After first pulling the contract off the agenda in May and then holding a special meeting earlier in July to discuss his performance, the Burbank School Board will meet Thursday night at 7 pm in the City Council Chamber to vote for a new contract for Superintendent Dr. Matt Hill.
Back on May 5, a new contract for Hill was on the agenda but was pulled off at the last minute without explanation. At that time, the Board voted to give all the top administrators retroactive raises.
No explanation was given why Hill’s contract was pulled that night, but it is thought they would wait until July, when it may be slipped by.
According to Transparent California, in 2020, Hill received $250,669.92 in salary and $63,380.55 in benefits which comes to $314,050.47. Compare that with Governor Gavin Newsom, who made $196,164.62 and $278,560.74 with benefits. The new retroactive contract calls for a base salary of $260,642.00 plus other benefits in a contract that will expire in June 2025, including a 5% retroactive raise that goes back to 2021. The present contract for Hill was not due to expire until 2023, with the Board not commenting on why they are not honoring the previous contract they negotiated with him, especially with the District’s current financial condition.
This comes with the district’s desperate financial situation and declining enrollment.
During Hill’s time, he presided over two failed bond measures. Measure QS failed in November 2018, and Measure I failed in March 2020. A source familiar with the situation said he was hired without real classroom or administrative experience.
There have also been six Principals that have left the District in the past year. One of the Principals, who asked not to be identified, told myBurbank that there was a large disconnect between the District and the schools and a lack of leadership.
Recently, the district hired an elementary principal for the coming school year who has yet to receive an administrative credential. It is expected that they will receive this credential in December. An official with knowledge who was not authorized to comment told myBurbank that this is a very rare occurrence to hire a principal who has yet to receive an administrative credential, but it does happen a little more often with assistant principals. The District just had two principals leave at the end of 2022 with Doctorates in Education degrees.
Board members will have to vote in public for the contract this Thursday with two up for reelection this November and will probably have to justify their vote to the public during the current economic state of the Country lately with no clear end in sight. Neither Char Tabet nor Steve Frintner has publicly committed to running yet.
Members of the public may comment at the beginning of the meeting. Unlike City Council meetings that accept call-in comments right through oral communications, the School Board deadline to speak to them over zoom expired at 3 pm on Wednesday so the public must attend to comment on any School Board agenda item.
