This article was originally published in The Notebook. In August 2020, The Notebook became Chalkbeat Philadelphia.
Shortly after crowds dispersed from what may have been the largest organized protest ever at the School District’s current headquarters, a statement issued by the School Reform Commission Friday afternoon announced that Superintendent Arlene Ackerman’s contract has been extended for a year – through June 2014.
The extension "permits her to continue to lead the District through the full implementation of Imagine 2014," the statement reads. "The SRC believes that stability in the leadership of the District during the full implementation of the Plan is highly desirable."
Ackerman took over leadership of the District in June 2008, and her original contract ran for five years, but with a provision for an additional year unless either the SRC or the superintendent objected to the extension prior to March 2011.
The statement notes that on the most recent state tests, for the first time ever, more than half of Philadelphia students scored proficient or above.
Ackerman’s annual salary is $348,140, after receiving a contractually mandated raise of 3 percent – or $10,140 – last September 1. A move to limit superintendent salaries is afoot in Pennsylvania as well as other states.
