Athens salary reductions
Three of top four school administrators working less
Athens School District administrators vowed to take a reduction in their salaries during the 2023-24 school year, which began on July 1, as part of $900,000 in budget cuts the school district needed to make.
The Record-Review on June 20 sent a public records request to Athens School District to obtain the top four school administrator salaries from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, so it could see the amount of salary reduction the administrators took to help fix the school district’s budget woes.
In reviewing the newspaper’s request under the applicable legal standards, Athens School District informed this newspaper on June 22 it determined the public interest in disclosure of the school administrator salaries outweighed the harm of disclosing the requested records.
Andrea Sheridan, Athens schools superintendent, on July 6 e-mailed The Record-Review copies of the salary contracts it requested.
Sheridan’s administrator contract states it is for two years beginning on July 1, 2022, and ending on June 30, 2024 (the number of working days in this contract is 260). Terms of her contract agreement state the Athens Board of Education needed to notify Sheridan prior to February 1 of this year if it chose not to extend the contract for a succeeding two-year period from July 1 of this year through June 30, 2025. Terms of Sheridan’s contract state that if the board of education did not notify her prior to February 1 that it chose not to extend her contract, that her contract would continue for a succeeding two-year period from July 1 of this year through June 30, 2025.
The Record-Review asked Sheridan if her contract will automatically renew after the current 2023-24 school year, and she responded, “My contract shall continue for a succeeding two-year period (July 1, 2023-June 30, 2025).”
Sheridan’s salary was $125,640 in this past 2022-23 school year. She voluntarily made an agreement with the school board to work less days and thus reduce her salary by $1,449 in the current 2023-24 school year. Sheridan’s salary will be $124,191 in the 2023-24 school year.
“I communicated with the board of education that as part of the budget reduction process, I would lead by example and voluntarily reduce my contract days for the 2023-24 school year, therefore I will be receiving less pay in the 2023-24 school year,” Sheridan told this newspaper.
Terms of Sheridan’s contract state that she could receive future salary increases that may be granted upon her effective progress toward the accomplishment of the school district’s annual goals and objectives, and general performance, approved by the school board prior to the start of each contract year.
The Record-Review asked Sheridan if she is receiving an increase in salary for helping the school district achieve its goals and the following was her response: “As part of the reduction process, the board of education approved a wage freeze for the 2023-24 school year. Again, I chose to lead by example, and did not request any additional compensation for the 2023-24 school year.”
Juli Gauerke-Peter, Athens middle/ high school principal, has a two-year administrator contract from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2024. She earned a salary of $96,269 for working 260 days in the 2022-23 school year. Gauerke-Peter volunteered to work less days and thus reduce her salary by $5,555 in the current 2023-24 school year. Her salary will be $90,714 this school year.
Joy Redmann, Athens Elementary School principal, has a two-year administrator contract from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2024. She earned a salary of $96,114 for working 220 days in the 2022-23 school year. Redmann volunteered to work less days and thus reduce her salary by $4,370 in the current 2023-24 school year. Her salary is $91,744 this school year.
Athens School District is not holding summer school this year as part of the $900,000 in budget cuts, which also allows school district administrators to work less days this summer which equates to their reduction in salaries in the current 2023-24 school year. Robin Hanson, Maple Grove Charter School principal/special education teacher, is the exception.
Hanson is a full-time Athens School District administrator who works 50 percent of the time as principal of Maple Grove Charter School in the town of Hamburg and the other 50 percent of the time as a special education teacher at Maple Grove Charter School. Her administrator contract is from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2024. She works 220 days from July to June each year.
She earns $45,899 working as principal of Maple Grove Charter School each year and she earns $40,717 working as a special education teacher at Maple Grove Charter School each year. Hanson’s total yearly salary is $86,616.
The Record-Review asked Sheridan why Hanson did not reduce the number of days she works and thus take a reduction in her salary for the current 2023-24 school year, and the following was Sheridan’s response: “Robin Hanson is a .5 FTE special education teacher and a .5 FTE campus administrator. The Charter School Implementation Grant includes multiple professional learning days throughout the entire year. Robin co-facilitates these adult learning days with her staff and she continues to work throughout the summer months.”
