Are You On The Top 100 List? Plus: Council Approves New Test Fees

Always fun to examine the list of top 100 city employee wage earners. As usual Board of Education employees lead the pack from 2009 fronted by Superintendent of Schools John Ramos’ $235,000. Hey Super, I wanna be your friend! Mayor Bill Finch is woefully behind at number 61 on the list.

This list includes a number of dedicated public servants such as Carol Birks, Harding High School principal, and a number that might make your head spin like why does a plumber and steamfitter make so much dough? Well, if your super authorizes the overtime due to staff shortages why not take it! And most city employees earn their wages whether base pay or overtime. The parenthetical number below following each listed public employee represents the base pay. Why have so many earned more? In many instances, such as city cops, the higher number represents overtime. In other cases the gross pay represents unused vacation time cashed in. In the case of Fire Lieutenant John MacNicholl his higher earning is due to a back pay settlement as a result of a discharge reversal. Andrew Abate’s earnings include separation pay after the former Water Pollution Control Authority chief was discharged by his board. You’ll also see a handful of employees who earned less than the listed base pay. Did they give a few bucks back to help the city’s deficit? See list below. Yes I know the list is long, but it’s only once a year.

1. JOHN J. RAMOS SR.
SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT
$235,274 ($229,204)

2. JOHN M. EVANS
POLICE SERGEANT
$171,907 ($63,948)

3. JOHN D. MACNICHOLL
FIRE LIEUTENANT
$158,055 ($62,629)

4. JAMES H. KIRKLAND
POLICE SERGEANT
$156,605 ($63,948)

5. BARBARA A. COLE
CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL SUBSTITUTE ADMINISTRATOR
$147,986 ($133,900)

6. ROBERT HENRY
SCHOOL SUPT.’S OFFICE CHIEF OF STAFF
$147,791 ($150,689)

7. ANDREW S. ABATE
WPCA PROJECT MANAGER
$146,334 ($109,846)

8. TERESA A. CARROLL
ASST. SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT
$137,261 ($136,669)

9. JOHN J. DIDONATO
ASST. SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT
$135,981 ($136,669)

10. DENISE CLEMONS-GRAHAM
ASST. SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT
$133,579 (136,669)

11. RONALD W. SPIEGELHALTER
CENTRAL MAGNET HIGH SCHOOL SUPERVISOR
$131,802 ($126,236)

12. JOHN J. CURTIS
REGIONAL VOCATIONAL AQUACULTURE SCHOOL SUPERVISOR
$131,508 ($131,062)

13. CYNTHIA D. FERNANDES
BOARD OF EDUCATION EXEC. DIR. OF TEACHING AND LEARNING
$130,788 ($131,062)

14. BRIAN P. ROONEY
FIRE CHIEF
$130,573 ($119,953)

15. JAMES F. ADAMS
LONGFELLOW SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$130,227 ($126,236)

16. SANDRA MCLEOD
READ SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$130,188 ($131,062)

17. JOHN C. PERACHIO
CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$130,188 ($131,062)

18. RONALD P. REMY
BASSICK HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$129,988 ($131,062)

19. HECTOR SANCHEZ
CESAR A. BATALLA SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$129,788 ($131,062)

20. LONNIE J. BLACKWELL
POLICE LIEUTENANT
$129,689 ($73,539)

21. LEONARD P. SAMATULSKI
POLICE CAPTAIN
$129,317 ($84,572)

22. STEPHEN K. SHUCK
POLICE LIEUTENANT
$129,041 ($73,539)

23. PAMELA D. ROSENBERG
BOARD OF EDUCATION SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGIST
$128,838 ($34,782)

24. ANNE ENGELSON
BLACKHAM SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$128,688 ($131,062)

25. ALEJANDRO ORTIZ
CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$128,688 ($131,062)

26. ANN DEBERNARD
WALTERSVILLE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$127,924 ($128,960)

27. CAROL D. BIRKS
HARDING HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$127,587 ($131,062)

28. RICHARD W. PAZ
BOARD OF EDUCATION GARAGE STEAMFITTER
$127,539 ($75,546)

29. CARMEN I. DICKSON
ROOSEVELT SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$127,385 ($126,431)

30. SANFORD DOWLING
POLICE DETECTIVE
$127,010 ($62,839)

31. LEONARD ALTERIO
POLICE OFFICER
$126,594 ($55,608)

32. SUSAN G. SMITH
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL SERVICES
$126,569 ($126,236)

33. WILLIAM C. MARTINSKY
POLICE SERGEANT
$126,532 ($63,948)

34. IRMA T. DWORKIN
WALTERSVILLE SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$126,447 ($126,717)

35. CAROLE PANNOZZO
HUMAN RESOURCES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
$126,361 ($118,965)

36. JORGE E. PEZO
HARDING HIGH SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$126,335 ($123,993)

37. JAMES M. VIADERO
POLICE CAPTAIN
$126,238 ($77,208)

38. MICHAEL J. TESTANI
BASSICK HIGH SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$125,985 ($123,993)

39. GINGER H. STEHLE
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF DISTRICT PLANNING AND PLACEMENT
$125,849 ($126,236)

