A diligent reader sent this:
Here are some interesting facts you might find ‘eyebrow raising:’
1. In the last five weeks, multiple positions have been filled without advertisement nor interview as required by the Texas Education Code and EPISD Board Policy DC (Legal). Those positions include, but are not limited to: Chief School Officer, Chief of Innovation (Academics Division), Chief of Staff, Deputy Superintendent of Finance and Operations and Deputy Superintendent of Administration. Human Resources targeted by audit for not advertising and interviewing. Positions are not ‘retitled.’ They are new positions with new responsibilities considered promotions.New Deputy Superintendent of Administration WAS Associate Super for Human Resources and is department is currently on Corrective Action Plan for inappropriate activities at HR. http://www.episd.org/departments/internal_audit/audit_reports.php 2015-2016 audits…
2. The person who was appointed Chief of Staff was the same person who started of as a mid-level Director of External Funding, then Senior Researcher then Executive Director then Chief of Staff all within a year and a half. He is also the person who misread a report and reported to the Board of Trustees that the district would lose $6 million in ADA due to a decrease in population which, it turns out, did not happen. Reported in September of 2016 by EP Times. Pay increase over a year and a half: At least $40,000 but truly unknown because pay level for Chief of Staff is unavailable at EPISD website.
3. The new Deputy Superintendent of Administration has also received two promotions by appointment over the last two years. Started off as Executive Director, the Associate Superintendent, now Deputy Superintendent. No advertisement and no interview, as required by TEC 11.1513 and EPISD Board Policy DC (Legal). Most recent pay increase: Approximately $40,000
4. All elementary and middle school principals met with last week Thursday to inform them of sweeping transfers for them and their staff for 2015-2016.
5. 15 Elementary and Middle School principals met with individually by Superintendent Cabrera and told that their campuses will be closing at end of school year. Is a done deal. Principals told that if parents, students or communities from these neighborhood schools are loud in protest or if teachers or others protest, the principal will be terminated for not following the company line on this. Great level of fear among staff.
Here is the Education Code citation:
Sec. 11.1513. EMPLOYMENT POLICY. (a) The board of trustees of each independent school district shall adopt a policy providing for the employment and duties of district personnel.
(d) The employment policy must provide that not later than the 10th school day before the date on which a district fills a vacant position for which a certificate or license is required as provided by Section 21.003, other than a position that affects the safety and security of students as determined by the board of trustees, the district must provide to each current district employee:
(1) notice of the position by posting the position on:
(A) a bulletin board at:
(i) a place convenient to the public in the district’s central administrative office; and
(ii) the central administrative office of each campus in the district during any time the office is open; or
(B) the district’s Internet website, if the district has a website; and
(2) a reasonable opportunity to apply for the position.
************************
I fear that we are going to learn that these positions do not require certificates or licenses.
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
And by “diligent reader” you mean Dan Wever.
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Gee Deputy, don’t know what I did to piss you off but I had nothing to do with the figures. I can show examples much much worse that what is on this forum. I can show where administrators got extra step raises as directors for teaching tennis 15 years ago. I hope the auditors of the salaries mentioned in this mornings paper check with me if they want to know what happened to the administrative salaries.
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Sheesh!…”and the wheels on the bus go round and round..”.
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We get what we ask for. People vote for people who tell them what they want to hear. No one looks at who and what these people represent. It won’t change. The kids here are hurt for personal gain by school board members or their business ties or families. Cabrera has his own PR NETWORK. What people running for office say and what they have done ate two different stories.
Sent from my iPhone
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The Super needs a chief of staff? I guess he sees himself as on par with the president of the United States, so he needs to have a similar executive staff. After all, the Super already makes considerably more than even the vice-president.
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This is the Board that swore it would restore trust? And they want us to vote to hand them 100s of millions of ?????? Sure! And maybe someone should ask the new trustworthy board what happened to all those “citizens” whose input they were going to seek before closing schools. Rumor is they cancelled all
meetings and aren’t even bothering with that charade.
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EPISD does this all the time! Look at the vacant positions and see either how quickly the position is filled or how LONG it takes to fill the position (waiting for the right person — wink wink!). Even with teacher positions. They are posted for one day and taken down the next, why bother? HR staff go on teacher recruiting trips all the time. Why? Does UTEP not graduate enough “good teachers”? It’s crazy. But go ahead El Paso, keep support the new admin and board, I see they’ve done wonders for our city and school district!
