Scottsdale Schools Chief Awarded $16K Raise Amid Declining Test Scores

By Staff Reporter |

The Scottsdale Unified School District (SUSD) Governing Board has approved a significant pay raise for Superintendent Scott Menzel, amounting to nearly $16,000, during a meeting that raised eyebrows given the district’s declining test scores.

Menzel’s salary will increase by over $15,700, bringing his base pay to $225,000, supplemented by a $16,000 stipend and a potential 20 percent bonus, approximately $43,200. This bonus is conditional on meeting 11 key performance indicators for the 2023-2024 school year. However, he achieved only five, none of which pertained to academic performance.

The goals he did meet included improving the attendance rate to at least 92.5 percent, increasing participation in extracurricular activities, enhancing staff retention, establishing a baseline for work-based learning opportunities, and producing a decision-making matrix with at least one proposal for action by June 30.

In contrast, Menzel fell short on several academic goals, including elevating the passing rates for third-grade English-Language Arts (ELA) students to 68 percent, eighth-grade math students to 53 percent, and ninth-grade science students to 41 percent. Current data shows only 60 percent, 46 percent, and 34 percent, respectively, met these benchmarks during this school year.

The decision to grant the raise was met with division among board members. Board President Libby Hart-Wells, along with members Zach Lindsay and Julie Cieniawski, supported the increase, while Amy Carney and Carine Werner abstained. Carney raised concerns about the lack of prior discussion regarding Menzel’s proposed performance plan.

“Last year, we had a lengthy discussion and reached a collaborative result,” Carney noted, expressing frustration over the procedural changes. Hart-Wells acknowledged that the approach had shifted but asserted that any board member could still debate the item and suggest alterations.

Menzel defended the process, stating that he drafted the goals based on information from the board, which were then presented for review.

In addition to the pay raise discussion, the board’s budget presentation indicated a concerning trend: SUSD’s spending on classrooms and teachers is expected to decline to a historic low of 54 percent for the 2024-2025 school year, down from nearly 64 percent two decades ago. This figure approaches the lowest recorded percentage of 53 percent in 2017.

Advocacy group Scottsdale United For Educational Integrity has expressed alarm over this financial redirection, emphasizing that “this 9.2 percent decrease means that, out of a $438 million budget, over $40 million has been redirected away from supporting students’ academic achievement.”