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Cash-strapped Paso school district selects new superintendent

August 8, 2014
Chris Williams

Chris Williams

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

The financially troubled Paso Robles Joint Unified School District has selected a Fresno County administrator to serve as superintendent at a base salary of $170,000.

Chris Williams, an assistant superintendent of human resources at Central Unified School District in Fresno, has received an offer to become the next Paso Robles superintendent. The Paso Robles school board is expected to hire Williams at its August 12 meeting to replace Kathy McNamara, who retired at the end of June.

The school district is currently in the process of repaying two capital appreciation bonds totaling more than $30 million. It had to issue the bonds in order to raise money during the economic downturn.

A 2012 San Luis Obispo County Grand Jury report stated that the district was near insolvency and had to take corrective action in order to avoid being taken over by the state.

In turn, the district cut teachers pay by 9.72 percent over a two-year span in order to keep schools operating through this year.

But, between 2009 and 2012, McNamara’s salary increased from $161,813 to $182,500. Paso Robles teachers responded by delivering a 97 percent vote of no confidence in McNamara in Feb. 2013.

Williams will likely begin with a base salary of $170,000, but the proposed contract calls for his pay to increase 3 percent yearly, so long as he receives satisfactory evaluations. The contract also grants Williams $15,000 to move himself and his family to the area.


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“Cash-strapped Paso school district” …. Has anyone ever seen a school district that claimed anything but “Cash-Strapped”?


I don’t recall any general election where the school is not begging for more money.


Perhaps this well educated school district could find other ways of raising the funds needed to teach. I have paid up to $140 per month (in property taxes) for the past 54 years into a school district without having cost them a dime. I am getting tired of their sniveling. I think I shall take my tax payer funded retirement and move out of state. Thereby depleting even more from this failing economy.


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How much funding to the local wine industry has the City of Paso provided over the last 10 years?


It seems to me that a responsible City Council would choose to support the schools during hard times, and not an industry which is based on luxury purchases.


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“wine wine wine do yer stuff” the growins gettin rough


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To Pelican 1’s comment: And the guy that sets the tone for politics and buy-outs in Paso, is the one guy many want out, but isn’t a voted on position.


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Exactly right! So, the city council needs to fire him.


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$15,000 to move? Not even an “up to $15,000 allowance” ? I do taxes for a living and that is bananas.


Moving is an allowable deduction on an individual’s tax return, which the person claims to the IRS and must actually incur the expense in order to deduct it. Instead, now what we have is the school district giving away $15,000 and making it a taxpayer-funded expense with NO oversight of actual expenses.


We just paid to give the guy a $15,000 signing bonus, basically.


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Seems there’s a pattern here. Paso pays big bucks to get you here, and even bigger bucks when they have to get rid of you. Quite an interesting place.


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I guess one can say as long as the voters continue to put in office those that do this the voters get what they deserve


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Wow–an allowance of $15,000 to move from Fresno to Paso?! That sounds overly-generous considering his salary.


$15,000 would provide A LOT of much-needed supplies for my kids’ classrooms. I used to send ’em w/backpacks, pencils, crayons…


Now I’m asked to provide reams of paper, Kleenex, wipes, markers, rulers, and other supplies because the district supposedly doesn’t have enough $$ to fund basic needs anymore.


Seems like the parents have to cough up more and more $$ and the teachers are asked to have pay freezes/cuts while the administrators make the big $$.


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You forgot the benefit package which is usually about 50% of the base salary.

Remember this when all of the new tax measures and bond measures pop up on your next ballot.Your hard earned money will be going towards these lucrative salary and retirement packages.


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Anybody is better than McNamara what a pathetic waste of money she was. I don’t know the going pay for Superintendents but Paso Teachers are the lowest paid in the county. No I’m not a Teacher. I welcome Mr. Williams but I hope he doesn’t have any plans to make Paso Unified like Fresno Unified.


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“Cash-strapped” and “base salary of $170,000”, kind of says it all, doesn’t it?


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Bingo.


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In this case, clearly an oxymoron.


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The Paso district began the decline after Julian Crocker left. A major loss.


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No wonder Mr. Williams is smiling at 3% a year raise.


Year 1 = $170,000


Year 2 = $175,100


Year 3 = $180,353


Year 4 = $185,763


Year 5 = $191,336


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Exactly, in the private sector you often must do better than “satisfactory” for a raise. What is satisfactory? a “C” grade and only in the public sector do you get a raise for a C


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And who exactly rates the superintendent? The school board, right?


Unfortunately Paso’s previous (and some current) board members were quite happy w/McNamara and basically rubber stamped her agenda for 5 years until she went down in flames.


Hopefully a lesson’s been learned and the school board + superintendent will now LISTEN and respond to students, parents and teachers.


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