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This way of “making decisions” without following TEA procedure can easily be equated to the directives that sent a former superintendent to jail. Our educational leaders rule by fear and intimidation. Perhaps it’s time to begin class legal action against top echelons of the EPISD mafia. Too bad El Paso Times and most local tv stations are in bed with them!
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This is what happens when no one goes to the Board meetings or keeps track of what’s going on. The “District of Innovation” was nothing more than a move toward pulling away from TEA so they would not have to follow protocol (laws or procedures). They want to be a sovereign district with a dictator leader! WAKE UP EL PASO!!!!
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Wow! So what are these people teaching others…..breaking rules,laws is ok.
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We all sit here responding on line to information that we KNOW is true and do nothing about it. When I go to the Board meetings to speak – I don’t see hardly anyone from the public protesting what’s going on. Is everyone afraid to speak publicly and yet speak on line? They could care less about what is written! What they DO fear is word of what’s really going on getting out to the public! What needs to be done is a group of people flooding the Board meetings with information and make the news people be there to report it!!! I don’t see the news people there – except KVIA and they are not going to report the REAL news! I wonder why!!!!!!!!
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Funny that the Chief of Staff is making 150k and has never been an educator. Furthermore he doesn’t trust our district, his employer, enough to send his children to our schools. Private schools for his kids. At least Cabrera sends his children to his district. You are right, we need to speak up at meetings.
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Hypocrisy reigns in El Paso, especially in government. The city’s Chief Performance Officer, who makes more than $200,000 and gets the full-time use of a city vehicle, is also still promoting her consulting business and her residence is still in the Dallas area. She doesn’t even mention her job with the City in her LinkedIn profile. I think we are also still paying for her flights to and from Dallas. Gonzalez didn’t post that job opening nor was anyone in El Paso even considered. He eliminated some deputy city manager positions to save money while spending big dollars to hire his gal pal.
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This is part of the article and according to the date, is a year old:
(All elementary and middle school principals met with last week Thursday to inform them of sweeping transfers for them and their staff for 2015-2016.)
Why is it being reported now as having just occurred?
Also, the next portion gives a date that hasn’t occurred yet:
(He is also the person who misread a report and reported to the Board of Trustees that the district would lose $6 million in ADA due to a decrease in population which, it turns out, did not happen. Reported in September of 2016 by EP Times. )
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I made a grave mistake, and was forced to resign immediately. Never a second chance, and when I requested to meet with the Associate Superindent, she refuses to even meet me, put a face to the name. Now I’m facing legal action and losing my teaching license. Though I do not deny a bad decision was made, it was a first, and it was corrective, given the time, attention, and respect as being human. Yet, we still have the Chiefs, they even named themselves that, leading the pack for their own benefit!
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Really! The hypocrisy of these people. Anonymous, we all make mistakes, the principal at Hawkins has been having an affair with one of the district’s high ranking engineers, but both are on the “in” with the upper administration. The wife of the engineer showed up at Hawkins and made a scene, the new new Chief School officer swept it all under the rug because she is one of the golden chosen ones. Integrity? Where is the equity?
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Yes, we all make mistakes. I left the light on in the kitchen last night. I forgot to stop at the store and pick up milk for the kids. I didn’t call my mother last Sunday. Those are mistakes. The actions of these people are not mistakes.
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Where will the displaced workers go? How is it we are losing students and gaining high dollar deputies? We are struggling at the campus levels and told to tighten our belts. Yet the kingdom is growing on Boeing.
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Sunday’s 5 page report on Cabrera is really a joke. I guess just getting ready for the bond election; so that everyone knows that Cabrera was not part of the old regime. Anyone who reads it knows half of that information is not accurate. Really, EPISD doesn’t hire interims? Hmmm, principals, assistant principals, hr staff, academic staff, associates, (interims for years).
Cabrera prides himself on visiting all of the campuses, claims people want to come and work at central office. Really? People at central office don’t even recognize Cabrera . . . he’s an figment of imagination. Even if you see him, he won’t acknowledge you unless you are one of his “chiefs”. Nothing has changed in EPISD. Wake up El Paso!
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I believe the threats in point #5. Have observed this behavior and have heard from several district staff who have experienced the same in different contexts.
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