Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Although the employment contract for Superintendent of Schools Thomas Smith was not due to expire until June 30, 2018, the Hopewell Valley Regional School District’s Board of Education has rescinded that contract and replaced it with a new one.
The new contract runs from July 1, 2017 to June 30, 2022. It will automatically renew for another five-year term, unless the school board revises the length of the term or Smith is notified by the board that the contract will not be renewed.
The school board renewed the contract at its Aug. 21 meeting.
“We really like Dr. Smith and we want to keep him,” said school board president Lisa Wolff. That’s why the school board renegotiated the superintendent’s contract and offered him a raise, she said.
Smith has served as the superintendent of schools for the Hopewell Valley Regional School District since 2009. The school district currently enrolls more than 3,500 students in grades K-12.
Smith will earn $200,415 for 29017-18, under the new contract. This includes a 2-percent increase in his base salary, plus an additional $5,000 because the school district includes a high school. Smith’s salary may exceed that amount, if he meets mutually-agreed upon merit goals.
Superintendents may earn an additional $5,000 if the school district includes a high school. Some school districts stop at grade 8, and do not include a high school. Students are sent to a high school outside of their home district.
Under the old contract, Smith’s salary was capped at $167,500 by state law. But because he met merit goals as permitted by state law, he was paid an additional $25,108 for the 2016-17 school year. This brought his total compensation to $192,608.
However, the $167,500 has been scrapped and replaced with a $191,584 cap for superintendents who lead school districts that enroll more than 3,000 students. Superintendents whose school district includes a high school receive an additional $5,000 in pay.
