When the former superintendent of Wayne Township Schools in the Indianapolis area retired in December, he reportedly left with a package worth more than $1 million, drawing the attention of the public and legislators.

Some of the district's board members said they didn't understand all of the ramifications of Terry Thompson's contract.

As a result, a summer legislative study committee looking at "golden parachute" deals some superintendents have negotiated has endorsed a proposal that contracts be more transparent.

State Rep. Robert Behning's proposed legislation would require a school corporation to give public notice and hold a public hearing detailing certain provisions of a superintendent's employment contract at least 30 days before executing the deal. The Indianapolis Republicans plans to introduce the measure in the next legislative session, which begins Jan. 4.

Lake Central School Corp. board President George Baranowski said he doesn't support a public forum to debate the superintendent's contract, because it's a personnel contract between the employer and the employee.

"I don't know if a 30-day period and people coming to make comments about it is appropriate. I would hope that people have a discussion about this legislation and sway some of the House and Senate leaders to a more reasonable position," said Baranowski, who is also regional director of the Indiana School Board Association.

Local Sens. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, and Frank Mrvan, D-Hammond, served on the panel that studied the issue.

Rogers said committee members thought a salary cap, even one that said a superintendent could not earn more than the governor, could stymie a board's efforts to obtain the best person for the job, so they shied away from that. But committee members did agree about bringing more transparency to the process.

"I think this transparency would put an end to some of the problems we've had in other areas where people were surprised about what a superintendent got for fringe benefits and severance pay," she said.

Mrvan said, "Not only does it put a spotlight on the superintendent's contract, but it also puts a spotlight on school board members. There is usually low attendance at school board meetings. It would make the process upfront. If people are unhappy, they can remonstrate against it. People like to keep things undercover, unfortunately. This is a good bill. It puts pressure on school board members to know exactly what they are doing."

Many superintendents argue such a law would adversely affect hiring.

Merrillville Community School Corp. Superintendent Tony Lux believes school boards do know what they approve for superintendent contracts, including benefits and retirement packages.

"This is one of the school board's major areas of authority and responsibility," he said. "Because this happened in one place, there seems to be an effort to imply that this is happening everywhere, and that is just not the case."

Portage Township Schools Superintendent Mike Berta said it's an issue for people who are employed in one district to apply for a position in another district, publicizing the applicant's interest in the position.

"That's problematic in the interview process," he said. "The information that I have read on this topic leads me to believe that local control of the school board is being eroded. To go to a public forum over anyone's salary, whether it be the superintendent, principal or teacher, erodes the board's responsibility. Hiring a superintendent is one of the most important responsibilities the board has."

In some cases, Berta said, people take the superintendent's job from another part of the state, and moving one's family and other issues are involved.

"What's to stop someone, anyone, from contacting someone from the other district who says 'this guy is no good,' that's the kind of thing a public forum promotes," Berta said, adding the candidate could put himself in a precarious position at his current job.

Hebron schools Superintendent George Letz said sometimes a candidate has to sell a house and move to a new community; if the contract is discussed at an open meeting, what happens if the board decides not to hire the candidate. Letz also emphasized that finalized superintendent contracts and salaries are public information that anyone can obtain.

Lake Central Superintendent Larry Veracco said he saw this issue gaining momentum a while back. He said many superintendents get a car or car allowance, cellphone and other perks. He said he doesn't get any compensation outside of his $151,000 annual salary.

Terry Spradlin, associate director of the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy at Indiana University at Bloomington, said making superintendent contracts transparent to the public seems fair since it's taxpayer money.

Spradlin said so many things are presented to school boards to consider and adopt, "they need to be careful and make sure they understand what they are voting on."

Read more: http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/ar...l#ixzz1bhmuIUbq

Indiana's nearly 300 school superintendents are receiving more compensation than reported in their contracts, with extra payments for benefits such as health insurance counting toward their overall salaries for pension purposes, a newspaper's investigation has found.

The Evansville Courier & Press examined 275 superintendent employment contracts from across the state and found that many school boards were keeping published salaries low by providing the full cost of health insurance in cash, providing extra money for retirement accounts and making more than $400,000 in mandatory payments annually on their behalf to a state pension fund.

School leaders say the simple accounting maneuver is a common practice as districts try to keep good superintendents at a time when education funding has dropped.

"There were some folks that were trying to stretch budgets and still reward people and encourage people to stay," said Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. Superintendent David Smith, whose contract lists his salary at $160,000 a year. Smith also receives $20,000 each year, which he said he invests.

The practice is legal and falls within the guidelines of the Indiana State Teachers Retirement Fund, which at retirement will average the five highest years of compensation to calculate monthly pension payouts. The money paid for benefits can result in higher retirement checks.

But one lawmaker says the practice may need revisiting, A study of superintendent pay and benefits done by the nonpartisan Legislative Services Agency is slated to go to a study committee that is considering capping school chief salaries and benefits using student enrollment as a denominator.

Republican Rep. Jeff Espich of Uniondale, chairman of the budget-writing House Ways and Means Committee, said the practice abuses the intent of the retirement system and that lawmakers should consider stopping it.

"It's not the schools' problem. They're paying the money either way. Frankly, if the superintendent is buying his insurance, he's spending the money either way. The loser is the state teacher retirement fund, who's paying higher benefits than would be otherwise justifiable," Espich said.

Mike Pettibone, superintendent of Adams Central Community Schools in Monroe, questioned how offering superintendents' base salary numbers alone, without expensive taxpayer-funded extras, is different from what happens with private sector jobs.

"It's the same thing, the guy working at General Motors," said Pettibone, whose contract lists his salary at $94,320 but gives him an additional $15,012—the cost of a family health plan. "How much do you make? I make $24 an hour. But they don't say, 'How many benefits do you get? How many days of vacation do you get? What kind of retirement do you get?' "

Pettibone's $15,012 goes into an annuity that he can claim as part of his annual salary for pension calculation purposes. He said paying him an annuity that he can use to increase his pension later, instead of paying the same amount for his health insurance now, "doesn't cost the school district a penny more."

John Ellis, executive director of the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents, said such payment arrangements allow school districts to make up for education cuts by paying their leaders at the end of their careers and sending the bill elsewhere.

"People aren't getting big salaries, they aren't getting big benefits because there's no money in the system for education right now," Ellis said. "Some of those benefits are a way to more cheaply compensate [superintendents] because there just isn't a good way to pay them salary right now."

John Ketzenberger, president of the Indiana Fiscal Policy Institute, said the teachers' retirement fund isn't threatened by the higher pension payments but said the practice will have to be examined at some point.

"The truth is, at the bottom of all this is tax money that's collected by the state and redistributed. Whether it goes into pension funds or school formula, that's a function of distribution. It all comes from Hoosier taxpayers."