Report: DISD Communications Chief to Leave

Official's $185,000 salary drew criticism

A member of the Dallas school district superintendent's cabinet whose salary drew criticism when she was hired is expected to resign, according to a newspaper report.

Superintendent Mike Miles brought Jennifer Sprague with him from Colorado Springs when he started at the Dallas Independent School District in the summer. Her salary of $185,000 is about $100,000 more than she made in her previous job, where she served as head of communications for Miles in Colorado.

The Dallas Morning News reported Friday night that Sprague plans to resign, possibly next week. The newspaper said that district officials were preparing to announce her resignation next week.

Sprague's salary was hard for critics to swallow at a time when the school district was closing schools and cutting jobs. But Miles defended Sprague's salary and those of three other cabinet members, saying they face high expectations.

"We have to have a first-rate cabinet of national quality if we're going to be the premiere urban school district in America," Miles said in June. "The salary range is not inordinate."

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