Superintendent gets big payday; Hamilton County School board wants pay boost for teachers, too

Hamilton County Schools Superintendent Rick Smith laughs during a board meeting which voted 5-3 in favor of giving him a raise of about $25,000 Thursday afternoon at the Hamilton County Board of Education.

Hamilton County Superintendent Rick Smith earned a $25,000 raise on Thursday, a move that prompted continual comparison between the superintendent’s pay and that of teachers.

Board members voted 5-3 on a four-year contract worth $190,000 annually — more than five times the county’s starting teacher salary. Greg Martin, Rhonda Thurman and Jeffrey Wilson cast the dissenting votes, though all maintained their support for the superintendent. Some board members were weary of giving Smith such a pay boost when it’s unclear whether they’ll be able to offer a substantial raise for teachers.

And in this economy, a raise of $25,000 is a tough sell for taxpayers and teachers, said board member Greg Martin, who described the amount as a “lottery winner” size.

“For some people in our community $25,000 is what they make a year,” he said.