Maybe it’s partly just the timing, but I’m disheartened about the Dallas Independent School District right now.
Back-to-back stories this week detailed troubling financial affairs in the district. And with each such revelation, I imagine public support waning a little more.
I picture the city’s movers and shakers shifting their attention another notch toward the private and suburban schools that their children and grandchildren attend.
Without a doubt, Superintendent Mike Miles has a fierce focus on improving classroom performance. But academic rigor won’t matter much if it’s accompanied by shoddy financial dealings downtown.
We’ve got to have a school district we trust not only with our kids but also with our dollars.
And it hasn’t been a good week in the trust department.
My colleague Matthew Haag had the latest stories. Monday, he reported the results of an internal investigation at DISD. And it made clear that former school trustee Ron Price used his influence to get a sweetheart deal for a local real estate company.
The Collins Co. received a 9 percent commission on property the district purchased for a new middle school. Standard real estate commissions are 3 to 6 percent, but many school districts buy land without paying any real estate agent commissions at all.
What could possibly explain a juicy 9 percent commission?
“The Collins Co. was a longtime recipient of preferential treatment largely due to the influence of former trustee Ron Price,” said the report by the school district’s Office of Internal Audit.
Price denies using his sway to benefit the Collins Co. And owner John Collins didn’t respond to Haag’s interview requests.
Tuesday, Haag looked at administrators’ salaries in DISD. And the numbers are unsettling.
The 25 highest-paid administrators under Superintendent Miles received an average salary hike of 14 percent this year.
How was your raise this year? Nothing like that, I’ll bet.
DISD’s teachers got a 3 percent raise this year, which is much more in the real-world range of modest salary bumps.
This is a touchy subject because Miles arrived in Dallas with almost instant controversy over the high salaries paid to his command staff. He ought to know that big raises are going to raise big questions.
Miles’ defense this time is that several top jobs have been consolidated and raises went to people with more duties.
That would be a good explanation if overall administrative personnel and salaries declined through reorganization. But the numbers show a small increase in people and an 8 percent jump in total pay.
Over the previous four school years, administrative salaries grew from 10 percent of total salaries paid in DISD to 13 percent. For the current school year, the figure dropped back to 12 percent.
I guess that’s something to cheer.
None of this is as outrageous as some previous scandals in the district — like that credit card shopping spree of a few years back or the tech guy’s kickbacks from vendors.
But even small abuses matter. And appearances do, too.
Frankly, standardized testing has become such a muddle over the years I’m not sure many parents or community leaders can make heads or tails of the results. They accept that test scores will always be a mixed bag.
But school watchers have a keen eye for financial misdeeds. And they will judge the district’s overall performance as much on taxpayer dollars as on testing data.
Among all those well-paid administrators, let’s hope there are scads of great educators — and at least one tightwad to watch them.
On Twitter: @DMNSteveBlow
