By MICHAEL RODRIGUEZ
Managing Editor
editor@sbnewspaper.com
San Benito CISD Superintendent of Schools Antonio G. Limón defended a $13,000 pay raise on Thursday that was exclusive to a central office administrator. The raise comes after district officials continue implementing nearly $2 million in budget cuts to help offset what was initially projected as a $3 million shortfall, which the superintendent has recently attributed to state cuts to education.
In response to an open records request seeking the salary of Dr. Margarita Greer, the district’s federal programs director, Limón confirmed on July 26 that Greer’s pay has increased from $77,000 to $90,000 annually.
“When we did a comparison with other federal program directors in the Valley, we found that she was quite low (on the pay scale),” Limón said, noting that the federal programs director in Los Fresnos makes $87,000. The News, however, was unable to confirm as much with Los Fresnos CISD officials as of presstime Friday.
Want the whole story? Pick up a copy of the July 29 edition of the San Benito News, or subscribe to our E-Edition by clicking here.
35 comments
Skip to comment form
Wow…Wow…Wow….San Benito could do better.
Yes, maybe your right but out of professional courtesy, Net picking will get us nowhere. We still need to be working together for the sake of the children and employees. I hope everyone trys to help each other and bring unity to our school district.
@ It’s plain and simple: about Miller Jordan MS- it is the only middle school that met AYP! Outstanding job Mr. Rodriguez and Staff!!
To Parent; As far as asking questions, Yes she does ask questions and has valid concerns. But she tends to contradict herself. In discussions she has said she does not care what other districts do and then later on in discussions, she asks, “What are they doing in other districts”. It’s like you or me sitting there as board members and on the agenda is the discussion about superintendent duties, and you ask, “how do they address this in other districts” and Anna Cruz says “I don’t care how etc. etc. Then the discussion is about field trips, and she asks “Well, how do they do it in other districts”. I think it’s rude when she says that to her board members but does not realize it. Maybe I’m wrong, but it’s an analysis on my part to be taken well.
@senior, We’re not talking about Yliana I was referring to Anna Cruz, why would she want control. Anna is not afraid to state the facts and do the research when it’s in the best interest of the children & employees. Medrano is not the only one that asks valid questions. He has even agreed with Anna Cruz in certain issues. As for Yliana I agree everyone knows that she does not answer questions or returns calls.
Parent, if she is not afraid to state the facts then why does she not return phone calls to the Valley Morning Star. If she is not afraid to state the facts as you mention she would have answered Mr. Medrano’s valid questions as what relationship she had with this new insurance carrier she wanted to change to. She would have stated the facts as to who assisted her in drafting a letter informing Bob Trevino his services had been terminated. Those are a few facts she could let fellow board members know about. And as you mention, she, in your opinion, is not scared to state the facts when it pertains in the best interest of the children and employees. So “Parent” why don’t you ask Ms. Yliana Rodriguez, SBCISD Board President to state those facts regarding SBCISD memo dated May 16, 2012; signed by her; to district’s insurance agent?
@senior, I’m not talking about Yliana my comment was about Anna Cruz. I know Yliana avoids questions and never returns calls. What else is new. Anna Cruz is not scared to state facts and do the research when it comes to the interest of the children and employees. As for Medrano, he himself has even agreed with some of the issues that Anna Cruz has had questions about. So Medrano is not the only one asking valid questions.
Why do you say she wants control. I think she’s the one that’s not scared to state facts and do the research when it comes to the interest of the children and employees. Trouble brewing is because the superintendent is wanting to raise your taxes.This is a decision that he is wanting to make. He knew about the budget downfall he should have started doing somthing about it since then. You should consider voicing your opinion to the board president if you feel so strongly about her. Maybe it will make you feel better. Honesty is the best policy.
Concerned, their had been some good change with the school district some few years back. You had some good, well educated, & trustworthy people both in the city and school boards/commission. You now have a board president that does not have the capacity to run a legal board meeting or legal committee meetings. Trouble brewing big time at tax payers expense!!! Maybe Anna Cruz can convince her co-board members friends to place her as president. She does want to be in control anyway. She sounds a little more confidnet anyway than the board president even though she does not have a PHD.
Chonito, you have great information. This should be discussed at morning breakfast place with the previous business manager. I hear he has an answer to all questions.
Only 16% of registered voters elected this bunch. If the rest of San Benito voters ever decide to vote things may change.
It’s pathetic when these people run for office and promise change for the good, and in the end, we’re worse off than before, we need well educated & trustworthy people to run this city and school district, but starting to think there are none here in San Benito, I be leave we are just screwed!
