The meeting where the Canutillo Independent School District Board of Trustees was expected to vote on the contract for the new superintendent was postponed as negotiations slowed over the holidays.
At the same time, some residents and board members raised concerns about the selection of a finalist who is not from the El Paso region.
The board was scheduled to vote Monday on the contract for lone superintendent finalist Josue Borrego, who has worked as an administrator for the Houston Independent School District.
The meeting was canceled because the contract has not been finalized due to the holiday break and will be rescheduled for next week, Canutillo ISD Communications Director Gustavo Reveles said in a statement.
Borrego, who was selected as the sole finalist by the board on Dec. 16, said he is ready to begin his tenure with the district.
“Contract negotiations are continuing as normal; however, the holidays prevented us from completing them in time for Monday’s meeting. I am fully confident that we will be ready to present an agreement to the board next week that meets both their needs and mine, and I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and getting to work,” Borrego said in a statement to El Paso Matters.
LEARN MORE: Houston ISD administrator Josue Borrego named Canutillo ISD superintendent finalist
If hired, Borrego will succeed Pedro Galaviz, who announced his retirement in April, citing the political climate around education and the management of the Canutillo ISD school board as the reason for his departure.
Since the start of the superintendent search, questions arose about whether the district should prioritize hiring a local applicant.
Board President Sergio Martinez said he understood the desire to hire someone local, but reiterated that Borrego stood out as the best candidate.
“The community wants us to go local and to hire someone from within. I agree with our community 100%, but when you’re presented with six very good applicants, and you rank every one of them, it is very difficult for a business owner not to acknowledge that one of them or several of them are more qualified than others,” Martinez said.
“I think that’s why the majority of the board decided to move forward with Dr. Borrego. Do we have good talent? Yes, we do. But there’s a big difference between the number one candidate,” he added.
During the Dec. 16 meeting, Trustee Armando Rodriguez nominated Canutillo ISD’s Technology Executive Director Oscar Rico as the superintendent finalist. The board voted 4-3 against the motion, with trustees Lilia Maldonado, Cindy Zuniga and Rodriguez voting in favor. Trustees Breanne Barnes, Carolina Ortega, Lucy Borrego and Martinez voted against selecting Rico.
Martinez said some residents wanted the board to hire interim superintendent Jesica Arellano, but did not say if she was an applicant for the permanent position. Arellano is the district’s executive director of curriculum and instruction.
The names of other applicants for the job have not been released by the district and may not be disclosed under a confidentiality agreement signed by the board.
Rodriguez also raised concerns about the new superintendent’s potential salary as the district faces financial challenges. The district made a series of budget cuts and laid off employees last March in response to declining enrollment. In June, the board adopted its first balanced budget in four years.
“It is my understanding Dr. Borrego’s current salary is at or near the base salary of our previous superintendent. It is therefore imperative that we approve a contract that provides Dr. Borrego a fair salary, but that also reflects the district’s current financial realities and avoids further budget deficits.”
Galaviz made over $207,000 a year at the time of his retirement. Borrego’s salary at Houston ISD was not immediately available; he didn’t immediately respond to questions about his salary.
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