By Brenda Ritzen

Two weeks ago there was a commentary in the Eden Prairie News about City Manager Scott Neal’s compensation.

The argument was made that at a time when many of our citizens are freezing or decreasing wages, we should not be increasing compensation for our public employees, especially considering some of the perks included in Mr. Neal’s contract.

The same argument could be made regarding the Eden Prairie School Superintendent, Dr. Melissa Krull.

Last December after about 400 parents presented a petition to the School Board asking that Dr. Krull’s renewed contract be limited to one year, they were dismissed by the School Board saying that it was without merit and the contract would be renewed. Dr. Krull was given a new three-year contract effective July 1, 2009. Mind you, the School Board was well aware at the time of the contract negotiations that the district would be facing a substantial deficit in 2009/2010, yet they still voted to increase Dr. Krull’s compensation.

The new three-year contract includes the following:
* Base salary of $189,370.65 (increase of 2 percent annually)
* Vacation of 28 days per contract year
* Sick leave of up to 14 days per year
* Holidays of up to 12 days per year (unused vacation and sick leave are not paid upon separation from the district)
* Health/dental insurance under the School District’s group plan – at the expense of the school district
* Life insurance provided by the district
In addition, Dr. Krull also receives the following:
* Automobile allowance of $700/month ($8,400 annually)
* Retention Payment (cash equivalent based upon the per diem rate of base salary) paid annually
- $7284 after year one of contract
- $11,144 after year two of contract
- $15,156 after year three of contract (calculations based on superintendent’s contract information)
* Up to $3,000 per year matching funds to a tax sheltered annuity
* A post retirement health care account (reimbursable account for medical expenses)

Dr. Krull could potentially receive on average approximately $225,000 per year.

The Eden Prairie School District states that it is “always looking for ways to maximize revenue, cost savings and operating efficiencies” so that they are able to make the most of the funds available for the benefit of the students.

Given the state of the economy and the looming “significant budget shortfall” the Eden Prairie School District is facing ($7 million to $10 million), one of the ideas brought up is freezing salaries. Wouldn’t it be great if Dr. Krull led by example and voluntarily refused to take some of her generous compensation as a way of showing leadership?

Brenda Ritzen is an Eden Prairie resident and co-creator of www.edenprairieschoolsparentforum.com.