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Extracted from Consolidated Report

This investigation was originally published as part of a larger consolidated report containing multiple investigations. View the consolidated PDF for the complete document.

Santa Clara County Grand Jury • 2008-2009

2008-2009 Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury Report Who Really Benefits from Education Dollars?

Published: May 19, 2009 20 pages

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⚠️ Translation Notice: This content has been automatically translated. The original English text is the official version. Translation may contain errors.

⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.

Findings 6 findings

Boards of Trustees approve overly generous benefits to themselves which include the following: • Fully paid health benefits for trustees and their families (often exceeding those of teachers and/or with no payment ceiling) • Excessive travel and conference costs • Pension contribution

Boards of Trustees are approving overly generous benefits to Superintendents and Chancellors, including the following: • Auto allowances (auto leases/purchases, insurance, maintenance, etc.) to superintendents • Housing allowances • Million dollar housing loans at zero or below market interest rates • Guaranteed annual step and/or longevity increases • Signing bonuses • Contract buyouts • Excessive performance bonuses • Per diem payments when out of the district • Personal technology allowances • Professional memberships and subscription allowances • Excessive travel and entertainment expenses • Salary increases automatically triggered by increases in teacher’s salaries which are in addition to other guaranteed salary increases • Pension allowances (in addition to regular STRS/PERS contributions) • Advanced degree stipends • Lifetime medical insurance benefits • Annual physicals

Superintendent salaries and increases appear to bear no relationship to the number of schools, students, and employees they oversee, nor their district’s academic improvement. 11

Boards of Trustees hire costly search firms to recruit successors for retiring or dismissed Superintendents/Chancellors.

Boards of Trustees approve the hiring of multiple private attorneys, in some cases at a tremendous expense.

The operation of 34 K–12 school districts and four (4) community college districts creates excessively high management and administrative costs. Five K-12 school districts have excessively high Superintendent costs per student which is reflective of the district’s having only one or two schools.

Recommendations 6

R1

Boards of Trustees should carefully review the benefits listed in Finding 1 and: • Eliminate health benefits for Board Members • Minimize travel and conference costs • Eliminate pension contributions 10
R2

Boards of Trustees should carefully review and renegotiate the Superintendent/Chancellor benefits listed in Finding 2 for possible reduction and/or elimination.
R3

The Board of Trustees should ensure that Superintendent/Chancellor salaries and increases take into account the number of schools, teachers, and students they oversee, and are tied to the district’s students’ progress and quantifiable metrics.
R4

Boards of Trustees should conduct a preliminary search within the local area prior to hiring search firms.
R5

All Boards of Trustees should engage County Counsel whenever possible and leverage their buying power to negotiate lower fees with private law firms.
R6

A consolidation of districts should be considered to reduce the numbers and costs of Superintendents/Chancellors, Boards of Trustees, administrative staff and overhead.

Conclusions 24

CL1 Page 10

Boards of Trustees approve overly generous benefits to themselves which include the following: • Fully paid health benefits for trustees and their families (often exceeding those of teachers and/or with no payment ceiling) • Excessive travel and conference costs • Pension contribution
CL2 Page 11

Boards of Trustees are approving overly generous benefits to Superintendents and Chancellors, including the following: • Auto allowances (auto leases/purchases, insurance, maintenance, etc.) to superintendents • Housing allowances • Million dollar housing loans at zero or below market interest rates • Guaranteed annual step and/or longevity increases • Signing bonuses • Contract buyouts • Excessive performance bonuses • Per diem payments when out of the district • Personal technology allowances • Professional memberships and subscription allowances • Excessive travel and entertainment expenses • Salary increases automatically triggered by increases in teacher’s salaries which are in addition to other guaranteed salary increases • Pension allowances (in addition to regular STRS/PERS contributions) • Advanced degree stipends • Lifetime medical insurance benefits • Annual physicals
CL3 Page 12

Boards of Trustees hire costly search firms to recruit successors for retiring or dismissed Superintendents/Chancellors.
CL4 Page 12

Boards of Trustees approve the hiring of multiple private attorneys, in some cases at a tremendous expense.
CL5 Page 12

The operation of 34 K–12 school districts and four (4) community college districts creates excessively high management and administrative costs. Five K-12 school districts have excessively high Superintendent costs per student which is reflective of the district’s having only one or two schools.
CL6 Page 11

Superintendent salaries and increases appear to bear no relationship to the number of schools, students, and employees they oversee, nor their district’s academic improvement. 11
CL7 Page 10

Fully paid health benefits for trustees and their families (often exceeding those of teachers and/or with no payment ceiling)
CL8 Page 10

Excessive travel and conference costs
CL9 Page 10

Pension contribution
CL10 Page 10

Eliminate health benefits for Board Members
CL11 Page 10

Minimize travel and conference costs
CL12

Eliminate pension contributions 10 Finding 2 Boards of Trustees are approving overly generous benefits to Superintendents and Chancellors, including the following:
CL13 Page 11

Auto allowances (auto leases/purchases, insurance, maintenance, etc.) to superintendents
CL14 Page 11

Million dollar housing loans at zero or below market interest rates
CL15 Page 11

Guaranteed annual step and/or longevity increases
CL16 Page 11

Excessive performance bonuses
CL17 Page 7

Per diem payments when out of the district
CL18 Page 11

Personal technology allowances
CL19 Page 7

Professional memberships and subscription allowances
CL20 Page 11

Excessive travel and entertainment expenses
CL21 Page 7

Salary increases automatically triggered by increases in teacher’s salaries which are in addition to other guaranteed salary increases
CL22 Page 7

Pension allowances (in addition to regular STRS/PERS contributions)
CL23 Page 7

Advanced degree stipends
CL24 Page 7

Lifetime medical insurance benefits