School Board’s $700K Payout to Official Sparks Fury: ‘Slap in the Face’

A Pennsylvania school board’s $700,000 exit package to a superintendent has sparked fury in the district.

The Central Bucks School District has made headlines nationally for heated board meetings, banning books, and directives about pronoun use. On November 7, Democratic candidates won a 6-3 majority on the board.

In one of its final acts, the outgoing conservative slate backed by Moms for Liberty awarded the large severance package to superintendent Abram Lucabaugh, who supported their position. The item was added to the agenda the night before the outgoing board’s final meeting on November 14, The Associated Press reported.

Now, the Democratic majority that will take control of the board next month are seeking to block the package.

“The outgoing majority board’s action to reward the superintendent with a huge payout and attempt to prevent any investigation into their combined questionable behaviors over the past two years is par for the course with this group,” Karen Smith, a Democrat who won a third term on the board, told Newsweek.

“We plan to exhaust all avenues examining the legality of this action and hope to return the funds to our taxpayers and students.”

Lily Freeman, a senior at Central Bucks East High School and a vocal critic of board policies on LGBTQ+ issues, said the severance package was a bad deal for both students and taxpayers.

“It’s kind of like a slap in the face,” Freeman told the AP. “Teachers are struggling, and there’s a lot of students that are struggling.”

The are “so many resources out there that we could be putting that money to,” she added, noting her school desperately needs better Wi-Fi.

The package for Lucabaugh, who skipped the meeting, drew outrage from members of the community.

It “felt like a slap in the face to the hardworking staff of this district,” Adriana Comprelli said, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The board and Lucabaugh appear to be “very greedily trying to manage a departure that ensures his financial future at the expense of every taxpayer in this district,” former board member Beth Darcy said during the public comment period. “A fortune, for quitting.”

Kate Nazemi, of Advocates for Inclusive Education, said the “payout for Lucabaugh while banning trans youth from sports in their final act” amounted to the “reckless use of taxpayer dollars for the unsuccessful consolidation of political power,” according to journalist Erin Reed.

Lucabaugh’s package includes more than $300,000 for unused sick leave, vacation, administrative and personal time during his 18 years in various roles with the district; $50,000 for signing the deal; and health insurance for his family through June.

Some of the board’s incoming Democrats attempted to warn the outgoing board members that the payout violates a 2012 state law designed to curb golden parachutes for school superintendents. That law caps severance payouts to superintendents to one year’s salary and benefits.

The package is “unlawful, void, and unenforceable,” Brendan Flynn, a lawyer representing the Democrats, wrote in a letter to the outgoing board, which was provided to Newsweek.

The “particular circumstances in this case are even more egregious,” Flynn wrote.

“The board gave Dr. Lucabaugh a 40 percent salary increase in late July of this year, making him the second-highest paid school district superintendent in Pennsylvania, and is now using that increase less than four months later to calculate a severance payment.” Lucabaugh’s salary was raised to $315,000 in July.

Newsweek has contacted Lucabaugh and outgoing board president Dana Hunter for comment via email. Moms for Liberty has also been contacted for comment via email.

Central Bucks was among several school districts across the country where voters rebuked conservative candidates who wanted to ban books, curb the rights of LGBTQ+ students and restrict teachings about race and gender.

A majority of the more than 130 candidates endorsed by Moms for Liberty lost their race in school board elections earlier in November, including every candidate backed by the group in Minnesota, Kansas, North Carolina and Washington.