Chris Ragsdale

Chris Ragsdale is the Superintendent of Cobb County School District in Cobb County, Georgia in the US. He's the longest serving superintendent in the metro area. He was appointed as interim Superintendent in May 2014 and unanimously approved by the board for a contract that ended on February 11, 2018. Ragsdale's contract was extended until 2019 unanimously by the board in 2016. He received another unanimous extension in 2019 that made his contract expire in 2022. In March 2020, the board voted to extend his contract for another year, until February 2023 with a salary of $350,000 per year with an additional $1200 monthly car allowance. This contract also came with unique changes such as requiring the board makes contributions to his retirement, Social Security, Medicare and a tax-sheltered annuity plan, and provides health insurance for him and his family. This contract also created a "golden parachute", typically found in those of CEOs of for-profit companies, which allows him to leave with full pay if a special panel determines a board member "harasses or embarrasses" him.
In 2022, Ragsdale's contract was extended through February 2025, along the same party lines. The next year, Ragsdale's contract was extended through February 2026, and then in 2024 his contract was again extended by a 4-3 vote along the same party lines through February 10, 2027. This board vote was preceded and followed by concerned citizens vocalizing concerns with his leadership and demanding answers about his handling of school safety. The citizens wore shirts that said "No Confidence in Ragsdale." Ragsdale commented, "I find it disturbing, but not surprising, that the same people and political groups who spoke against increased security measures in our schools . . . are now the very same people screaming the loudest about not having enough resource officers."
Previous positions
Ragsdale's prior experience is in district operations and information technology. He joined the Cobb County School District in 2006 as the Chief Technology Officer. In 2011, he was promoted to Deputy Superintendent of Operations and placed in charge of projects pertaining to buildings, technology, and capital projects.<ref name=":1" />
Prior to his time with Cobb County School District, Chris Ragsdale was employed by his residence county's school district, Paulding County School District. He began his career with their technology department.<ref name=":0" />
Education
Ragsdale has a Bachelor of Information Systems and a Masters of Educational Leadership from Kennesaw State University.<ref name=":0" />

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