40. GIOVANNA M . DENITTO
MADISON SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,449 ($126,236)

41. MARLENE A. ROBERTS
GERALDINE JOHNSON SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,449 ($126,236)

42. AUDREY N. SKODA
CURIALE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,449 ($126,236)

43. LOURDES L. DELGADO
BARNUM SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,349 ($126,236)

44. MANUEL A. ROCHA
COLUMBUS SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,349 ($126,236)

45. JOHN M. FABRIZI
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF ADULT EDUCATION
$125,344 ($126,236)

46. CHRISTOPHER LAMAINE
POLICE LIEUTENANT
$125,322 ($73,539)

47. JOYCE DIAZ HENNESSEY
BASSICK HIGH SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$125,301 ($123,993)

48. ANDREW CIMMINO
PRINCIPAL (listed as BOARD OF EDUCATION “HUMAN RESOURCES”)
$125,249 ($126,236)

49. AMY J. MARSHALL
BEARDSLEY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,249 ($126,236)

50. LUCILLE N. SEKARA
HALLEN SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$125,249 ($126,236)

51. RICARDO ROSA
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF MATH
$124,621 ($126,717)

52. STEVEN L. DOUGLAS
LUIS MUNOZ MARIN SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$124,169 ($127,577)

53. MELISSA JENKINS
HIGH HORIZONS MAGNET SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,949 ($126,236)

54. DYRENE MEEKINS
WILBUR CROSS SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,949 ($126,236)

55. WILLIAM A. RICE
JETTIE TISDALE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,949 ($126,236)

56. GLADYS D. WALKER-JONES
BRYANT SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,949 ($126,236)

57. HELEN A. MORAN
MULTICULTURAL MAGNET SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,876 ($126,236)

58. CORETTA K. DEAN
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY
$123,847 ($123,993)

59. BRIAN FITZGERALD
POLICE LIEUTENANT
$123,809 ($73,539)

60. MARY S. STICKLEY
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM
$123,647 ($123,993)

61. WILLIAM A. FINCH
MAYOR
$123,514 ($121,184)

62. ALANA M. CALLAHAN
PARK CITY MAGNET SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,372 ($126,236)

63. YVETTE DEFEO
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF BILINGUAL EDUCATION AND WORLD LANGUAGE
$123,372 ($123,993)

64. SYBIL ALLEN
READ SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$123,247 ($123,993)

65. OLGA I. LEIVA
LUIS MUNOZ MARIN SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$123,247 ($123,993)

66. VALERIE R. SINGLETON
JETTIE TISDALE SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$123,247 ($123,993)

67. VERONICA F. HOMAS
HALL SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,247 ($123,993)

68. LAWRENCE E. OSBORNE JR.
DIRECTOR OF LABOR RELATIONS AND BENEFITS
$123,208 ($114,857)

69. SARAH BODENHEIMER
BOARD OF EDUCATION SUPERVISOR OF SPECIAL EDUCATION
$123,147 ($123,993)

70. DONNA M. FALAT-ROSENBLOOM
EDISON SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$123,147 ($123,993)

71. MICHELE MATERA
SKANE SCHOOL SUPERVISOR
$123,147 ($123,993)

72. JOHN W. TRISTINE
PUBLIC FACILITIES PLUMBER
$122, 947 ($86,986)

73. MICHELE A. BONNEY
LONGFELLOW SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$122,847 ($123,993)

74. CHARLES M. CARROLL
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC FACILITIES/DIRECTOR OF PARKS
$122,591 ($114,857)

75. JULIO C. MOLLEDA
BOARD OF EDUCATION EXEC. DIR. OF FINANCE AND BUSINESS SERVICES
$122,198 ($119,995)

76. DENDRA ALTIERI
BASSICK HIGH SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$122,057 ($121,519)

77. PETER L. GELOZIN
POLICE SERGEANT
$122,055 ($63,948)

78. THOMAS R. SHERWOOD
DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
$122,055 ($114,857)

79. CHARMAINE M. WORTHY
BEARDSLEY SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$121,935 ($123,993)

80. MARIA ARROYO
MADISON SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$121,747 ($123,993)

81. MARILYN EARLE
SUPERVISOR OF SPECIAL EDUCATION (BOARD OF EDUCATION’S BRIDGEPORT LEARNING CENTER)
$121,747 ($123,99)

82. DANUTA B. JARVIS
BLACK ROCK SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$121,747 ($123,993)

83. ANGEL MUNIZ
ROOSEVELT SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$121,747 ($123,993)

84. KATHLEEN H. FLYNN
BOARD OF EDUCATION PRIORITY SCHOOL DISTRICT MANAGER
$121,325 ($109,416)

85. MICHAEL J. MULFORD
BOARD OF EDUCATION OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE (CERTIFIED)
$121,273 ($123,993)

