Despite being in financial straits, the school board for Judson Independent School District voted not to hire a candidate for chief financial officer. The role has been vacant for more than a month.
District staff had recommended the board approve a candidate for the CFO position, but Judson trustees voted 4-3 against the hire after spending nearly four hours in closed session during a board meeting on Nov. 6.
Board President Monica Ryan, who voted against filling the position, said the world of school district CFOs is very small, but she wants to wait on a new hire because the job is “very challenging even under normal circumstances.”
Early in October, then-CFO Tony Kingman resigned after only two months on the job.
Before that, Larry Guerra held the position for just over a year before resigning in July.
Serving roughly 23,000 students on the far North East Side, Judson ISD currently faces a budget deficit of $37 million. Two days before the board voted on the CFO position, voters in the district rejected a school tax increase that would’ve helped the district address the deficit, increase staff pay and maintain student programs.
Judson is now looking for ways to consolidate and cut spending without those funds. Officials say that could include reducing the workforce and closing campuses.
“We’re a school district with a lot of financial things going on that have to be done that are just very complicated,” Ryan told the Report. “Having a very skilled person who can do all the financial things correctly that have to be done in the next year, or, really, probably two years is just so important.”
Ryan wants the district to extend the CFO search and hire an interim in the meantime, but the board is split between supporting administrative recommendations and using its power to change hiring plans.
Longtime Board Member Jose Macias Jr. wants the board to be “very cautious” about stepping over the district’s administrative authority.
“There was a recommendation provided that met all the criteria from the administration’s point of view. If we choose to reject the proposal, we are in micro management territory,” Macias said before the board voted. “[The board] does not hire the CFO, the administration does, and I’m accepting the recommendation.”
School boards do have the authority to approve or reject recommendations by the district administration when it comes to personnel and other issues, but it’s unusual for boards to outright reject administrative proposals.
Macias, along with Trustees Suzanne Kenoyer and Laura Stanford, voted in favor of the hire.
The board’s newest members, Stephanie Jones, Lesley Lee and Amanda Poteet — elected in May — voted against the hire along with Ryan, who was elected in 2023.
While Macias was concerned that not having a CFO could place more pressure on Superintendent Robert Milton Fields for financial reports and updates, Ryan contends the district still has “continuity in day-to-day accounting,” saying she doesn’t want to rush to fill such a crucial position.
The problem with not having a CFO in a district as large as Judson, Ryan admitted, is there won’t be a “strategic thinker” who can coordinate between the administration and the board on high-stakes financial decisions.
CFOs also work on a contract basis, meaning they are not at-will employees and generally can’t be fired.
Judson’s CFO contract lasts 226 days, according to the job posting. The post asks that candidates have at least five years of experience in school district finance with three years of CFO experience preferred.
Under the CFO’s responsibilities, the post states candidates can expect to collaborate between the deputy superintendent and the school board, develop long-range and short-term business plans, maintain the district’s investment portfolio and demonstrate awareness of district/community needs and initiate activities to meet those needs.
Ryan was also concerned the district’ recommendation for CFO wasn’t qualified enough for a district of Judson’s size. Judson is the fourth-largest school district in the San Antonio area, and is considered a “major suburban” district by the state, the second-largest classification.
“This is probably the most crucial financial time in Judson history,” Ryan said before voting against the hire. “There are heroic tasks that need to be done, and we’ve had a lot of CFOs in the last two-and-a-half years. This is something we have to get completely right.”