Palm Beach County School Board members gave Superintendent Mike Burke another glowing evaluation, saying his leadership has helped the district maintain its high academic standing despite significant and growing financial challenges.
Burke received a 4.9 rating out of a possible 5 across four categories of evaluation — academic progress and growth; student-focused culture; mental health and wellness; committed and impactful employees and board and community relations. Five of the seven board members gave him a perfect score across all categories.
Erica Whitfield gave him a 4 of out 5 in the employees category, and Edwin Ferguson gave him a 4 our of 5 on academic progress and growth. Both, however, joined their colleagues in offering effusive praise
for Burke, who was appointed superintendent in 2021 after serving in multiple roles for the district over two decades, including chief financial officer.
"I have been so proud of the entire district and the commitment to achievement that has been maintained in these times of continued restriction in funds and increased mandates from the state," Whitfield wrote in her evaluation. "Our superintendent has done an excellent job leading through these issues."
Ferguson wrote: "Superintendent Burke demonstrates exceptional leadership by skillfully navigating a myriad of complex challenges that would likely otherwise stall the district's progress in educating, affirming and inspiring its students and families."
The challenges the superintendent faces
The district is in the midst of an enrollment decline that has reduced state funding, which is tied, in part, to enrollment.
So far, the district has been able to shuffle teachers from one school to another and has not had huge employee losses in that area. And, unlike the other large school districts in Florida that are losing enrollment, the Palm Beach County School District has not had to close schools, which can be a wrenching process for a community.
There was a protracted negotiation between the school district and the Palm Beach County Classroom Teachers Association last year, with teachers seeking a raise of 5% and Burke's administration saying the district could only afford a raise of 1.5% and a one-time bonus of 1.5%. An arbiter recommended a raise of 3.5%, and the school board accepted that recommendation over the objections of Burke's team, which warned that the bigger raise would threaten the jobs of some employees.
Not long afterward, the district eliminated 76 media clerk positions. Teachers bristled at the suggestion that those job cuts were tied to the raises they received, arguing that the district could have found other ways to pay for them.
Through those challenges, the district has raised its graduation rate to an all-time high of 96.7%, boosted the number of students taking advanced courses and maintained its 'A' grade from the Florida Department of Education.
How Palm Beach County schools superintendent's salary compares
Burke's job puts him at the helm of the largest employer in the county, and that responsibility has come with a large salary, which is now up to $384,386 after getting the 3.5% raise other employees received.
That salary puts Burke's pay on par with the $385,000 per year Miami-Dade's superintendent makes, and it's higher than the $360,000 Broward County pays its superintendent and the $356,000 Orange County pays its superintendent, according to news reports.
Burke told school board members he's most proud of the dedication and collective efforts of the district's employees.
"Serving as superintendent remains an honor and privilege, and I appreciate the board's recognition of our collective progress," Burke said. "We could not achieve these milestones without the dedication of Team Palm Beach and the strong support we receive from our Palm Beach County community. I look forward to building on this momentum to put all of our students in the best position to succeed."
Wayne Washington is a journalist covering education and Riviera Beach development for The Palm Beach Post. You can reach him at wwashington@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Top marks land county schools superintendent among best paid in state
