at $120,000 for small districts under 250 students and go to $175,000 for up to 10,000 students”
salary CAPPED at $120k – so why is Brigantine (a very small district) starting a new Super at $117k
hmmmmmmm SHARED superintendents???? there’s something to investigate.