Richmond School Board extends Superintendent Jason Kamras’ contract for four years

The Richmond School Board voted 8-1 on Tuesday night to extend the contract of Superintendent Jason Kamras for an additional four years, through 2029 and the next round of school board elections.

Kamras has served in the position since 2018, bringing stability to a position that rotated often in the years prior to his hiring.

The renewal of his contract four years ago became a contentious matter, with a new School Board divided over whether he should remain in the role. This time around, the matter was handled quickly at the beginning of the board’s regularly scheduled monthly meeting.

Last year’s School Board elections foreshadowed the result, with many of the winning candidates voicing their support for Kamras ahead of the election.

The contract will pay Kamras $275,000 annually, with three performance incentives tied to goals laid out in Dreams4RPS, the division’s strategic plan. Kamras can earn $5,000 for meeting each goal annually, with a bonus of $10,000 if all three goals are met.

(Read Jason Kamras’ new contract here)

The salary is a bump from the $250,000 annual salary he has been paid since his arrival.

“I just wanted to express my profound gratitude to the School Board for your vote of support and for entrusting me with this awesome responsibility, and really this great privilege of serving our 22,000 brilliant, creative, dynamic, resilient, empathetic, inspiring students,” Kamras said after the vote. “They keep me up at night, and they give me enormous joy. And that's why this has been and will continue to be the greatest professional honor of my life.”

The lone dissenting vote was cast by Shonda Harris-Muhammed (6th District), who voted to retain Kamras four years ago. She said at the time she believed she owed him an opportunity to prove himself.

“In this term, over the past four years, as a School Board representative and a community leader, as a taxpayer and a mother of a former public school student, I do not see, and have not seen, major progress that I feel for all students that should have occurred,” she said.

The school board entered a closed session to discuss personnel matters on Monday night.

After the vote, Board Chair Shavonda Fernandez (9th District) offered her congratulations to the superintendent.

“We certainly have a road ahead of us, but we voted our conscience, and we do believe that these next four years will be crucial to the success of our students in RPS,” she said. “Based upon the outcomes that have been presented before us up until now, we will continue to work in collaboration to ensure that our students get the education that they so desperately deserve. So thank you for your commitment. We will hold you to that, and we look forward to the next four years.”

Fernandez told The Richmonder that there was an amendment previously made for the board to read the resolution and include Kamras' contract, but contract negotiations had been discussed for several months now.

"This has been a very lengthy process," she said.

When asked about whether public comment about the superintendent's contract was necessary, she said that the board doesn't typically have public comment surrounding any contract, but that public comment is open for anyone who wants to raise any concerns or provide feedback.

Kamras has touted a rise in standardized test scores and school accreditation, as well as improvements in absenteeism, as proof that RPS is moving in the right direction. He noted that the division has weathered a pandemic “and now a national assault on our very ideals” during his time in charge.

“We are on the rise,” he said. “Of course, we have a long way to go, but I know that we will ensure that every one of our students is prepared to lead a choice-filled life, so that they can pursue their dreams, whatever they may be. 

“And I know we will do that because of the partnership that all of you have extended to me, and I'm just so grateful and humbled for the opportunity to continue to work with all of you together. 

This has been a breaking news update. This story was updated to include remarks from Board Chair Shavonda Fernandez.