The DeKalb school board voted Monday to fill three newly consolidated central office positions, but temporarily blocked a plan to increase the pay for those executive-level jobs.
The board plans to make $5 million in budget cuts at the district's central office as part of $78.6 million in district-wide cuts. Under the plan, the central office loses 70 staff employees and consolidates numerous positions.
"Restructuring of the central office has been long overdue," said David Schutten, president of the Organization of DeKalb Educators. "Hopefully [the superintendent] will be able to streamline operations there and put money back in the schools."
Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson asked the board to appoint three former department directors as executive directors of their departments, giving them increased responsibilities in the newly created roles.
Atkinson proposed to name Sherry Everett, the former director of Federal Programs in the Division of Curriculum & Education, executive director of that department. Atkinson tapped Daniel Drake to serve as executive director of Transporatation & Planning. He previously served as director of Forecasting & Planning. Atkinson's third staff consolidation named Joshua Williams, former director of Planning & Construction, as executive director of that department.
"We're essentially asking someone to take on a role [in which] we've consolidated several positions [into one]," Atkinson told the board. "Those are significant savings we're able to pass on to schools."
Another position, regional superintendent, also was filled by the board, with an educator new to DeKalb County.
No board member objected to the idea of consolidating positions, but several expressed skepticism about approving the $3,200 to $5,200 annual pay raise that each employee would have received.
"I'm not inclined to approve a move internally that comes with a pay raise because there's so much tumult right now getting ready for the school year," said board member Nancy Jester. "I would rather focus on the schoolhouse."
But other board members objected to the objections.
"We're asking the superintendent to do one thing, but when we get to the point of making savings...we don't want to move forward," board member Jesse Cunningham said.
It was board member Paul Womack's compromise proposal that eventually earned majority support. Womack asked the board to approve hiring the candidates for executive director, but freeze their pay at the director level pending further review by Sep. 30.
Other items approved at the meeting included a proposal added to the public agenda just hours before the meeting. Superintendent Atkinson asked the board to approve hiring a public relations firm to handle communications at a maximum cost of $96,000 from May to December 2012.
"Our external communication wasn't as effective as we would have liked," Thomas Bowen, board vice chairman, said. "A lot of times, we couldn't even get our factual message out to the media."
DeKalb's internal communications office was pared back as part of the central office cuts, so the district would now rely largely on the firm for external and even some internal communications.
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