Superintendent Dr. Bryan Johnson would never call it a gamble, but he's betting that the money the Hamilton County Schools district saves by offering early retirement incentives to longtime teachers and educators will free up funds to pay for what the community, school board and administration believe are priorities for students.
The savings from the retirement plan expected to be taken by between 150 and 300 teachers - approved by the Hamilton County Board of Education last week - will leverage $6.5 million or more for several years, he said.
"We've got to have a recurring revenue stream," Johnson told Times Free Press editors and reporters Monday.
Some of the teachers who will accept the retirement package are teachers who would have retired in two or three more years anyway, he said.
What he didn't say is that some strong teachers who have been mentors will retire and some weak teachers who have been hanging on to their jobs will retire. It's no different from any other business in that regard.
Undoubtedly, most of those who retire will be replaced by younger teachers, many of them just out of college with their certifications under their belts at a time when Johnson has said it's critical to have strong, effective teachers in every classroom.
That's Johnson's gamble - that the district will be able to recruit the best teachers and that the priorities on which the savings will be spent will be better for all students.
"We're not trying to get rid of old teachers," the superintendent said at last week's school board meeting. "It's not about getting rid of people. It's a unique opportunity to address community needs. It allows us to better align the budget to the [board's priorities]."
Johnson on Monday told the newspaper that people don't always stick around for the money.
"My hope is that the great experienced teachers and leaders will stick around," he said.
Maybe, he added with a wink, he'd send a card to the ones he hopes would stay.
Some members of the board, each of whom had been consulted individually by Johnson, seemed to struggle with the decision at last week's meeting, but the board eventually voted 7-1 to approve the plan.
"We have the possibility of losing some highly qualified teachers," District 8 member David Testerman said.
"We'll lose some gifted, talented people," District 3 member Joe Smith said.
"We already have trouble finding teachers," District 1 members Rhonda Thurman said. "It'll have a domino effect. Pretty soon, we'll be back in the same situation."
Johnson anticipates some of the savings could pay for more school counselors and social workers, English as a second language teachers and visual arts teachers. Beyond that, he said the district needs to invest more in technology and STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) projects, to support teachers better and to think more wisely about how to spend money on educational materials.
"We have to meet students exactly where they are," he said.
The superintendent said it's just as important to hire good teachers as it is to have the savings from the ones who choose early retirement.
In the recent past, he said, the budget for recruiting has been a tiny fraction - .00026 percent - of the district's operating budget. That must change, he said, especially since the most significant annual staff turnover is in the highest priority schools.
"We have to be broadening our reach," Johnson said. "We want to be [the University of] Alabama."
He was referring to the Crimson Tide football teams, which seem to have the best ranked recruiting classes year after year, which allow their already successful teams to reload rather than rebuild.
Johnson, who has been on the job only a half year, is likely still on a honeymoon with the public. Elected officials, business leaders and parents are willing to follow his recommendations - from reorganizing the central office to working closely with the state on turning around the high priority schools to the retirement plan gamble - to see overall improvement within the district.
Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger's property tax realignment proposal last fall that was leveraged into funds to build and renovate schools - and the Hamilton County Commission's approval of it - was a vote for the superintendent's energized, hit-the-ground-running, shake-up-the-culture leadership.
If it results in improved state test scores and a smoother operating district, no one will remember that an early retirement offer was ever the least bit controversial.