Schools Superintendent Earns $23,000 Merit Bonus

Schools Superintendent John Ravally earned a $23,000 merit bonus this past school year, which was approved at the special July 19 Board of Education meeting. (File photo).

A $23,057.25 merit bonus for schools Superintendent John Ravally was approved by the Board of Education.

The board approved the bonus, the terms of which had been negotiated last year, at its July 19 special meeting.

Ravally was eligible for merit bonuses based on his base salary at the time of the agreement of $177,500. Ravally and the district have since entered into a new five-year agreement, effective July 1, which ups his base salary to $191,000 and to $196,584 when allowed stipends are included.

The bonuses were for quantitative and qualitative goals agreed upon by the district and superintendent. The quantitative goals included tiered bonuses, depending upon the level of achievement when measured against the results of “iReady” tests at the beginning and end of the school year.

Ravally earned a 2.33 percent bonus, or $4,135.75, for reaching the goal of having 55 percent of students in grades 5 and 7 demonstrate one year’s growth in an English language arts program.

He earned an additional $4,135.75 for reaching the goal of having 55 percent of students in grades 5 and 7 demonstrate one year’s growth in the district’s core mathematics program.

Ravally earned a 3.33 percent, or $5,910.75, bonus when the pass rate for Grade 9 “at risk” students in algebra met or exceeded 80 percent.

The first qualitative goal, for which Ravally earned $4,437.50, was to create an initial rezoning plan for the redistricting that will occur in the 2018-19 school year, when the new Claremont Road school comes on line. Ravally worked with the district’s transportation department, transition committee and other appropriate staff to create the plan.

The second qualitative goal, for which Ravally earned an additional $4,437.50, was for the creation of a “one-to-one” computer program for Grade 5 students. The superintendent worked with the school board, assistant superintendent for curriculum, district technology supervisors and other staff to reach that goal.

“I think the biggest takeaway was that the goals were high,” said school board president Ed Potosnak. “The fact that he wasn’t able to make 100 percent of the first merit goal that was quantitative says how high they are.”

“They’re not just everyday run of the mill things,” he said. “These are stretches aimed at rewarding him and the staff that support him for meeting something discreet and something that’s really a reach. And that’s what we are really pleased with overall.”

Potosnak said that Ravally will create goals for the upcoming school year after the school board finalizes the district goals.

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