New Santa Cruz principal on school board’s docket

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In March, Gina Chaffin was granted a one-year leave of absence. Tonight, the Maricopa Unified School District Governing Board could approve the hiring of a new principal for Santa Cruz Elementary.

Loraine Conley, currently principal at Dunbar Elementary in the Phoenix Elementary District, is among 14 new hires going before the board at its regular meeting. According to Superintendent Steve Chestnut, Conley already lives in Maricopa.

Chaffin was hired in 2013 to replace John Flores. The leave of absence guarantees her a position with the district when she returns, but not the one she is vacating.

It is the time of year for personnel shifts, and the board has a list of 13 resignations and one virtual resignation. CTE teacher Greg Johnson is noted as not returning a contract.

Those resigning include Saddlebrook Elementary teachers Danica Carpenter and Brad Davis, Desert Wind Middle School teacher Patrick Thompson (who is taking a leave of absence and being reclassified as a substitute), Maricopa High School teachers Norge Labrato, Thienkieu Tran and Nancy Buck, Butterfield Elementary teacher Amanda Jones, Santa Cruz Elementary teacher Alex Stroup and teacher on special assignment Aundre Bell, Maricopa Wells Middle School teacher Desiree Murdoch, Pima Butte Elementary teacher Kathryn Conner, Butterfield attendance clerk Carol Tapia, CTE administrative assistance Betty Johnson, paraprofessionals Jennifer Larson and Cassandra Kawka, bus driver Kimberly Baldwin and Santa Cruz library aide Mattie Powers.

New employees up for approval along with Conley are MHS teachers T.J. Sanderson, Tyler Miller and Kris Lettenmaker, Maricopa Elementary School teachers Edna Liebhart and Chelsea Yeager, substitute teachers Denise Johnson, Johnny Gabaldon, Ruth Ann Hogue, Babette Rios and Kim Richards, bus drivers Phillip Chasse and Ove Pendergraft and bus aide Anthony Bowden.

Carmen Romero is being reclassified from a part-time school receptionist to attendance clerk. Melissa Dion is taking a leave of absence for the next school year.

Also Wednesday, the board may approve a second revision for the 2014-15 budget, a legal necessity when expenditures out-pace budgeted revenue. The revision brings the two into alignment. There will be a public hearing before the action item on the agenda.

***ADVERTISEMENT***The governing board’s previous adoption of new salary schedules for certified and administrative staff is causing a change in policy, which is up for a first reading this week.

According to the administration, the cost of implementing the new certified compensation plan was $75,000 for salary equalization to assure that current teachers are compensated at the same level as newly hired teachers. There was no cost to equalize administrative salaries. There was an additional cost of $130,000 to compensate teachers and administrators who were employed by MUSD during the four years of pay freezes.

Tonight’s meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. at the district administration building.