Superintendent says Gwinnett’s $2,000 bonus decision came before she arrived

Gwinnett County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Alexandra Estrella wrote to teachers Thursday that she understands why they are frustrated to learn in November that a second $2,000 bonus is not coming.

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The district told employees Monday that the one-time payment, called a retention bonus because it is meant to help keep workers on the job, depended on state money. The Georgia Department of Education said the state already paid one $2,000 bonus but never put a second one in the state’s new budget.

“I also recognize the frustration of receiving this information at this point in the year,” Estrella wrote in a letter to teachers obtained by Channel 2 Action News.

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She said the district hoped more money would come through, but it did not. Estrella started July 1, after the budget was approved and the bonus decisions were made, according to her letter.

In a Facebook post, school board Chair Dr. Tarece Johnson-Morgan said the governor signed a state budget without a second $2,000 on May 12. She said the board approved its own budget May 28, still counting on more state money.

Alison Cundiff, president of the Gwinnett County Association of Educators, said that gap between spring and fall is probably the biggest concern.

“Just imagine what kind of impact it has if you look into your wallet and $2,000 is missing,” Cundiff said.

Board member Rachel Stone wrote that she has put a question to the district.

“What would it take to fund the $2,000 supplement, or a portion of it?” Stone wrote.

She estimated a one-time $1,000 payment would cost about $26 million from the district’s savings.

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Cobb County schools said they paid last spring’s state bonus. DeKalb County schools said there is no retention bonus in their budget this year.

Cundiff said her group plans to wear red to the school board’s Nov. 17 session at 6 p.m. to show “who we are, the people who do this work” and to learn more about the situation.

“Educators are nothing if not hopeful,” Cundiff said. “It’s what brings us into work every day.”