Hi Pam, I actually looked into Supt salary question last spring during the budget discussion. At the time we posted the following: With respect to Superintendent compensation, the Office of the State Auditor released a _Special Study on School Superintendent Compensation_ (http://www.auditor.state.mn.us/mainTmp.lasso?page==rptgid03compensation) in September 2003. The study's call for transparency is well-taken. The most useful detail is in Appendix 9 (page 79). A "quick take" shows Saint Paul ranked third behind Minnetonka and Minneapolis in Total Superintendent Compensation for Metropolitan Superintendents for FY02. _- chart -_ (http://www.auditor.state.mn.us/reports/gid/2003/compensation/compensation_03_charts.pdf) We also found a February 25, 2004, State Auditor's report: "Financial Trends of Minnesota School Districts" Saint Paul Public Schools ranked at 123 out of 168 Minnesota districts with over 1,000 students on "District and School Administration Expenditures," despite being the second largest district in the state. >From the report: * That Saint Paul ranked 123 out of 168 districts on "District and School Administration Expenditures" suggests that SPPS is doing a good job of containing central administration costs. * That we rank 4th in "Regular Instruction Expenditures" suggests that we're focusing our resources on the classroom. * That we rank 1st in "Pupil Support Services Expenditures" raises questions about what these services provide. Pupil Support Services are defined as "Expenditures for all noninstructional services provided to students, not including transportation and food. Includes expenditures for counseling, guidance, health services, psychological services, and attendance and social work services." (pdf page 117 of the _full report_ (http://www.auditor.state.mn.us/reports/gid/2003/schooldistrict/schooldistrict_03_report.pdf) ) * That we rank 45th in "Transportation Expenditures" despite our magnet schools suggests the district has done a good job of containing costs to preserve school choice. Districts 1-44 are a mix of metro area and rural. (pdf pages 122-123) * That we rank 161st in "Other Operating Expenditures" (defined as "property and liability premiums, principal and interest on noncapital obligations, and nonrecurring costs such as judgments and liens," (pdf page 134) again suggests sound financial management. * That we rank 6th in "Total Operating Expenditures" isn't surprising given that we're the 2nd largest district in the state responsible for 5% of total enrollment. * "Community Service" is defined as "expenditures for recreation, civic activities, adult education, early childhood education, or similar programs" (pdf page 147). SPPS is ranked 19th, again despite being the 2nd largest district in the state. * What's surprising in "Debt Service Expenditures" (expenditures for repayment of long-term debt including payments of interest on bonds and capital loans) is not our rank, but the 161% increase from 1999-2003. Raises questions given the low interest rates over the past few years. Superintendent salary is one piece of a much larger discussion about education funding. NEAT is planning to host a forum in October about Education Funding in Minnesota. How did we get to where we're at? What's on the horizon for next spring if the legislature takes no action? (There's no way to know what the legislature's going to do, but it would be nice to know what we can expect should they do nothing.) Date to be determined. Education funding is just one piece of a much larger picture. Former Commissioners of Finance John Gunyou and Jaye Kiedrowski are calling for structural balance in the state and federal budgets. Federal Reserve Bank's Art Rolnick is raising awareness about the cost of cuts to early childhood and child care. Saint Paul based Public Strategies Group's Peter Hutchinson (also a Former Commissioner of Finance) has written a book about the Price of Government. Lutheran Social Services and the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits are raising concerns about cuts to human services. And our local government units (counties and cities) are struggling to maintain services. I'm really bothered by the idea that today we have 3 retirees for every 10 workers. In 10 years we'll have 10 retirees for every worker. Shouldn't this be the decade when we're preparing for the retirement of the baby boom? What's going to happen is we don't figure out how to collectively decide what we want and how we're going to pay for it? I know there are community-based strategic planning processes for orchestrating these conversations. How do we get our elected officials to use them? --Jennifer Armstrong Payne/Phalen _____________________________________________ To Join: St. Paul Issues Forum Rules Discussion Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
_____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/
