EPISD chief gets contract extension
June 23, 2010
Lorenzo García, the El Paso Independent School District superintendent, received a vote of confidence Tuesday night when the district's trustees voted unanimously to extend his contract.
The extension comes without a pay increase as the board voted to continue paying him $280,314 a year -- the same amount he received last year.
Written by Ramon Bracamontes, The El Paso Times
EL PASO -- Lorenzo García, the El Paso Independent School District superintendent, received a vote of confidence Tuesday night when the district's trustees voted unanimously to extend his contract. The extension comes without a pay increase as the board voted to continue paying him $280,314 a year -- the same amount he received last year. The vote of confidence for the district's leadership comes a week after the district's tax rate election failed, and after several people in the community, including Texas Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, have called for García's resignation. School board member Isela Castañon-Williams defended the board's decision. "The facts remain that the district's stats show that we have made great gains," she said. According to Texas Education Agency figures, the district's scores on state-mandated tests are up and have been increasing since García arrived in 2006. In 2004, the district's math score in the TAKS test was 56. In 2010, the score was 84. In science, the district's score was 53 in 2004 and 2005. This year the score was 82. García said he is most proud of the fact that the district now has zero schools rated as unacceptable. Before his arrival, 14 campuses were deemed unacceptable by the TEA. Still, García is not without detractors. Franklin High School teacher Tom Davis said the tax ratification election last week was defeated because teachers are unhappy with García. Before voting on García's contract, the board members voted not to give employees a pay increase this coming year. The district has 9,083 employees who combined make $453,695,507 a year. By not giving anyone a pay increase, the district will save $2.7 million, according to district officials. Teacher salaries are renegotiated each year, and the district is not mandated to give teachers a step increase. Lucy Clarke, president of the El Paso Federation of Teachers and Support Personnel, said teachers will be disappointed and angry once they find out they are not getting a raise. "But if that's what has to happen for them to retain their job, then I think they will accept it," Clarke said. "This is a matter of the district scratching every bit of its budget before relieving anyone from their job." Since the tax election failed last week, García has repeatedly said that the district must make cuts to its budget. The district was asking voters to approve an increase in the tax rate, which would have allowed the district to raise $36 million more. The election failed by a 2-to-1 ratio. Ramon Bracamontes may be reached at rbracamontes@elpasotimes.com; 546-6142.
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