Lynn school dept.: Kostan payout leads parade

LYNN – Thirty-nine school department employees, including 17 principals, enjoyed salaries of more than $100,000 in 2008, led by former Superintendent Nich-olas Kostan, whose 2007 total of just more than $155,000, was padded significantly last year by vacation and sick day buybacks stemming from his Jan. 1 retirement.The 37-year veteran of the school department earned $172,975 last year, but the $17,000 increase was not the result of a hefty raise, rather the money he was owed through unused vacation and sick days.Kostan’s replacement, former Deputy Superintendent Catherine Latham had the fourth highest salary in the department in 2008, bringing home a gross of $135,535. Since she did not take over as superintendent until Jan. 1, 2009, Latham’s salary reflects only her pay as deputy.Above Latham on the pay scale are fellow deputy Jaye Warry, who, because of seniority, has the second highest salary in the department at $138,766, followed by English High School Principal Andrew Fila at $136,531. English Assistant Principal Thomas Strangie, took home $101,783 last year.”(Kostan) has been in the system for three decades so he has a lot of sick buy back time,” said City Treasurer Richard Fortucci. “It doesn’t reflect a substantial raise on his part, when you have someone that has been here for 30-plus years they accrue a lot of vacation and sick time. Any part that isn’t used when he retires is bought back; it’s the same for every employee.”Despite several high-level administrative retirements last year, the number of employees making more than $100,000 rose from 23 to 39 in the department, however, the replacements for nearly all of those retirees make much less in salary than their predecessors.For example, retired Business Administrator Steven Upton took home just more than $125,000 in 2007, while his replacement, Kevin McHugh, made $93,922 in 2008.Due to a hiring freeze stemming from serious budget woes throughout the department, the city will have a shorter salary line in 2009, as several high-paying positions will remain vacant in an attempt to save money.While Latham will undoubtedly receive a raise from her promotion to superintendent, her position as deputy will not be filled, saving $135,000. In addition, longtime department employee and Director of Equity and Program Support Janet Birchenough retired Jan. 1 and was also not replaced, saving just less than $120,000 this year.Many of the high salaries in the department reflect payouts for additional work and programs run by some employees. For example, on the surface it would appear that school psychologist Daniel Dill’s salary increased from $91,791 to $109,486 in just one year, but the majority of that increase reflects a one-time payout for a program Dill ran over the summer. Attendance Officer Richard Iarrobino falls under the same category as his work running extra programs, specifically the L.E.E.P alternative program which he oversees four nights a week at Lynn English High School, helps to pad his base salary to $111,656.The number of principals in the $100,000 club increased from 11 in 2007 to 17 last year, with Robert Murphy (Pickering), Anne Graul (Aborn), Kimberlee Powers (Ingalls), Helen Mihos (Lincoln-Thompson), Judith Taylor (Classical Freshman Academy), Patricia Mallett (Sewell-Anderson), Patricia Riley (Connery), Jane Franklin (Sisson), Linda Mann (Shoemaker) and Fredrick Dupuis (Breed) all jumping into the six-figure salary range.Most of those increases reflect longevity or union step raises, with the exception of Dupuis, who was promoted from assistant principal over the summer as a permanent replacement to James Ridley, who became director of Lynn Vocational and Technical Institute in February.