I-Team Report: EPISD Responds To Criticisms About Being Too Top Heavy

It’s a tough time for Texas schools. Massive budget cuts are on the horizon and schools boards are struggling to save jobs and programs.

Now, taxpayers are demanding that all options be looked at, saying cuts should be kept away from the classroom and instead focused on central office employees and their salaries.

As a generation of students braces for a round of budget cuts that could impact the integrity of their education, the El Paso Independent District school board struggles to bridge the difference.

“The losses could be anywhere from $24 million to $16 million,” said EPISD Superintendent Dr. Lorenzo Garcia.

Some believe those in the district with the higher salaries should have their salaries cut.

“I do believe we’re top heavy and I believe the children and the teachers are suffering,” said one teacher.

EPISD School Board Member David Dodge said he’s heard the same concerns from people in his district.

“People are putting the trustees on notice that they’re very concerned about the people who are in administrative positions,” he said.

Among the campus-specific services that have been on the chopping block lately during school board budget meetings: two schools, tutoring services, newly formed athletic programs and fine arts.

Dan Wever, a former EPISD school board president whose wife was a longtime head of the district’s teacher’s association, said he thinks the district has been making bad financial decisions in lean times.

“I think the money that is being spent is not being directed toward the students. I think it’s going to administration, programs and things that do not count for education as far as I’m concerned,” said Wever.

The EPISD superintendent disagrees with that perception. “We are not top heavy,” said Garcia.

ABC-7 spent days crunching data on EPISD staff and their salaries, comparing the results to Arlington ISD. According to the latest data from the state FAST report, Arlington ISD has about 400 more students than EPISD. However, EPISD has about 400 more employees, according to numbers submitted to the Texas Tribune by each district.

“If some districts can do without all this administration, why can’t others?” asked Wever.

Garcia said EPISD has more administrators because it has more campuses.

“That’s why we’re looking to consolidate,” said Garcia.

Regarding staff salaries, ABC-7 again used the latest numbers submitted by each district to the Texas Tribune. While Arlington ISD has more people overall who earn more than $100,000, those employees have been at Arlington ISD for a longer amount of time than EPISD employees who fall under the same category.

When looking at the past five years, you can see AISD hired four new staffers who earned six-figure salaries out of 42 total top earners. In the same amount of time, EPISD hired 12 new six-figure staffers out of 30 total employees making more than $100,000. That’s about four times the total percent of recently hired top earning employees.

“That (hiring) model has been effective in past years when there was not a problem with funding,” said Dodge.

However, there has been a problem with funding since 2006. Garcia said the district has been forced to make about $42 million in cuts over the past five years.

“We cut several (other) positions to be able to find the money to (hire the recent six figure employees),” said Garcia.

Garcia said steadily improving TAKS scores show the district has been making wise choices in deciding how to allocate funds by giving them an edge in hiring more experienced staffers.

“We’re paying to be competitive and if we’re not competitive, we’ll get the employees that no one wants,” he said.

Garcia added he does not recommend cutting any administrator salaries despite the district’s budget woes.

“Our administrators did not receive a raise last year and they didn’t receive a raise this year and then on top of that insurance costs have continued to climb,” he said.

Garcia said the cuts should come from elsewhere, but some education advocates disagree.

“That doesn’t make sense,” said Wever.

Dodge said some district taxpayers have felt as if there was a “golden fence” around top earning staff members protecting them from salary cuts. This, as other positions and programs continue to be reduced because of the budget.

“When times are good people don’t look at salaries too hard,” said Dodge. “I can tell you right now, we are definitely going to be looking at salaries.”