By Scott Travis | South Florida Sun Sentinel
Howard Hepburn may remain Broward schools superintendent for another five years, possibly bringing long-term stability to a district that’s grappled with high turnover of leaders.
Hepburn, who was hired a year ago, reached a tentative agreement with School Board Chairwoman Debbi Hixon Monday to extend his contract until June 30, 2030. His current contract expires on June 30, 2027.
The contract would also remove a provision that Hepburn opposed last year — that he be required to move to Broward County. Hepburn lives in West Palm Beach, 50 miles away from his office in Fort Lauderdale. The School Board decided last year that was too far for him to travel for his job. The contract required him to relocate to Broward by Dec. 31, 2025.
“As you all know, Dr. Hepburn has been able to fulfill his duties while residing in Palm Beach County,” his lawyer, Carmen Manrara Cartaya, told Hixon and General Counsel Marylin Batista. “He’s been able to perform all of his duties excellently, including commitments that require late evening and weekend work.”
Hixon told the Sun Sentinel in a recent interview she didn’t think it was a necessary requirement anymore.
“He’s been very accessible. I don’t think it matters where he lives,” she said.
Hepburn agreed to forfeit $15,000 in moving expenses allowed under his current contract.
His pay will remain the same for now. Hepburn was hired last year at $340,000, and the contract allows him to receive the same annual raise as other district employees. The School Board recently approved employee raises of 3% last year, bringing his salary up to $350,200.
Hepburn dropped a request that may have been the most contentious — requiring a supermajority of six of nine board members to fire him without cause. The School Board severed ties with three superintendents from 2021 to 2024.
One of them, Vickie Cartwright, was fired by a 5-4 vote in November 2022, rehired in December 2022 and then agreed to mutually separate in January 2023.
Last year, Manrara Cartaya fought to get the supermajority provision into Hepburn’s contract.
“It’s important to create stability and longevity within the school district,” she said in 2024. “It’s important to be able to recruit top talent to retain top talent and really be successful under these incredibly challenging times.”
Several previous candidates for superintendent and general counsel have asked the School Board for the supermajority job protection, but the board has always rejected it, saying it would give away too much of the board’s power. While board members rejected Hepburn’s request for a supermajority last year, they agreed to reconsider at his one-year anniversary, which is mid-April.
That issue is what prompted Hixon to negotiate the contract right now, despite Hepburn still having two more years left on his current contract.
“The superintendent is still seeking the supermajority, correct?” Batista asked during negotiations.
“Dr. Hepburn is willing to remove the supermajority, contingent of approval of the items he’s proposing,” Manrara Cartaya said.
The only request Hixon and Hepburn didn’t approve was for $5,000 in lawyer’s fees for his negotiation, which the board agreed to when he was hired last year.
“I think historically the board has paid attorneys’ fees only in the initial negotiation of the contract and the chair is not willing at this time to make the same recommendation” for a contract extension, Batista said after caucusing with Hixon.
The full School Board plans to vote on the agreement at an April 15 meeting.
Correction: An earlier version of this news article misspelled the last name of the lawyer representing Broward Schools Superintendent Howard Hepburn in negotiations for a contract extension. Her name is Carmen Manrara Cartaya.
