By Philip Haldiman
Twitter: @PhilipHaldiman

The Peoria Unified School District governing board unanimously approved performance pay for Superintendent Linda Palles Thompson, based on her evaluation from the 2018-19 school year.

Her performance pay is $9,990. The evaluation was not made public.

The review was broken into four areas: parent satisfaction survey, teacher satisfaction, academic gains, and other.

Parents were asked, “I consider my child’s school to be an excellent school.” On a scale of 1 to 5, the overall rating was above 4.

Teachers were asked, “Considering everything, I am satisfied working at my school or my department.” On a scale of 1 to 5, the overall rating was above 4.

Under academic gains, the board considered ACT test scores and AzMERIT scores.

She said AzMERIT scores were about the same as the previous year and ACT scores have plateaued over the last six or seven years.

“We feel we are turning a corner on ELA (AzMERIT) both in growth and in achievement,” she said. “Are the (ACT) scores what we want? No. ... Can we do better? You bet.”

Under the other category, Ms. Palles Thompson listed a number of accomplishments including the creation of a district-wide strategic plan, financial literacy program, student voter registration, adoption of a phonics program, implementation of a comprehensive emergency plan, facility assessments of 15 schools, implementation of a social emotional program in eight schools as well as an audit and update of district policies.

President Monica Ceja Martinez said the board was tasked with establishing performance goals and performance pay aligned to state statute.

She said Superintendent Pallas Thompson has met the requirements set forth by the board and excelled in leading students, staff and parents, as well as continued to create an inclusive environment where all stakeholders feel welcome to share their insights and experiences.

“In the time that I have personally worked with you, you have gained the confidence and the trust of the board, showed a commitment to drive for measurable outcomes and established a strategic plan to drive appropriate outcomes for the future success of this district,” Ms. Ceja Martinez said.

Board member Beverly Pingerelli said all four categories of the review are important but she wants to see more gains in academics.

“Superintendent Palles Thompson has fearlessly challenged status quo norms in this district and I appreciate that,” she said. “Let’s continue on and keep going.”

Performance-based compensation is outlined in Ms. Palles Thompson’s contract and was based on her ability to meet various performance measures as outlined during the 2018-19 school year. These measures and data points were discussed during a closed-door executive session, Aug. 22.

In Arizona, municipalities are given a provision within state statutes to discuss certain items away from the limelight of the public arena. The closed-door meetings are known as executive sessions.

An executive session is a gathering of a quorum of members of a public body from which the public body is excluded for one or more of the reasons set forth under ARS section 38-431.03, state law stipulates.

Ms. Palles Thompson said she was honored to work with the governing board and her executive staff.

“We have a lot of work to do and I am so excited to be able to do it,” she said. “You inspire me because the diversity allows us to all get to a better decision. You know, ‘Jerry Maguire,’ you complete me. You all complete me. Thank you, thank you, thank you, and I appreciate all of you.”

Philip Haldiman can be reached at 623-876-3697, phaldiman@newszap.com, or on Twitter @philiphaldiman.