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Scott Smith to continue as Coast Union School District superintendent

March 18, 2022

Scott Smith

By KAREN VELIE

After announcing plans to retire from his Cayucos Elementary School superintendent position, Scott Smith procured a two-year contract with Coast Unified School District in Cambria.

During the past four years, Smith has worn multiple hats. Prior to the 2019-2020 school year, Smith served as the superintendent of only the Cayucos Elementary School District, with a salary of $150,255.

In 2019-2020, Smith took on the dual role of being superintendent of both Cayucos Elementary and Coast Unified, with a salary of $185,000. Smith’s pay increased to $194,250 by the start of the 2020-2021 school year and to $200,077 at the beginning of the current academic year.

In January, the school districts’ boards voted to give Smith a 10% raise boosting his salary to $220,085 a year, plus benefits. Smith’s salary is currently split evenly between the two districts, which after agreeing to the raise, each pay him $110,043 annually to serve as their superintendent.

At that time, several Cayucos community members accused Smith of intimidating and harassing people who wore masks at school and at prior board meetings. Public commenters also spoke against Smith’s pay raise and the shared services agreement between the two school districts.

Less than a month later, Smith announced plans to retire from Cayucos Elementary in 120 days, though he was silent at the time regarding his plans for Coast Unified.

With his dual district contract set to expire on June 30, the Coast Unified board voted last week to contract with Smith for two years at $190,620 annually, plus benefits.


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Let me get this straight. Mr. Smith is working for Cayucos Elementary School District full time with a salary of essentially $150k. In 2019, his hours dropped to half time and his pay drop to $93k (half of $185k instead of half of $150k). This is a 23% pay raise in 2019. Then he received pay raises of 5%, 3%, and 10% in 2020, 2021, and 2022 respectively. Now CESD is paying 75% of what they did prior to 2019 for 50% of the work they received prior to 2019. That is a whooping 50% pay increase in less than 4 years.


Either they never needed a full-time superintendent, and they were wasting $ on same prior to 2019, or they were understaffed starting in 2019 because the only had a half-time superintendent.


And you, MrY and k’nut, think this sort of corruption is ok because now CESD will have to pay another $80k for a full-time superintendent which may not be needed. Just hire a half-time superintendent, and pay half of the original $150k with REASONABLE (not 50%) raises for 2019 through 2022.


3

Great work on bringing this injustice to light CCN. You help expose an administrator who didn’t walk the razor’s edge on Covid protocol perfectly. You exposed his long ago decided shared service contact to the light of day! Great reporting.


Unfortunately Coast District now pays $80k more for the same services, and Cayucos is in search, yet again, for adequate administration. Cayucos will pay more too as a result.

Thanks for helping to piss away another $160K in tax money for unneeded admin costs. That money could have helped pay for; teachers, staff, equipment.


3

Hopefully the district voters remember this the time the district asks for a new school bond. Of course the parents now know the answer whenever there isnt enough money for their children’s education, books, school maintenance, school supplies, and such.


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