Next schools chief to make $290,000

By Emily Richmond

Friday, Aug. 5, 2005 | 10:50 a.m.

The job description for the next superintendent of the Clark County School District will include a base salary of $290,000 plus benefits.

That's an increase of nearly $78,000 over Carlos Garcia's salary at the time of his resignation as superintendent in July.

Candidates will be required to have an advanced degree and a track record of "proven leadership."

The School Board also approved spending up to $99,950 on the nationwide search.

"Our construction budget is $2 billion," School Board member Sheila Moulton said. "To spend $100,000 on a search that is the most important thing this board does, to hire a superintendent, is a small investment to make sure that is done appropriately."

Consultants Bob McCord and Kathy Harney were instructed to begin with an operating budget of $86,350 which includes their shared fee of $35,000. The extra funds would only be used if a larger pool of candidates needs to be vetted, McCord said.

"You've all traveled with me, you know it's all about the red eye flights. ... I'm thrifty," McCord said. "It's our intention to bring this in under budget."

The budget includes $19,500 for travel, lodging, recruiting and site visits.

Board member Ruth Johnson said during the last superintendent search in 2000 she wasn't convinced visits to candidate's home districts were necessary but she later changed her mind.

"The reports we got back were incredible," Johnson said. "They gave us information that we could not have gotten any other way. It was far more valuable than I could see at the time."

McCord had suggested the School Board consider a base salary of $300,000 for the district's next chief executive. Clark County is the nation's fifth-largest district.

"Eight of the largest districts in the country are looking for leadership," McCord said. "It is a competitive field of highly qualified people and it is a narrowing field."

Smaller school districts are offering $275,000, McCord said.

But School Board members said they wanted to leave room for the possibility that candidates would seek housing allowances as well as the opportunity to consider adding a performance bonus to the job contract.

There was some debate over whether candidates should also be required to have a doctorate, with member Shirley Barber supporting the additional qualification.

"We need to be looking at the top," Barber said.

School Board member Susan Brager-Wellman disagreed, saying a doctoral degree isn't a guarantee of people skills or common sense.

"A doctorate doesn't always mean you're intelligent, it means you know how to study," Brager-Wellman said.

McCord encouraged the members to limit the requirement to an "advanced degree" rather than a doctorate.

"You may want to consider non-traditional candidates ... someone with a M.B.A. from the Wharton School (of Business at the University of Pennsylvania) or the Kennedy School (of Government at Harvard University), that's some serious work," McCord said. "You don't want to corner yourselves."

Garcia had a master's degree.

The superintendent search timeline approved by the School Board calls for the position to be advertised both locally and nationally this fall. Finalists are expected to be interviewed by the School Board in January and February with an appointment being made in the spring. The new superintendent would take the helm of the district prior to the start of the 2006-07 academic year next August.

In the interim two deputy superintendents, Agustin Orci and Walt Rulffes, are sharing the chief executive duties. Both men are widely considered to be front-runners for the permanent appointment although neither has publicly confirmed an interest in the job.

Several School Board members referenced an offer by "members of the community" to supplement the district's funds for both the search and the compensation.

"We should not turn a blind eye toward that," School Board President Larry Mason said. "If it (the search costs) go beyond what is approved we should look at adding those (outside) funds as well."

In various media interviews university system Chancellor Jim Rogers has suggested a base salary of $600,000 for the next superintendent and has offered to coordinate community efforts to raise funds to supplement the amount allocated by the School Board.

Mason said while he has received no former offer of financial assistance from Rogers or anyone else he would welcome the discussion.

Rogers, the multimillionaire owner of Sunbelt Communications,the parent company of KVBC-TV Channel 3, is a prolific donor to higher education. Before the School Board hired Garcia, he had publicly offered to run the school district. His offer went nowhere.