Former Hamilton County Schools superintendent Jesse Register will begin working as the director of Metro Schools January 15. Last night, the Metro school board finalized a three and a half year contract with Register, including a payout if the state fully takes over the system.
Register will take the reins of Metro Schools nearly one year, to the day, after Pedro Garcia resigned.
The board is paying Register more than it did Garcia. He’ll get $250,000 dollars plus benefits and a personal car.
Board chair David Fox negotiated the contract, which includes a one-year severance package if Register is replaced. Fox says that could happen since the state has increasing authority over the district as it fails to meet No Child Left Behind standards.
“There’s not very many people that are of accomplishment who would be willing to give up current opportunities to come to a district where there could be a leadership within eight or nine months. That necessitated our having a severance agreement. I believe 12 months is a fair one.”
Fox says he’s confident, however, Register won’t be replaced any time soon. He says Register has a close working relationship with the state Department of Education, which gave him a leg-up in the hiring process.
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