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.