By

Ray Pinney 

“What we’re trying to do here is to shift the paradigm.”

Gov. Chris Christie – on his proposal to cap superintendent salaries.

If Governor Christie’s object in public education was to shift the paradigm with his proposal to cap superintendent salaries in conjunction with his 2% hard cap, then he can declare “mission accomplished!” 

High salaries and compensation for superintendents in New Jersey have been an issue for awhile. Like a volcano, New Jersey politicians and citizens blew their collective top over the retirement package of about $750,000, given to former Keansburg superintendent, Barbara A. Trzeszkowski.  (However it is worth noting that in March, the N.J. Department of Education reached a settlement with her nullifying her $556,290 severance payment. She did receive $184,000 for accrued vacation and sick time.)  Now, two years later, with reduced state aid, budgets cut to the bone, and many staff members taking pay freezes, high salaries for superintendents stood out even more.  Gov. Christie has moved quickly to rein in the salaries and cap that volcano, and he is doing it without legislative approval. (Not that he would get any resistance from legislators in the State House, since there are very few things less politically advantageous than defending high-salaried public employees.)

Back in early May, I wrote a blog entry, The argument over the cost of education. In it I noted that the real issue for the governor is that he believes the cost of education is too high and that it could be delivered at a lower cost without sacrificing quality. (more…)

By

Ray Pinney 

“I came to realize there is nothing in life quite so limited as being a limited partner of George.” 

John McMullen a limited partner of the Yankees with George Steinbrenner, 1979

I was driving home from work thinking about this blog post of the ten most influential New Jerseyans in education when I heard the news that Yankee owner George Steinbrenner had passed away.  Obviously this was a big story because Steinbrenner or “The Boss” (I am sure Bruce Springsteen fans may take offense), as he was called, was a larger-than-life sports figure particularly in the New York City metropolitan area.  He was a man who had a dominant personality and who left no doubt about who was in charge.  

More important for the purposes of this blog, Steinbrenner’s passing crystallized for me why I was having such a difficult time coming up with my list of ten. Like the Yankee hierarchy of the 1970′s, 1980′s, and 1990′s, a list of New Jersey’s influential educational leaders almost begins and ends with one person – Gov. Chris Christie.  Since the governor is a Met fan, I am sure he was not a huge Steinbrenner fan, but like George, Christie is the leader.

It is amazing how fast things change.  (more…)

 By 

Ray Pinney 

I was once told by some math whiz that all mathematics computations are relative – that 2 + 2 does not necessarily equal 4.  This was a concept that I didn’t even bother to try to understand.  

I guess should have, because then maybe the calculations that go on in the State House in  Trenton might make sense to me. For example, consider the political negotiations over the dueling property tax cap proposals of 2.5 percent from Gov. Christie and 2.9 percent from the Democrats.  Wouldn’t it seem that if two parties were looking to come to a compromise between 2.5 and 2.9, then the logical one would be 2.7?  Not in New Jersey politics, where the compromise between 2.5 and 2.9 is 2!

I am not arguing the merits or flaws of any of these proposals, but am observing that the workings of Trenton do not always follow a logical pattern.   (more…)

By

Ray Pinney

Have you ever been invited to a July 4 or other holiday party that you didn’t want to attend? Maybe you didn’t like the host.

Right now there 70 legislators, all Democrats, who wish they could think of some way to not spend the July 4 weekend with Gov. Christie. Christie has invited all the legislators back in session for July 1 and 2, and possibly the entire weekend, to pass his Cap 2.5 amendment so it can appear on the ballot in the November general election. This is a command performance; New Jersey’s governor has the authority to compel lawmakers to hold a special session.

Rumor has it Christie has even planned a reading of Declaration of Independence, although sources have indicated that he has inserted a subliminal message in the text in order to get his proposal passed.  See if you can find the change in the excerpt below. (more…)