Most Corridor superintendents allowed to do consulting

CEDAR RAPIDS — Cedar Rapids Community Schools Superintendent Brad Buck, hired in March, already has turned down two requests to work for pay outside the district. He's been too busy learning about the district of more than 16,000 students, meeting teachers and principals and getting reacquainted with his hometown.

But when Viterbo University, based in Wisconsin with satellites in Iowa, approached him about teaching an introductory course for principals, Buck couldn't refuse.

'At my heart, I'm still a teacher,' said Buck who started his career as a middle school science teacher. 'I'll likely end up teaching a course this summer. I'll take paid time off if I need to.'

School officials in Iowa and across the country are moonlighting for educational companies, universities and professional organizations. These opportunities can help administrators hone their skills and promote home districts — but they also can lead to potential conflicts of interest.

'It's not just about the extra money you're making on the side,' said Samuel Abrams, director of the National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education at Columbia University.

'The superintendents are making money from counseling other school districts about getting scores up. They're consequently that much less likely to criticize an accountability system that should be criticized.'

The Iowa City school board on Tuesday will discuss Superintendent Stephen Murley's discretionary leave — 10 days he may use for consulting or other professional activities.

Murley moonlighted from 2012 to 2014 for the SUPES Academy, a Chicago-area private educational company indicted in a kickback scandal in the Chicago Public Schools. Murley has said he and other superintendents had no knowledge of the scheme.

The Iowa City school board released records this past week showing Murley received permission to work 13 days out of the district in 2015-2016 for two for-profit companies and an education association. His compensation for these groups, if he worked eight-hour days, would be about $3,600.

A Gazette review of five Corridor school districts shows all allow superintendents to do outside work as long as it doesn't interfere with their day jobs.

'If John wants to take his vacation do consult, he can do that,' Steve Doser, spokesman for the College Community School District, said of Superintendent John Speer.

Speer must seek prior approval from the school board for outside consulting or professional activities unless he uses vacation. Speer, hired in 2012 and paid $194,040 this year, is entitled to 20 vacation days, according to his contract.

He has never asked the board for time to do outside work, Doser said.

Discretionary leave

The Clear Creek-Amana Community School District allows superintendents to accept consulting work or other outside employment as long as it's on the superintendent's own time. The school board does not require the superintendent to report outside work, but reserves the right to ask the leader to stop side jobs.

'I'm confident that if something like this came up, the superintendent would talk with us about it,' School Board President Steve Swenka said about Superintendent Tim Kuehl, hired in April 2013.

After working 9 to 5 and then attending evening student events, many superintendents don't have extra time for consulting work, Swenka said. Area superintendents are paid well enough not to need extra income, he added.

Kuehl's salary is $164,798.

Linn-Mar's contract with Superintendent Quintin Shepherd, hired last December, allows him to consult, lecture and engage in speaking and writing activities that don't impede his job. If Shepherd, with an annual salary of $215,000, wants to be paid for outside work, he must get prior written approval.

'Dr. Shepherd is not currently consulting, nor are any consulting agreements forthcoming,' School Board President Tim Isenberg wrote in an email to The Gazette.

Shepherd gets two discretionary leave days per year in addition to 30 days vacation.

Cedar Rapids permits superintendents to moonlight in their personal time, but the school board reserves the right to halt outside work if it interferes with the district. Buck, paid $229,000 and given 33 days of paid time off, does not have specific discretionary leave.

When Buck was superintendent of Saydel Community School District, near Des Moines, he started his own consulting business focused on enhancing individual and team performance. He used vacation time to facilitate workshops on DiSC, a personality assessment tool.

When he was hired as director of the Iowa Department of Education in 2013, Buck was required to stop consulting. But he believes outside work — as long as it's disclosed to the school board and community — can make administrators better.

'It further reinforces your knowledge when you have to explain it to someone else,' Buck said. 'But there's probably some point where you know it so well that there is diminishing return for the district.'