Holyoke school board members miffed by City Council's advice to cut raises for administrators
by The Republican Newsroom
Wednesday January 21, 2009, 8:30 PM
By JEANETTE DeFORGE
jdeforge@repub.com
HOLYOKE - The City Council is recommending school officials trim their budget by putting off raising salaries for administrators, but the School Committee said that simply won't help.
In a recent meeting, members also questioned why the City Council was getting involved in the school budget.
"I think this order is disrespectful and misguided and the response is far too polite, but we should be polite," said Margaret M. Boulais, a School Committee member.
The City Council order, which passed 14-1, recommended the School Committee freeze all salaries of administrators who earn above $75,000 a year.
Superintendent Eduardo B. Carballo's response explained 90 percent of the administrators who fall into that category are vice principals and department heads who are represented by the Holyoke Teachers' Association union and have an existing contract that dictates their raises.
Even principals, who are not in a union, have multiyear contracts which cannot be broken, he said.
But City Councilor Kevin A. Jourdain said he proposed the order mostly focusing on the two highest-paid employees, Carballo and Patricia A. Cavanaugh, executive director of finance and operations.
He argued the School Committee hiked Carballo's pay by $5,800 to $151,000 in October, even though this year's budget is in deficit by about $1 million.
That raise was retroactive to 2007, a year when Carballo did not see a salary hike, and the 4 percent increase was the same as teachers received.
While understanding Boulais' comment, member Mary C. Plant said she preferred to send the letter explaining the contracts to the City Council.
Jourdain said council members know the School Committee by state law oversees the School Department budget but said the City Council does have a role to play because school officials have requested extra money from the council in the past to balance the education budget.
"Their job is becoming my job because they are always coming to us to look for money," he said.
He said he is especially concerned the school administration offices have not moved from the rented floors at 57 Suffolk St. to H.B. Lawrence School, even though the School Committee voted to do so a year ago, which is estimated to save about $400,000 a year in a combination of rent, maintenance and utility costs.
The School Committee is planning to request money to finish a study to see how much money has to be spent in renovations to move the main computer server and create offices.
Jourdain said he expects serious budget cuts citywide for the next fiscal year that starts in July and he feels the School Committee, which oversees the largest portion of the budget, has to cut more.
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