86. DEBORAH R. TISDALE
GERALDINE JOHNSON SCHOOL ASST. PRINCIPAL
$121,272 ($123,993)

87. RICHARD . DONALDSON II
POLICE DETECTIVE
$121,224 ($62,839)

88. DEBORAH A. SANTACAPITA
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIR. OF EVALUATION, RES. AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
$120,272 ($123,993)

89. RANDOLPH V. DIXON
WINTHROP SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
$120,728 ($126,236)

90. KEVIN GILLERAN
POLICE LIEUTENANT
$120,558 ($69,433)

91. ANDREW J. NUNN
CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER
$120,379 ($114,857)

92. ALICE J. DANIELS
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF ENGLISH
$120,373 ($123,993)

93. ARESTA L. JOHNSON
BOARD OF EDUCATION SPECIAL SUBJECT SUPERVISOR
$120,373 ($123,993)

94. MICHAEL E. FEENEY
DIRECTOR OF FINANCE
$120,256 ($114,857)

95. JAMES W. DENTON
BOARD OF EDUCATION DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS
$120,064 ($121,346)

96. PAUL ORTIZ
POLICE DETECTIVE
$119,705 ($62,839)

97. DONALD C. EVERSLEY
DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING
$119,275 ($114,857)

98. JAMES A. GRACE III
DEPUTY FIRE CHIEF
$118,956 ($95,251)

99. ROBERT W. PETRUCELLI
DEPUTY FIRE CHIEF
$118,696 ($95,251)

100. TERESA A. CHERRY-CRUZ
BOARD OF EDUCATION PROGRAM DIRECTOR/COORDINATOR/SUPERVISOR
$119,407 ($121,519)

New Test Fees

The City Council Monday night unanimously approved a resolution to charge a $35 test fee on Bridgeport residents taking the upcoming police entrance exam while imposing a $135 fee on out-of-towners.

The approved fees are in addition to a $65 fee applicants pay to a third party responsible for administering the physical agility test, according to Councilman Bob Walsh who suggested the compromise fees after city officials recommended fees of $100 and $250 respectively for residents and non residents. Several council members had opposed those recommendations.

In justifying the fee difference Walsh says: “Between the amount of taxes that Bridgeport residents pay for motor vehicles alone I could easily substantiate charging out-of-towners more. Add on to this disparity the amount the Bridgeport residents are overcharged for auto insurance and it would easily exceed the hundred dollar difference. Then when you consider the fact that Bridgeport residents are incurring these differences on an annual basis and these test results will probably be good for three years, out-of-towners are getting a break compared to what Bridgeport residents pay for the honor of living in Bridgeport.”

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22 comments

  1. Interesting I see these cops make so much money on overtime wow so amazing. Some of these High School PRINCIPALS make too much money. We need to slash that by at least 25,000 god damn it is not like they’re doing anything to make graduation rates go higher. Vote Vote Vote at Marin today. Vote Vote Vote in Strat-city.

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  2. HOW MANY people on the municipal list could duplicate those jobs in the private sector?

    Answer: Not many.

    Best kept secret: many muni emplyees are broke because their high incomes enable them to exploit and consequently get burned by using credit and let’s face it: our current crisis was caused by credit abuse and those who don’t understand leverage.

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  3. If the super authorizes it … take it???

    Do the supers play favorites and the workers not earn it??? What are you trying to say … Lennie???
    Could the workers be shorthanded and the OT needed?
    If the buildings are falling apart and they need to be fixed … the workers know the buildings inside out and respond to the problems.
    If there are crimes being committed there has to be protection on the streets … fires are started and fire personnel to respond … right?

    Where it looks as if the mayor is underpaid for the stressful job he has … it doesn’t mean the union workers are TAKING their money … right?

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    1. Go to any Monday board meeting and hear “the schools are deplorable.” The janitors and mechanics keep the schools open. They are the answer, not the problem. Many make more than their bosses without OT. Great unions set their pay. Plus working OT for other city departments is great for the paycheck.

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  4. 97. DONALD C. EVERSLEY
    DIRECTOR OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND PLANNING
    $119,275 ($114,857)

    Is Don being paid overtime for all of the development he is generating?

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  5. The city will experience a windfall profit when all of these potential police exam takers see this list.
    50% of their pay is OT???
    Sorry Bpts Finest, that is way out of line.

