Emanuel Unveils $5M Fund For Merit Pay For Principals
Updated 08/15/11 - 3:05 p.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Monday is unveiling a $5 million fund to provide merit pay for Chicago Public School principals.
As WBBM Newsradio Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports, Emanuel said that money from four philanthropic families will establish the $5 million fund.
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The mayor acknowledged that merit pay programs in other cities and even a pilot program here have not proven effective, but Emanuel said this new approach includes training, support and a multi-faceted report card to track progress.
"One of the things that we've learned from the failures of others is you can't just kind of throw merit performance pay out there and say a Hail Mary pass. This is tied to a comprehensive, integrated approach – the first of its kind anywhere in the country – that doesn't just rely on 'You'll get a bonus.'"
Emanuel's office hopes to raise an additional $5 million to bring the total funding for the merit pay program to $10 million.
Emanuel also said he plans to make good on his campaign promise of merit pay for teachers, but noted that principals have gone a couple of years without pay raises. He also needs legislative approval in order to enact merit pay for teachers.
