LITTLE ROCK — Attorneys are attempting to hash out the particulars of a buyout agreement with outgoing Little Rock School District Superintendent Roy Brooks and, at the same time, draft a contract for the interim superintendent who will take over when he leaves.
Mike Moore, an attorney with the Friday, Eldredge & Clark law firm that is representing the School Board in buying out the contract, said Thursday that he should know by the middle of next week whether attorneys for the district and Brooks will be able to settle on a dollar figure that would be agreeable to all parties.
Chris Heller, another Friday firm attorney who is working for the district, said later that if the district and Brooks cannot agree to an amount, the district would likely pay Brooks what the district believes is owed him, leaving it to Brooks, who has been the district's chief executive since 2004, to decide whether to sue the district for anything more.
The School Board voted 4-3 on May 24 to exercise a clause in Brooks' contract that enables the board to terminate his contract by giving him 90 days' notice and the compensation he would receive if he were to stay on the job. The board decided to buy out the contract rather than proceed with an earlier plan to conduct a termination hearing on charges that, if proved, could have led to Brooks' firing without any compensation.
Brooks' contract provides an annual salary of $198,000, a $25,000 annual annuity, an $11,000-a-year car allowance, vacation time, insurance benefits and an offer of a one-time $30,000 service bonus.
Moore did not tell board members what the district is offering Brooks to settle the terms of the contract. Earlier, district officials estimated that the school system could owe Brooks as much as $656,357, not including any legal fees the district might have to pay on his behalf.
Moore did tell the School Board at a special meeting Thursday that finalizing an agreement has been complicated by Brooks' recent request in federal court for about $70,000 in legal fees and expenses from the district. Moore recommended that the buyout of the contract and the payment of legal fees be settled separately.
In regard to those requested legal fees, Morgan "Chip" Welch, one of the team of attorneys who defended the School Board against Brooks' lawsuit to save his job, told U.S. District Judge G. Thomas Eisele on Thursday that Brooks won only limited relief at best in his court case and that the superintendent is not entitled to "such a massive fee award."
Brooks is expected to leave his job on or before Aug. 24. Linda Watson, the district's senior director of student services, has been selected to be the interim superintendent.
Heller told the School Board on Thursday that he is drafting a contract for Watson that is based on the terms of the contract the board had with its last interim superintendent, Morris Holmes, but would include salary and benefits comparable to what has been paid to Brooks. The draft calls for the contract to go into effect Aug. 24 and extend through June 30, 2008.
Some board members said Thursday they were anxious to have Watson take on more of the decisions related to the Aug. 20 start of classes, including the hiring of teachers to fill vacancies at some schools.
Heller suggested that Watson assume the vacant deputy superintendent's position as a way to prepare for the interim superintendent position without usurping Brooks' authority under his contract.
Board member Melanie Fox said it was her understanding that preparations for the new school year are on track.
"What type of issues are we referring to ... that aren't being handled appropriately right now?" Fox asked.
"You have one superintendent who is on his way out and a new one coming in," board member Charles Armstrong responded. "The superintendent who is on his way out won't be here at the beginning of the school year and he should not be making decisions that will affect the next school year. If any decisions are made, they should be made by the interim who is coming in."
Arkansas, Pages 14 on 08/10/2007