Tocco will likely leave job in '04

[TexasStooge]

FORT WORTH, Texas (Star-Telegram) - School Superintendent Thomas Tocco said Thursday that he will probably leave his job when his contract is up at the end of 2004 and that he has already been approached by executive search firms.

Tocco, 60, who has headed the school district for nine years, has been sharply criticized by some trustees for lax oversight of business matters. The FBI has been investigating the district's construction practices, and audits have raised concerns about payments to contractors and overtime expenses.

Tocco said that he intends to stay until his contract expires Dec. 31, 2004, but that there is a "high likelihood" that he'll leave after that.

"Frankly, a number of executive search firms have been in contact with me," Tocco said. "We haven't had any in-depth discussions yet, but we've talked."

As recently as last year, Tocco said he hoped to stay with the district for three or four more years.

But Board President Lynne Manny said Thursday that the board might not have extended Tocco's contract.

"It's my feeling that the board is not of any inclination to extend that contract," she said. "We have tried to turn our business problems around, but there is still a lot of blame placed on him."

Board members have praised Tocco for raising the district's academic achievement, which was his top priority when he was hired. Some have also credited Tocco with discovering and confronting many of the district's business problems.

But in his evaluation in December, trustees criticized his planning, his grasp of controls in several administrative offices and the hiring of key personnel.

Tocco's contract calls for a $299,250 salary for the 2003 calendar year, and $314,212 for 2004. The contract also provides Tocco with a "late model, full-sized" car, as well as health insurance and the annual premium on a $500,000 life insurance policy.

In November 2002, the school board denied Tocco's request to add 18 months to his contract. He had been granted a similar request in 2001, when the board extended his five-year deal by a year.

"I'd like to be superintendent until I'm 64 or 65," he said in 2002. But the request to extend the contract was made after the FBI announced its investigation, and the board rejected the idea. Board member T.A. Sims called then for Tocco's resignation.

Trustee Elaine Klos said Thursday she would not have voted to extend Tocco's contract.

"I think Dr. Tocco has done a fine job in raising the education level of our children," Klos said. "But I think he has not done a good a job managing the district from a fiscal appropriate area.

"We've had major, major problems, and he should have been on top of those and he was not. I think we just need someone new in the position."

But Trustee Jean McClung said Tocco's departure would hurt the district.

"We've started new academic programs that have led to success since he's been here," McClung said. "I think our kids are doing wonderfully, and we need to continue that."

The school district employs about 10,000 people and has about 81,000 students. Its annual operating budget is $491.5 million and it is in the midst of a $398 million bond program that was approved by voters in 1999.

Finding a replacement will be a challenge, trustees said. They said it is difficult to find qualified superintendents who are willing to work in a large urban district.

Some trustees reached Thursday said they believe the board should wait to start a search until after next year's school board elections, when voters will fill five seats. Others said a search should begin as soon as possible.

"Searching for a superintendent is a very difficult thing to do," Trustee Rose Herrera said. "I think regardless of elections, you need to get a jump on it."

Trustees hired Tocco in 1994 from the St. Charles Parish public schools in suburban New Orleans. He began his career in 1964 as a mathematics and English teacher at a junior high school in Miami. From 1968 to 1970, he was a supervisor for undergraduates at the University of Florida.

He received his doctorate in education in 1970 from the University of Miami, with a concentration in psychology and statistics.

His career as a school administrator began in 1973 when he became assistant superintendent for research, evaluation and data processing for Pinellas County schools in St. Petersburg, Fla.

After eight years there, he became superintendent of Cobb County schools in suburban Atlanta, where he served from 1981 to 1989.

The Fort Worth district's business practices have been under scrutiny since 1999, when the FBI began investigating construction management. An internal audit that year found that the maintenance department lacked controls needed to manage overtime effectively.

A May 2001 audit by the state comptroller's office raised questions about organizational and operational costs.

A 2001 internal audit revealed that school administrators skirted bidding policies. And a 2002 audit by an outside consultant found that the district might have paid as much as $4.8 million too much for concrete work.