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  6. Lennie,
    Nice of you to break out the numbers once a year for folks to see the actual earnings and (budgeted salaries) as well as to point out some of the reasons for the disparities like overtime, vacation pay taken as lump sum, discharge reversal, etc.
    Imagine if we were to take a look at the dollar amount the City will pay this year to fund pension retirement benefits, current healthcare as well as deposits for retiree funding, etc. that are current costs to the City for the benefit of these employees. How much would these currently increase the numbers presented to us? And let us assume each of the first 100 does a great job and your audience agrees, are the salary and benefit costs per employee at 2000 hours per year or whatever their contract calls for comparable to jobs in the private sector? That is one of the big questions that will require review, understanding and adjustments (if necessary) in the future. If the numbers are hard to discover then our governmental operations are not open and transparent but rather secret and impenetrable. Is this fair? Each of us must find an appropriate answer but the facts and information should be in the public sphere on which to form opinions. And so it goes …

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  7. BEACON2–All interesting and valid points you have raised. I have stated on this blog many times my feelings regarding overtime costs and the common misconceptions associated with them. It is my contention that it is cost effective (to a point) for the city to pay the overtime versus hiring additional employees to try and eliminate it. It kind of goes to your point about pension obligations, health care costs and long-term exposure. Every year at budget time the city rolls out the same tired excuse of excessive overtime in the police and fire dept. in an attempt to lay blame for the budget woes. I for one am not buying it. Have studies been done to provide the city with data regarding manpower and staffing levels in these two departments and if so what do they say? Seems to me that it would be in the best interests of the city to know exactly where these departments should be in terms of staffing in order to be running as efficiently as possible. Somehow I doubt that is the case. In typical Bridgeport fashion they will continue to blame overtime in these departments for the budget problems.

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    1. Good points as well. You know from a human resources perspective workers earn their rest, whether we refer to vacations (quite often longer in term for long-term, read ‘older’, employees) or those hours beyond 40 in which we eat, sleep, commute, recreate, learn, exercise, consume, etc. every week. It seems wasteful in one sense to have permanent overtime for a handful of people and on the other hand be paying lump sums out at some time in the future for vacation days not used. A review of best practices for staffing would make sense.
      So would the possibility, as other communities successfully do, of having a bipartisan finance board of experienced citizens (who have no direct or indirect family ties to current employees of the City) serving staggered four-year terms to serve the citizens and taxpayers of Bridgeport by closely reviewing these and other matters that have caused our City elected officials to regularly reduce our rainy day unrestricted City fund balance. They also could keep track of the many deadlines and/or grant opportunity, reporting or filing dates that may have been neglected at one or more times in the past and caused remedial work to be done because of revolving doors in some departments.

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  8. Non-partisan Board of Finance? The City Council is supposed to do that job, even if it is partisan.
    The only kind of financial control elected officials in Bridgeport would recognize is one that would take them to a high place and drop them head-first onto a flat rock. Maybe.

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    1. Bipartisan means two parties with equal representation although elected. Non-partisan in this City appears to be a fantasy in many activities. Perhaps that is because the test of ethical behavior involves a lower rung on the ladder of human behavior than is set and observed in other communities (where ‘corruption’ is a less often used word).
      I would not take away the final vote on budgets and money from the elected representatives of the people, the City Council. However from observation of some subcommittees in action, I see the financial aspects of many decisions facing them as votes are beyond the education and experience of some of the elected as well as the voters. Having one set of elected officials to specifically review and pass on best financial practices, review processes, suggest alternatives to presenters and maintain a “community memory” to be sure our dollars are well and soundly spent would be a WIN for the City. If you have ever presented funding requests to such a group for multiple years, you begin to realize they are not easily fooled or misled, they offer a real value to the community specific to money.

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  9. *** Bpt pays their employees pretty “good”! But don’t blanket case all of them ’cause “some” of these people have put some long years in, moving on up the ladder to get where they’re at today! If not, why cry for education, training & hard work to get where you’re going? And of course there’s some of; it’s “who” you know, as opposed to “what” you know type employees & politics, etc. … But that seems to be what you’ll see in other cities too, maybe more! I’d like to see some kind of comparison of some of Bpt’s top city job titles & salaries to other cities in Conn. and how many citizens they serve as a whole? *** However, there’s no doubt that city government in Bpt “mismanages” a lot of money, in many ways! Mostly due to the way the city & voters have allowed their city government to be run. ***

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  10. *** Amazing, a “which way is up” local Bpt election in Bpt’s East Side & “no roving OIB reporter” covering? Holly Mary, Theresa, Barbara, Guadalupe, Fatima; Joel? Somebody please, everyone’s waiting for the Big-Payback News, “Good God!” By the way, does anyone know what tomorrow’s weather might be? (wink) ***

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  11. Disappointed by how Lennie covered the East Side primary end of story. We use to could have gotten info all day on OIB guess times have changed too many suburban readers I guess.

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