FUSD chief asks for second-in-command

Hanson wants Ruth Quinto as deputy superintendent.

Published online on Tuesday, Sep. 22, 2009

Fresno schools chief Michael Hanson wants to promote his top fiscal officer to deputy superintendent, making Ruth Quinto his official second-in-command.

Quinto, 41, has a background in accounting and was a top official at Fresno City Hall before joining the Fresno Unified School District in 2005.

She currently makes $197,880 as one of five associate superintendents.

The promotion will be discussed at tonight's board meeting where it likely will be debated by trustees -- some of whom said they may not support it out of concerns about the cost.

Hanson declined to say how much Quinto would be paid as deputy superintendent or provide other details of her proposed three-year contract.

The district has not had a person with that title since 2004.

Hanson said he wanted to discuss the proposal with each board member Tuesday afternoon before making details public. The proposed contract, he said, also was still being finalized Tuesday.

If approved, Quinto would become the second-highest-ranking administrator in the district, just behind Hanson who makes $277,000 a year.

The promotion would take effect immediately and Quinto would continue to oversee the district's finances.

Quinto would be the first deputy superintendent since Carole Sarkisian-Bonard, who retired in 2004 after 37 years with Fresno Unified, where she started as a teacher.

Quinto, who has won praise for keeping the Fresno Unified School District in the black despite a recession and state budget crisis, could not be reached to comment Tuesday.

Hanson said he is spending more time out of the district dealing with state and federal education issues and needs "a designated No. 2" to lead in his absence.

He said Quinto is well-qualified: "I'm pretty active statewide and nationally and come across no one who would be better."

Trustee Larry Moore said he wouldn't support the promotion.

"I cannot and will not in good faith support a pay increase during this time of economic crisis," Moore said.

Trustee Carol Mills said she is "hesitant" to support Quinto's promotion but had not yet made up her mind.

"The state and government are in a budget crisis and Fresno Unified has to be careful about this," she said.

Mills also questioned why the district needs a deputy superintendent when it has operated without one for five years. And she said details of the proposal should have been provided to the public well in advance of today's meeting.

Trustee Cal Johnson said he wasn't concerned with how Quinto's promotion was being handled and said she deserved the job.

He credited Quinto for turning the district around from the verge of bankruptcy four years ago and getting the district through state and federal budget cuts without the layoffs seen at other districts.

Hanson hired Quinto in August 2005 -- soon after he became superintendent -- to shore up Fresno Unified's then-troubled finances. She had previously worked at the city of Fresno as interim assistant city manager and, earlier, as controller. She also has worked at a national accounting firm in Riverside.

Larry Powell, superintendent of the Fresno County Office of Education, said he supports Quinto's promotion.

He said the district needs to act because it risks losing the talented fiscal manager to other agencies.

Quinto has done a good job at the district, and her role is even more important during these difficult budget times, he said.

But Greg Gadams, president of the Fresno Teachers Association, questioned Quinto's promotion in the state's fourth-largest district because her background is in accounting, not education.

Gadams said Quinto lacks the academic experience critical to making decisions that affect children in the classroom. She hasn't been a teacher, or a principal, he said: "She has only seen spreadsheets and budget lines."