Mansfield school board approves raises for administrators, subs

MANSFIELD — Mansfield City Schools principals and administrators will receive a 4-percent bump in base pay, effective with the 2026-2027 school year.

The school board voted Tuesday to approve updated salary schedules for administrators.

It will be the first base pay raise for administrators since 2022, district officials said.

“We are watching every expenditure. Any place that we can save the district money, we’re trying to,” said Treasurer Tammy Hamilla. “That being said, we still need to retain good employees and so we have to balance that with the salaries and benefits we pay them.”

Mansfield City Schools has two administrative salary schedules. One is for certificated administrators (like principals, academic department heads). The other is for classified administrators (executive assistants, clerks, directors of facilities, transportation and food service). 

Salary schedules outline base pay and increases for staff members, which vary based on job title and years of experience.

Both schedules outline daily rates, which range from $249 to $458 for certificated administrators and $139 to $320 for classified administrators effective this fall.

The two salary schedules do not include salaries for the superintendent and treasurer.

Hamilla said the 4 percent salary increase is in line with the pay raises the board approved for teachers in November.

Mansfield City Schools approved a three-year contract with the Mansfield School Employees Association that included a 4 percent base pay raise for teachers in 2026-2027 and a cumulative pay raise of 11 percent over the next three school years.

Elswick said the board is unlikely to approve a similar 11-percent raise over three years for administrators.

“I don’t anticipate that,” he said. “Administrators do make more money and a lot of them have pick up on the pick up (for retirement contributions).”

The board also voted to increase pay for substitutes. The following pay rates will take effect July 1:

• $15 an hour for substitute custodians, secretaries, food service workers, paraprofessionals and maintenance workers
• $18 an hour for substitute summer maintenance workers

The following pay rates took effect March 1:

• $23.05 for substitute bus drivers
• $17.80 for substitute bus aides

How do Mansfield City School’s administrative costs compare to similar Ohio school districts?

Mansfield City Schools had 31.27 full-time administrators during the 2024-2025 school year, according to financial data from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.

During the 2024-2025 school year, Mansfield City’s average administrator salary was lower — more than $5,000 lower — than similar school districts across the state, according to ODEW’s FY2025 District Profile Reports.

Yet Mansfield City Schools spent about $1,000 more per student on administrative expenses than similar districts around the state during the 2024-2025 school year.

The same dataset shows that Mansfield City Schools had a lower pupil-to-administrator ratio, with almost 88 students per administrator, compared to a similar district average of 93.5 students to administrator.

However, this data (the most recent available) was collected before the district made cuts to both its teaching and administrative staff in the spring of 2025.

Last spring, the district eliminated eight administrative assistant jobs at the district’s central office, plus the district’s H.R. director, a treasurer’s department employee, a central office registration staff member and a floating principal, per previous Richland Source reporting.

Data from the 2024-2025 school year also predates the district’s deal with a different health insurance provider, which officials predicted would reduce insurance costs district-wide by about $4 million.