Board approves $11,500 payout for superintendent after debate over performance metric changes

The Jackson Madison County School System board voted to pay Superintendent Dr. King a supplemental bonus of $11,500 for the 2023–24 school year and later adopted a revised performance metric for 2024–25 that will be used to judge future bonus eligibility.

The payout debate centered on whether the metric and its timing had been properly approved before the contractual deadline and whether changes made after the contract date constituted a contract violation. Administrative staff explained that key state data needed for the metric do not arrive until late in the calendar year; that timing contributed to disagreement over whether the metric had been applied and paid on time. The motion to pay $11,500 passed on a roll-call vote with all voting members recorded as yes.

Board discussion referred to two possible payout amounts depending on interpretation of the metric (the options cited were $13,000 or $11,500); the board chose the lower $11,500 figure. During the conversation, some members defended Dr. King’s leadership and cited district gains under his tenure — including new programs, higher teacher salaries and grant funding — while others insisted on strict adherence to previously approved matrix values. One board member said a proposed metric change should be considered by the full board and committees rather than unilaterally altered.

Separately, the board adopted the 2024–25 superintendent performance matrix that included several changes: introducing ranges to address disputes over narrowly missing percentage thresholds; clarifying that ACT improvement is measured by percent improvement rather than raw score; and excluding retirees from the employee-retention calculation. Administration said Dr. King proposed some of the content changes and that attorney/staff edits added ranges and clarifications. The board approved that metric in a separate roll-call vote.

Meeting discussion supplied additional numeric context: the board had previously approved an earlier bonus payment amount (recorded in the meeting as $20,500 earlier in the year); with the newly approved $11,500, meeting discussion stated the total bonus payout for the year would be $32,000. Board members emphasized they would revisit timing and the matrix structure for future contracts to avoid similar disputes.

The board did not adopt changes to Dr. King’s contract in the meeting; discussion focused on interpreting the existing matrix and approving payouts and the 2024–25 metric that will be used going forward.