Having met 100 percent of his achievement goals, TUSD Superintendent H.T. Sanchez was awarded a $12,600 bonus Tuesday.
The Tucson Unified School District Governing Board approved the bonus with a 4-0 vote. Board member Mark Stegeman was not presentfor the vote.
Governing Board members praised Sanchez and the path he has set TUSD just 11 months into the job.
For Sanchez, a first-time superintendent who is new to Tucson, the last year has been exactly what he thought it would be.
βI knew when coming in there would be challenges in taking a look at the budget; I knew there would be challenges in trying to win back public trust,β Sanchez said. βI knew there would be those things in front of us, but it worked out. To this point, the board has been supportive of the major pieces that weβve needed to move forward.β
On the flip side, understanding the communityβs priorities was the primary challenge for Sanchez, along with identifying priorities that transcend all stakeholder groups.
In accordance with his contract, Sanchez was eligible to receive performance-based compensation up to 6 percent of his annual $210,000 base salary.
Sanchez plans to donate the bonus, as previous superintendents have, but said he would make a decision as to where in consultation with his wife.
The goals, which were developed by Sanchez based on conversations with board members, covered various areas, including teacher pay, class sizes and establishing a plan to align curriculum, assessments and professional development. The districtβs progress in implementing the Unitary Status Plan β designed to bring racial balance to TUSD schools β was also taken into consideration.
Sanchez has called for and received the results of three independent studies on demographics, efficiency and curriculum.
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Contact reporter Alexis Huicochea at ahuicochea@azstarnet.com or 573-4175. On Twitter @AlexisHuicochea
