Board hires new business manager
Schools chief says Cauffman will help ‘stabilize’ finances at L-Way District 210
The Lincoln-Way High School District 210 board unanimously hired a new assistant superintendent for business March 16, filling a spot that has been vacant for nearly one year.
Bradley Cauffman, who serves as the chief financial officer in Naperville Community Unit School District 203, was given athree-year contract at a starting salary of $153,000, plus benefits. He will start July 1.
Cauffman replaces Ron Sawin, who retired April 30, more than two years before his contract expired, amid a dispute over his job performance. His retirement agreement came on the heels of the district being forced to refund $377,400 in driver’s education fees because it failed to meet a deadline to apply for a state waiver to charge $350 for the course.
Sawin waived all money owed to him for the final two years of his contract, and the school district agreed not to pursue disciplinary action against him.
At the time, school officials declined to comment on whether Sawin’s early retirement was tied to the problems over the driver’s education refunds.
Superintendent Scott Tingley said Cauffman is an “experienced and qualified business manager” who will guide the business operations of Lincoln-Way “as we continue to stabilize our finances.”
Bradley Cauffma “experien qualified ness ma —Superinten Scott Tingley According to district officials, 20 people applied for the position and four were interviewed.
Cauffman’s total compensation package — with benefits — is $189,705.
Tingley said it is a “budget-neutral” addition, because the district will not need Steve Langert nor Rich Pagliaro, who served in this capacity on a temporary basis after the sudden retirement of Sawin in April.
Also, with the district’s transition to Skyward, a new financial software program, one fewer bookkeeper is needed, and with retirements, the total estimated savings is $210,000, Tingley said.
Having Cauffman and Kelly Luzzo, Lincoln-Way’s director of finance, will provide a system of checks and balances, the superintendent said.
Cauffman will direct the operational, financial and budgeting services; oversee building and grounds, food service and transportation; and be responsible for the annual tax levy, creation of the annual budget, short-term borrowing, and bids and contracts. He will also be involved in management of the long-term debt.
Luzzo will continue to oversee the district’s day-to-day finances, track daily revenue and expenditures, establish and monitor financial controls, approve all purchases and serve as the district’s internal auditor, according to Tingley.
Cauffman earned an MBA from the University of Wyoming and a master’s in education administration from the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater. Prior to working for Naperville, he was assistant superintendent of business services in St.
Charles Community Unit School District 303 from 2006 to 2013.
His contract calls for annual increases of $3,000 in each of the next two years, plus 25 vacation days and health insurance.
According to a district survey of nine other area school districts, Cauffman’s salary was below the average of $220,000 for total compensation for school business officials.
Cauffman is chief financial officer of Naperville Community Unit School District 203, and according to Lincoln-Way’s survey of salaries, Naperville now pays $171,252, with a total package of $207,423 for that position. That appears to be more pay than the one for his new job at Lincoln-Way.
Among the nine districts surveyed, the compensation ranged from a low of $197,786 at Reavis High School to a high of $249,674 in Community High School District 99 in Downers Grove.
In other business, the board: ¦ Authorized the issuance is an ced and busiager.” ent of tax anticipation warrants not to exceed $3 million with Old Second Bank, and to use the funds for educational purposes. The district already has issued $20 million in warrants, which must be paid back in October, when it collects its property tax revenue.
¦ Adopted a new policy stating it “will strive to achieve and maintain a minimum fund balance of 33 percent” of its annual combined general and special revenue operating expenditures. This is the minimum fund balance required to meet the district’s cash-flow needs. To achieve that goal, the district must develop an action plan and have a surplus on an annual basis.
¦ Agreed to seek applications for an independent inspector general, a new position to start July 1, at an hourly rate. The inspector general would investigate complaints of fraud or fiscal mismanagement.
Proposals are due by April 19, and the board is expected to hire someone May 18. slafferty@tribpub.com Bradley Cauffman is an “experienced and qualified business manager.”
—Superintendent Scott Tingley
Bradley Cauffman, who serves as the chief financial officer in Naperville Community Unit School District 203, was given athree-year contract at a starting salary of $153,000, plus benefits. He will start July 1.
Cauffman replaces Ron Sawin, who retired April 30, more than two years before his contract expired, amid a dispute over his job performance. His retirement agreement came on the heels of the district being forced to refund $377,400 in driver’s education fees because it failed to meet a deadline to apply for a state waiver to charge $350 for the course.
Sawin waived all money owed to him for the final two years of his contract, and the school district agreed not to pursue disciplinary action against him.
At the time, school officials declined to comment on whether Sawin’s early retirement was tied to the problems over the driver’s education refunds.
Superintendent Scott Tingley said Cauffman is an “experienced and qualified business manager” who will guide the business operations of Lincoln-Way “as we continue to stabilize our finances.”
Bradley Cauffma “experien qualified ness ma —Superinten Scott Tingley According to district officials, 20 people applied for the position and four were interviewed.
Cauffman’s total compensation package — with benefits — is $189,705.
Tingley said it is a “budget-neutral” addition, because the district will not need Steve Langert nor Rich Pagliaro, who served in this capacity on a temporary basis after the sudden retirement of Sawin in April.
Also, with the district’s transition to Skyward, a new financial software program, one fewer bookkeeper is needed, and with retirements, the total estimated savings is $210,000, Tingley said.
Having Cauffman and Kelly Luzzo, Lincoln-Way’s director of finance, will provide a system of checks and balances, the superintendent said.
Cauffman will direct the operational, financial and budgeting services; oversee building and grounds, food service and transportation; and be responsible for the annual tax levy, creation of the annual budget, short-term borrowing, and bids and contracts. He will also be involved in management of the long-term debt.
Luzzo will continue to oversee the district’s day-to-day finances, track daily revenue and expenditures, establish and monitor financial controls, approve all purchases and serve as the district’s internal auditor, according to Tingley.
Cauffman earned an MBA from the University of Wyoming and a master’s in education administration from the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater. Prior to working for Naperville, he was assistant superintendent of business services in St.
Charles Community Unit School District 303 from 2006 to 2013.
His contract calls for annual increases of $3,000 in each of the next two years, plus 25 vacation days and health insurance.
According to a district survey of nine other area school districts, Cauffman’s salary was below the average of $220,000 for total compensation for school business officials.
Cauffman is chief financial officer of Naperville Community Unit School District 203, and according to Lincoln-Way’s survey of salaries, Naperville now pays $171,252, with a total package of $207,423 for that position. That appears to be more pay than the one for his new job at Lincoln-Way.
Among the nine districts surveyed, the compensation ranged from a low of $197,786 at Reavis High School to a high of $249,674 in Community High School District 99 in Downers Grove.
In other business, the board: ¦ Authorized the issuance is an ced and busiager.” ent of tax anticipation warrants not to exceed $3 million with Old Second Bank, and to use the funds for educational purposes. The district already has issued $20 million in warrants, which must be paid back in October, when it collects its property tax revenue.
¦ Adopted a new policy stating it “will strive to achieve and maintain a minimum fund balance of 33 percent” of its annual combined general and special revenue operating expenditures. This is the minimum fund balance required to meet the district’s cash-flow needs. To achieve that goal, the district must develop an action plan and have a surplus on an annual basis.
¦ Agreed to seek applications for an independent inspector general, a new position to start July 1, at an hourly rate. The inspector general would investigate complaints of fraud or fiscal mismanagement.
Proposals are due by April 19, and the board is expected to hire someone May 18. slafferty@tribpub.com Bradley Cauffman is an “experienced and qualified business manager.”
—Superintendent Scott Tingley
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