I-Team

Retired & Rehired Principals Cost Dade Schools

MIAMI (CBS4) ― An I-Team Investigation first revealed the double-dipping last week at Miami-Dade County Public Schools. But Friday we took a closer look at the problem: Your tax dollars have paid to train hundreds of teachers as administrators, but after all the training; they still can't get the jobs. CBS4's Tiffani Helberg talked to one frustrated teacher, stuck in just that position.

"I have my doctorate, I have my masters. I've had leadership experience at my school site. I've been teaching; this is my tenth year," said one teacher whose identity CBS4 News is not revealing.

Over the course of two years, this Miami-Dade teacher has applied at least 10 times for a school administration job. She has yet to get her wish.

"It's disheartening, because I've gone to school for so many years," she said.

We concealed her identity and changed her voice on video so that her chances of getting that job don't get even worse.

And she's not alone.

The CBS4 I-Team obtained direct records that show nearly 300 people who are qualified and trained are waiting for the chance to advance to the Assistant Principal or Principal level.

"I honestly think it's a 'who you know' thing," said the teacher. "If you don't know the person, or you're not known, or you're not connected, you fall short."

Our investigation shows she might be right. Records list 27 retired administrators rehired by the Miami-Dade School District. Their salaries combined total $3.2 million. Most of those so-called double dippers were rehired at a higher salary. They collect a pension and more, thanks to "the drop"--the state's deferred retirement option program.

"The State of Florida gives them a huge golden parachute, sometimes upwards of a quarter of a million dollars when our employees retire," said School Board Member Ana Rivas Logan.

She is outraged, especially since the district spent an extra $1.2 million to send management hopefuls to special training. This has caught the attention of state legislators, including South Florida Representative Ellyn Bogdanoff.

"Well I think it's a huge problem, and I think that that's a local issue. The only reason that you would use drop, is if you had a critical shortage area and that you needed to keep experienced people there. If they have 300 people ready to go, then they shouldn't be rehiring the people that have chosen to retire.

Bogdanoff is sponsoring an amendment that would allow school districts to continue to rehire retired administrators, but only for a short time. She wants the old guard to be able to train the new guard.

"It's a huge gap in institutional knowledge and experience," said Bogdanoff. "So what you do is you allow these people to rehire and rehire them and let them stay in the system for a period of lets say five years, so that we can have the transition when it's appropriate."

But in the meantime, the teacher we interviewed, and many others are forced to look for jobs outside of the district.

"What do I need to do? Because after I have gone to school as long as I have gone and you have accumulated the debt that I have accumulated, now it's time for me to grow professionally, but I'm stuck at the same place So I have to do what I need to do for me."

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