The Peoria Public Schools Board of Education voted tonight 4-3 to close Woodruff High School at the end of this school year. Voting in favor of closing Woodruff were Board President Debbie Wolfmeyer, Linda Butler, David Gorenz, and Laura Petelle. Voting against were Rachael Parker, Martha Ross, and Jim Stowell.
What started in 1903 as Averyville High School was later renamed Kingman High School, then E. N. Woodruff High School. Averyville was annexed into Peoria in 1928, and a new building was erected at 1800 NE Perry in 1937. That was the year it was named after Edward Nelson Woodruff, who served as Peoria’s mayor for eleven terms. (Sources: Reading, Writing, and Religion by Monica Vest Wheeler; Woodruff High School website; Wikipedia)
CJ thanks….
On that pdf my contract amount is correct. If you look at that file and compare it to the newspaper something just doesn’t seem right.
(another note…. Sharon and I are on 12 month contracts… not 10 month)
The newspaper is including your pension, health and life insurance:
Base salary: $110,000
Pension: $10,340
Health Ins: $14,649.22
Life Ins: $66
Total: $135,055.22
I didn’t realize until today that I was one of the few that has board paid retirement. We all learn something from this. The previously posted pdf doesn’t show the details and it can be misleading.
Steve – Thank you for your candor. My family moves frequently and I understand completely the risk/reward balance that you and your wife had to work through to feel comfortable about your move to Peoria. Kcdad thinks no one should make any money??? I think your compensation seems in line with your responsibilities and they appear to be much broader in scope than a classroom teacher and thus your compensation is greater.
I think it is clear to many of us what value Mr. Ptacek or Mr. Simmons offer and by blogger responses, both are held in high regard. What is not as clear is what other administrators in the central office contribute. I hope when Ms. Petelle does her study of administrative numbers “then and now” she will look into the contributions each administrator has made in the last year. Individuals compensated at this level should be able to demonstrate they have met measureable goals and timetables for completion. Else, perhaps they should be on the chopping block along with Woodruff. If the Board wants to transform the District into a leaner organization then its’ next move must be to address top heavy (and ineffective) administration.
Before I leave for school, I guess I will answer the bait. If we live in a free market, then Steve should earn the the same or more than most admins in the district. Hinton should be paid more, but the others could all be cut and Richwoods could continue to run smoothly, because Steve and Dave Poehls have it under control. I feel safer this year than any of the previous years at RHS and I feel that our school is on the rise again due to his leadership. Off to school now, so I won’t be able to check this till 4:30 when I get home.
Frustrated – I agree with you that ineffective administrators should not have lifetime employment. Challenging the admistrative cost structure has been going on for some time by many past and current Board members. Functional responsibilities exist, but creating processes and oversight activities for the sake of a job is unacceptable. Unfortunately, we only typically react to administrative recommendations. Looking for a Superintendent that believes and has had success with a decentralized structure where principals are empowered and yet held accountable for their students success is high on my list of qualifications. The bureacracy of education is often counterproductive to student engagement and student achievement.
Also, with regard to Steve Ptecek’s salary, remember that his school has the largest enrollment of any school in the city. Also, please note that Val Pierce makes $110,000 (contract base) for being the principal of Manual’s 7th and 8th grade academy of only 70 to 140 students–I don’t know what the enrollment is this year, but I hear it is down considerably from last year’s 140). I do understand that her salary is, in large part, based on the number of years she has worked for the district. Also, if anyone doubts the risk Steve took in taking a position with 150, just remember Lindbergh.
Jim, what are you trying to say here, “Functional responsibilities exist, but creating processes and oversight activities for the sake of a job is unacceptable”? Is it just too early in the morning for me to comprehend the meaning of this statement?
Steve says principals are on a 12-month contract, not a 10-month contract. Principals do get a month off for vacation.
Mr. Stowell – Thank you for your feedback. I hope you understand that when I was speaking about ineffective administrators, I was not referring to Mr. Hinton. I have worked on occasion with Mr. Hinton on matters and he was the only one in the room doing any thinking. Though this may be a reflection of his leadership ability, this is now water under the bridge. Just as there was discussion that the Board should act now and close a high school and not saddle a new superintendent with this responsibility, I would suggest that you not saddle him or her with non-contributing staff. Make cuts now, because as a Board you already know who should stay. Be bold!!!
Re: Steve Ptacek’s pay
For the number of teachers and staff he supervises, and the size of the budget he is responsible for, he could probably go into the business world and make substantially more than he currently does.