School chief cashes out leave, becomes California’s top paid

ONTARIO, Calif. (AP) — The head of a California school district is the state’s highest paid K-12 administrator for the third year in a row after taking advantage of various perks, including one that allows him to cash out sick time that ballooned to 85 days this year. Ontario-Montclair School District Superintendent James Hammond in July exchanged 110 total days of leave for $167,500 in extra pay. The Southern California News Group reports Hammond’s total compensation now routinely exceeds $600,000 a year, though his base salary is nearly half that amount. Hammond insists his contracts were fully vetted by the school board and its attorneys.