Chandler school board approves pay-for-performance
Independent Newsmedia/Jason W. Brooks
Chandler Unified Assistant Superintendent Mike De La Torre speaks during the CUSD Governing Board’s Sept. 9 meeting. He presented the district’s annual Proposition 301 pay-for-performance plan to the board, which unanimously approved it.
Chandler Unified teachers and other staff will be eligible to be paid for performance this school year — but not quite as much as in 2025-26.
Assistant Superintendent Mike De La Torre explained the numbers and the process of how Proposition 301 funds will be divvied up among Chandler educators. After a public hearing at its Sept. 9 meeting, the Chandler Unified Governing Board unanimously approved the district’s 301 distribution plan for the 2026-27 school year.
De La Torre said the “SuperProp” committee, comprising district leaders and others, met once to discuss possible changes before the end of the school year and then again after this school year started on July 15.
Proposition 301 was approved by Arizona voters in 2000. Its primary purpose was to increase funding for education programs across the state by increasing the statewide sales tax, a CUSD staff report states.
One main year-over-year difference, De La Torre said, is the drop in the maximum amount of pay for performance each educator will receive.
The maximum pay for performance each eligible CUSD educator can earn in 2026-27 is $2,200, compared to $3,450 last year, the report states.
“The total amount of dollars being put into the district plan is greater, even though it reflects less in one portion of the plan,” De La Torre said.
The main difference is in pay for participation in “learning walks.” District reports describe the walks as a short, non-evaluative peer observation program where small groups of educators visit multiple classrooms together to watch instruction, discussing best practices.”
Those are dropping from $1,375 for the two learning walks in 2025-26, or $2,750 total, while this year, it’s only $750 for each learning walk and $1,500 total.
A flat $350 for completing a “site learning experience” plan is unchanged, as is a maximum of $350 based on whether a staff member is determined to be “effective” or “highly effective” using an evaluation system.
Eligible CUSD employees include CUSD classroom teachers and a list of 45 other eligible positions that largely exclude district leadership. For example, deans and academic coaches are eligible; principals, district administrators, school athletics directors and department directors are not.
Jason W. Brooks News Editor | Chandler Independent
Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.
Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.
Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.
Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.
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