A new amended contract for the National School District’s superintendent shows a salary increase of 13 percent.
At the start of his three-year contract in 2014, Chris Oram’s annual salary was $181,400 but on Wednesday, under an amended contract, his salary now stands at $205,000.
A provision in his old contract had allowed the monthly $400 car allowance to be added to the base pay of $168,000 on top of a 5 percent raise that each district employee received.
Oram’s amended contract no longer has this provision because the California State Teachers Retirement System no longer allows car allowances to roll over into base pay.
Oram has served as superintendent at the National School District for the past seven years.
The National School District school board unanimously approved the superintendent’s new salary because they said he was due for a raise.
“He hasn’t had a raise on his own since I’ve been here,” said board president Barbara Avalos. “Dr. Oram has been a great superintendent and has navigated this district successfully through its ups and downs.”
Oram, who is in the second year of his contract, said the pay raise makes his salary more competitive with other comparable superintendents at other districts in the county.
The National City Elementary Teachers Association said their next bargaining negotiations for a new contract begin in August.
They said they seek a similar bump in pay as that of the superintendent.
“It’s NCETA’s hope that as our salary negotiations begin for the upcoming year, we hope that our district will be as generous with the members of NCTA who work far beyond contract time to directly serve the students and community on a daily basis,” said NCTA President Jannette Colada-Tacto.
“So we hope that they can be as generous with the teachers and members of NCTA as they are with Dr. Oram.”
With the last contract agreement, teachers received a 5 percent increase in pay last school year. They received a 1.5 percent increase for 2013 and a 3.5 percent raise 2014.
“We had to fight to get that 5 percent increase,” Colada-Tacto said. “We really had to fight for it and for him to get that 13 percent increase is like wow, OK.”
Avalos said teachers always ask for a pay raise during negotiations so for them to ask for more money doesn’t surprise her.
She said she likes the teachers union and that teachers should get what they deserve, but so should the superintendent.
When the National School District brought Oram on as the headman in charge during the financial crises of 2009, he earned a base pay of $168,000.
During the economic downturn, every employee of the district, including the superintendent, received four furlough days, and negotiated pay decreases, Oram said.
Oram said even during those tough financial times teachers and classified employees were able to get a pay raise with their step-in column salary schedules based on years of service, while the superintendent’s salary froze. The National School District has about 600 employees, with about half of them teachers.
Oram said when furlough days were restored; he still didn’t get a raise. He said his only raise in his nine years at the district was a 5 percent pay raise that every employee received last year as negotiated with every employee group.
He said teachers continue to get an automatic pay increase from steps 1 through 13 and again at steps 17, 20 and 26.
From steps one to two, teachers get a 1.2 percent pay increase.
Teachers also get an additional increase if they go back to school and accrue units towards a new skill. With 15-units, teachers get a 5.7 percent raise.
Oram said the district recently conducted a salary comparison to see how comparable his salary was to other superintendents in the county with roughly the same amount of students.
He said the comparison showed that salary wise he wasn’t measuring up to other superintendents.
“I was one of the lowest paid superintends in the county,” he said. “This salary brings me up to the 50th percent tile amongst superintendents.”
Avalos said the superintendent will now get his fair share.
“Mr. Oram was one of the lowest paid superintendents on the totem pole,” she said.
For instance, the newly hired superintendent at the San Ysidro School District will make a base salary of $185,000 for the 2015-2016 school year. He will then see his salary increase the following year to $192,400 and in his third year will make more than $200,000.
Oram said the district is now in good financial ground to give him a pay raise.
“I want to do what’s right for the kids, but the (pay) competition has to be fair, too,” he said. “I’ve sacrificed over the years by not requesting any pay raises.”
