SDCOE Team Ensures Employees Across the County Get Paid

Each month, the eight-member San Diego County Office of Education (SDCOE) District Payroll Services team assists with the payroll process for 48 school districts and charter schools across the county.

“The biggest thing that we do is support the districts,” said Matthew Gilroy, District Payroll Services supervisor. “We are a resource for them to reach out to when they have questions or issues.”

That process starts after the districts have processed their own payroll for employees. From there, the District Payroll Services team runs reports and ensures that everything is correct and creates a payroll register for the districts that includes information about taxes, compensation, benefits, deductions, etc.

“We make sure all employees that are supposed to get paid based on what their district processed through the system do get paid,” Gilroy said. “Whether that be by paper warrant or direct deposit, we are responsible for making that happen.”

The monthly work also includes paying vendors for things like supplemental insurance and garnishments. They mail out about $56 million in vendor checks each month. Much of the work is still manual to make sure all the numbers are correct. There’s also processing Workers’ Compensation abatements, canceling warrants, processing salary overpayments, and making tax deposits on behalf of districts.

All of this work creates a more efficient system that allows the school districts to focus on other work.

“Imagine having 40-something districts all trying to deal with the IRS all at once,” said Marisa Pulido, payroll services technician. 

Pulido said she’s proud that her work ensures educators throughout the county are getting paid and can focus on students. The work suits her well, too; she’s had a passion for numbers since she was a child.

“I like what this office does — supports districts and kids,” she said. “I enjoy what I do and know that I have an impact on kids, even though I don’t work directly with them.”