Old timer, sorry wrong info.. The superintendent does not have a raise built in to his contract. It was the previous superintendent that had a longevity clause built in not this one.
I sure hope that he, as the SBCISD supt. Makes sure that most if not all campuses imroves STAAR scores by implementing proper teaching techniques…he needs to personally Make walk thrus at all schools..ask students questions..etc…….if he’s getting paid more he needs to earn it…….please Mr. Limon…as a parent i’m asking that u improve things at VMA….., Miller Jordan….and other schools.
Careful what you wish for in calling for the board to fire Limon. I do believe this board will replace Limon – with Joe D. Remember when this board was sworn in after the election and they had Limon on the agenda? Their strategy is to bring back Gonzalez, I believe, but having done it immediately following the election was too obvious. Gonzalez is one of them, the group sitting with the board members the other night. Just wait and watch,
All this board has done in the last 3 months is make fool out of themselves. They promised to get rid of Mr. Limon: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised Gilbert Galvan the high school job: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised to kick out Delia Weaver: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised summer hours to the maintenance workers: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised Robert Champion Jr. & Salazar Insurance the Insurance job: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised Ray Saldana the Athletics Director position: DIDN’T HAPPEN! They promised Riojas the Parental Involvement job: DIDN’T HAPPEN…SO MANY PROMISES, NO ACTION!! The “Barrio Board” is really living up to its name! Just don’t say “I didn’t tell you so”!!!! hahaha!!!
Didn’t these board members go to a training for three days in San Antonio in June to learn how to run meetings? Someone needs to “reteach” these board members!!
Old timer, I heard the superintendent has a 25K raise built into his contract this year. Must be nice.
Wow, it won’t be long before the board has more members than the South Texas ISD board. From what I read the board is up to 11 members already. Someone needs to tell these board members that public meeting means public just listens to what board members are discussing unless it is public comment.
Since when do community members sit with board members during a Board Workshop? Oh, I forget… This is San Benito….. Nothing surprises me now!
We now have 12 school board members. Unbelievable and Unacceptable!
The school board needs to fire Supt. Antonio Limon for his fiscal irresponsibility. I also found out that besides the $13,000 for Dr. Greer, if this weren’t bad enough, it has been learned that another supervisor at central office is going to get a raise from approximately $67,000 to about $85,000. Supposedly she was assigned extra days of work, but even if she were to get an extra month assigned to her, it doesn’t justify $18,000. Both of these two employees live outside the district and don’t contribute to our taxes.
And then Mr. Limon has the audacity to say he has a hard time sleeping at night because he has to let go employees when he has 3 Mercedes Benz cars for his family alone. I think he is totally out of control.
Wasn’t Ronnie Garcia the same 1980’s school board member who was caught self enriching himself by selling parts to the district from his business where Kikis is now located?? Wasn’t this the man that is now in hot water over some John Deere trailers that didn’t belong to him and the DA was looking into it?? This man has no business and no credibility if you ask me! And what the heck is Lopez and Victor Garza out of the suddent so interested in our school district?? hmmmm Is it perhaps that Victor Garza is still interested in getting all the graduation ring business for himself?? hmmmmm
I am also wondering if any confidential information belonging to district employees was seen or read by any of these individuals during this budget workshop? If so, this was clearly a violation of confidentiality!! NO TIENEN VERGUENZA!!!!
There are at least 3 people on the school board, maybe 4, who don’t own a home and pay no property taxes. Yet these are the ones who will decide that the rest of us have to pay an increase in taxes? Just doesn’t seem right. What do they care if our taxes go up, they don’t pay them anyway.
These are the things voters needed to think about when they voted this past May.
When the school board had a budget work shop the other night, Victor Garza, Ronnie Garcia and Chon Lopez attended and Victor sat WITH ANNA CRUZ at the board table and all 3 men made comments, made demands, made suggestions LIKE AS IF THEY HAD BEEN ELECTED TO THE BOARD!!! What the heck is going on here? Who made them authorities on school budgets, and the rules and regulations governing schools? Who do they think they are?
Who is running the school district?? Chon and Ronnie or Anna and Yliana? Isn’t it enough that they are running the city too? How much control do they want, and WHY?
Wake up San Benito.
Michelle is right on target. That is why we needed to have re-elected/elected knowledgeble school board members. The same with the city. We’re in trouble.
Why hasn’t anyone supported Mr. Medrano in the school insurance change issue inquiry? But raises are being supported? From what I read in the SB Newspaper and connect stories, hmmm. Questionable?
