Hamilton County School Superintendent Rick Smith, Tammy Zumbrun and John MerrittThe Hamilton County Board of Education will vote tonight on the extension of Superintendent Rick Smith’s contract.
In last month’s board meeting, Smith received his highest evaluation score from the board in the past four years as leader of the district’s schools, and board members say that support should carry into tonight’s meeting.
Board members declined to speak specifically about how they planned to vote on the contract prior to the meeting, but board member Steve Highlander said Smith’s high evaluation is a strong indication of the board’s support of the work Smith is doing.
“He had a good evaluation,” Highlander said. ” And I can’t say much more than that fact at this point, but it was his highest evaluation yet.”
The new contract would offer Smith nearly $199,000 annually, which is a slight increase from the $190,000 he was bumped up to in 2013.
Board member Joe Galloway said, “I am extremely pleased with the contract and hope [Smith] is happy with it, too.”
The contract’s extension would allow Smith another four years at the helm and support to continue with his vision of making Chattanooga the “smartest city in the South.”
Smith spent the past six months criss-crossing the county sharing his vision about what the district’s public schools could be and touting a property-tax increase that would generate an additional $34 million in revenue. He shared his vision with the community and the County Commission about how this additional funding would provide art and foreign language teachers in every elementary school, offer teachers a 5 percent raise and provide additional technological resources among a list of other things.
The commission voted down Smith’s proposal, but the board applauded his hard work, as demonstrated in their evaluations.
“[He has] a great vision and I hope we can get everyone on board eventually,” Galloway said.
Contact staff writer Kendi Anderson at kendi.anderson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592.