By Sara Ballenger
Three months ago The Mountain View-Whisman School District Board gave Superintendent Patricia Bubenik a $16,000-a-year raise, but now she will receive her yearly salary of $122,000 in the form of a severance check.
The school board voted unanimously at their Oct. 22 meeting to dismiss Bubenik from her post as superintendent.
Bubenik has worked in the Mountain View School District since 1985 and has been superintendent since 1992. She oversaw the merger of the Mountain View and Whisman elementary and middle school districts, with a combined 4,400 students, this summer. Her contract with the district extended through 2004.
The school board gave no reason for her dismissal effective Dec. 22 other than to say that new leadership was in the best interest of the district, according to a district press release.
It is not uncommon for a superintendent to leave a district after a merger has taken place, said Rich Fischer, superintendent of the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District.
“You are bringing two very different cultures together,” he said. “I have a lot of respect for her (Bubenik). I am surprised by this action and I am really sorry she is going to be leaving the district.”
Bubenik, chosen as one of the top 100 school administrators in the nation by Executive Educator Magazine in 1988, wants the focus of the 3-month-old board to remain on the students.
“I know that there will always be critics to help keep us on track and I welcome that. That is a strength in our democracy,” Bubenik said. “However, I will not dwell on that. It’s a time for everyone to move forward with the focus on all of our students in our new district.”
As for her future, Bubenik is currently a candidate for a superintendent’s position, though it is outside Silicon Valley, she said.
“My husband and I have to make some major life decisions and review our options very carefully,” she said.
Bubenik is going to take some time before making any long-term decisions.
“I am a very fortunate professional to have options,” Bubenik said. “I am looking forward to reconnecting with some friends and my husband is looking forward to having me home in the evenings.”
Although she had been ready to remain in the district, when the time comes for Bubenik to leave, she hopes the new district will remain strong.
“I received a plaque from a trusted colleague in relation to the merger which reads, ‘When a collection of brilliant minds, hearts and talents come together - expect a masterpiece,’” Bubenik said. “Let’s expect and work together to create a masterpiece from our collective effort for the present and the future of the Mountain View children and greater community.”
Bubenik will miss being a part of the new district that she helped build.
“I regret that I will not be able to contribute to the creation of that masterpiece,” she said. “I will have to rely on the professional educators, support staff, community and our wonderful children to continue to create it.”