I totally agree Katie! It is such a shame all of San Benito’s school employees aren’t being paid what they should. In order to have our children taught by the best and most qualified teachers, we must maintain a competitive salary with the other school districts in the area. San Benito must stop settling for mediocrity! Our kids deserve better!
So how is it that after giving ONE person a $13,000 raise, the supt. wants to raise taxes because the district needs more money?? Don’t forget he also approved a $2.50 AN HOUR raise for the brother in law of two school board members, totaling to a $500 a month raise. Who gets those kind of raises? If anything, most people get a 10cent or at most a 25cent an hour raise. Do these raises, at a time when money is tight, make any sense to anyone???
It is absolutely shameful that the SBCISD Superintendent agreed to a pay raise in that large amount for a single employee when all district employees have been told time and time again what financial stress the district is currently under and expected to be for some time. Why is the superintendent only interested in making this employee’s salary equitable to neighboring school districts, when in fact the VAST MAJORITY of professional employees (teachers, counselors, assistant principals, and many campus principals) are “one the low end of the scale” in comparison to neighboring school districts? Harlingen CISD recently announced that it will be giving a pay raise to all employees this school year – so will SBCISD be initiating the same, since it is supposedly so interested in making sure its employees are not “on the low end of the pay scale?” Or will it in fact be decreasing salaries next school year with the supposed “furlough” of inservice days, as has been mentioned as a possibility by Mr. Limon? Shameful, shameful, shameful.
$2.50 pay raise?….. Big wow!!!! Does that mean that all paraprofessionals will get a raise too??????…..lol yeah right!!!! Unless you related to any school board member… How is it possible that anyone let that happen?…all paraprofessionals and teachers should investigate, since they have’nt received a raise.
Some of you may remember a few years back we had a nurse named Mrs. Lamotte. She’d been with the district many many years and had worked up to her salary. When she died, Supt. Joe D. Gonzalez hired Dr. Greer’s husband to replace her and paid him at the salary Mrs. Lamotte was earning. He had just arrived, hadn’t worked his way up, and he made more, automatically, than many of the nurses who had been here for years. I remember people were upset at that, feeling that it took Mrs. Lamotte 20 years to earn the same that Mr. Greer just walked into. Why do Supt.s have the power to pay whatever they want with no one questioning it? Why do we allow it?
Now Supt. Tony Limon has given Dr. Greer a $13,000 raise saying that compared to other towns, this was needed. Well, lets compare San Benito to other towns. Do we have the same tax base as Harlingen with all its retail stores and malls? No. Do we have the same tax base as Los Fresnos with their Rancho Viejo taxes included in their tax base? No. Do we have the same tax base as Mercedes with their Outlet Mall taxes included in their base? No. And of course, we don’t even need to ask about comparing ourselves with Brownsville and Port Isabel. Using the comparison to other towns is an excuse, and a poor one. San Benito doesn’t have the tax base that all the other towns in our area have, yet Tony Limon wants to make us believe that he gave her the raise because all those other towns pay that much more. San Benito can’t afford that. We don’t have the tax base the other towns he compared us to have. I wonder what is the real reason that he gave her such an enormous raise?
No two director’s are alike. No two Teachers are alike, No two superintendents are alike . No two positions can be alike if you do not have the same person on the same positions. Sounds confuseing? Not to two people who think alike.
The lady has a PhD Degree and getting paid $77,000 dollars a year?? Hello!! Come on people let’s be fair here!!! Of course she deserves a raise!!! Wouldn’t you want a pay raise if it were you??? Ah Raza!!!!
There is no way the superintendent can defend a $13,000 pay raise when he has people working for him who don’t even make $13,000 a year. I could understand a $3000 raise or even a $5000 raise, but a $13,000 raise is almost vulgar.
And why did he allow the paraprofessional brother in law of two board members get a $2.50/hour raise? That comes out to about $500 a month RAISE, apart from his usual pay check. Isn’t that too much of a coincidence? Brother in law of two board members who support the superintendent gets a $500 a month raise. Wow.
That stinks, what about the staff that never receives any raise, unless we vote on a tax forum that benefits the admin, we haven’t had a raise in 4 years,cuz of budget cuts, it’s like they say the rich get riche, and the rest of us nothing.
$90,000 ! Whoa! and the rest of the employees will not get a pay raise AND next school year they will take away about 5 days, furlough days. What a sorry caca school district! Only gives pay raises to those that already have a good salary.