Ysleta ISD Superintendent’s Contract Extended, Some Benefits Removed

The Ysleta Independent School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously Jan. 29 to remove several benefits from Superintendent Xavier De La Torre’s contract, which was extended by one year to June 2030.

The removed benefits include short-term and long-term disability insurance; term life insurance; and compensation to offset his federal tax liabilities, which would have cost taxpayers about $100,000 a year, YISD Communications Director Tracy Garcia-Ramirez told El Paso Matters.

The district has paid De La Torre nearly $300,000 in these benefits since they were added to his contract in January 2023, Garcia-Ramirez said.

The vote came after a closed-door session where the board evaluated the superintendent. The evaluation was not released, but trustees in open session heavily praised De La Torre.

While most superintendents can negotiate their salary and qualify for raises based on their annual evaluations, De La Torre gets a pay increase any time the school board approves raises for administrators, according to his contract.

In June, the YISD Board of Trustees approved a $408.2 million budget with a $17.2 million deficit for the 2024-25 school year and didn’t give employee raises – meaning De La Torre also did not get a pay raise at that time.

De La Torre is paid over $451,000 a year and is among the highest earning superintendents in the state. He last got a raise in 2023 when the board approved a 3.65% pay hike for teachers, nurses and librarians, 4% for paraprofessionals and 2% for administrators.

De La Torre has been leading YISD since 2014.