Memphis City Schools Beat Blog

With a signature--and after two hours of chatter about other topics--Dr. Kriner Cash became superintendent of Memphis City Schools Monday night.

Memphis has a way of welcoming people by throwing them in the fire, and Cash's case is no different. His first task is to help the district battle through losing $66.2 million for the fiscal year that starts today.

But the former Martha's Vineyard school leader told reporters Monday night he was up for the task.

Now on to the part many of you have been bugging me about for weeks (and I, in turn, have bugged the MCS lawyers about for weeks).

How much money is he getting?

Assuming his $258,000 base salary went unchanged, Cash would make $ 1,032,000 over the next four years.

But there's more, including a minimum 2.5 percent salary increase every July 1.

He also gets:

• $1,500 per month for the next 6 months in housing allowance
• $10,000 in moving expenses
• $6,000 a year in auto allowance (in addition to use of a district-owned car)
• $10,000 annually in tax sheltered annuities--Cash wouldn't be eligible for Tennessee's state retiree plan unless he serves a fifth year as superintendent.
• a $500,000 life insurance policy

He must give the board 60 days notice if he decides to leave the district, same as in former Superintendent Carol Johnson's contract. If for some unforseen reason he decides to leave by January, he must repay 50 percent of all relocation and housing expenses paid by the district.

But that seems like a far off possibility at the moment. Cash will spend the balance of this short holiday week meeting with district staffers and asking them a list of 60 questions about the district. The answers he does--or does not--get to those questions will help him forumulate a plan for reorganizing the district's much-maligned central office administration.

Next week, Cash will be focused on external relations, meeting with several media representatives, including The Commercial Appeal's editorial board.

The Memphis Board of Education will host a public welcome reception for him Monday at the Teaching and Learning Center, 2485 Union, from 4 to 5 p.m.