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Board approves mentor program for principals and assistant principals in 3–2 vote after debate about stipends
Summary
Trustees approved a mentor program pairing veteran principals with assistant principals and new principals, with stipends for out‑of‑contract mentoring work; debate centered on whether mentoring should be part of site leaders’ jobs and whether stipends were appropriate.
The Barstow Unified School District board narrowly approved (3–2) a mentor program that pairs seasoned principals with assistant principals and newer site leaders, and provides a monthly stipend to mentors for work performed outside normal contracted hours.
Administrators described the program as a fifth‑year effort to flatten learning curves for newer administrators, expand institutional knowledge across sites and provide structured support for evaluations, focus plans and peer assistance. “This is a step above what principals would be asked to do with their own administrative staff. It adds to that work to provide additional support to our administrative team,” a district presenter said, and listed mentor names who will lead the AP Academy.
Trustee Williams pushed back on the stipend and scope, saying that principals already train and mentor APs and that some mentoring is part of job expectations. “If I'm a principal and I got an assistant principal, I'm going to try to train my assistant principal to be as good as I am — that’s part of teamwork,” he said, expressing concern about paying stipends for work that could be considered part of existing roles. Staff replied that mentors provide districtwide experience beyond site‑level coaching, spend time outside contracted hours and bring cross‑site institutional knowledge.
The motion passed by a 3–2 vote. Trustees recorded that the program is intended to accelerate administrator readiness, support the district administrative pipeline and provide structured professional learning beyond site‑based duties. The agenda item listed named mentor leads including Robert Dominguez, Brent Lesley and Dr. Vinnie Williams.
Why it matters: the program aims to build leadership capacity and retention by supporting new administrators, but the board debate underscores scrutiny over additional compensation for duties that some trustees view as intrinsic to supervisory roles.
Next steps: staff will implement the mentor program and stipend schedule and return information on program activities and outcomes as the mentorship year proceeds.
