GALLATIN, Tenn. (WSMV) – Teachers will soon have more money in their paychecks and athletic facilities in Sumner County will be upgraded.

The Sumner County Commission passed the budget Monday night after a nearly four-hour meeting. Before the meeting, parents, teachers and neighbors gathered outside the building and urged the commission to “do the right thing.”

Previous reporting: Teacher pay raises and new stadiums at stake in Sumner County budget dispute

“Folks, these are not just bleachers, this is a community gathering place. This is about more than just athletics. If you think this is just about football, you are wrong,” said Greg Arias.

“It’s a disgrace when a district leader doesn’t respect our teachers or our support staff and doesn’t want to give them raises and help them get a living wage,” said Suzannie Holt.

The approved school budget focused on increasing teacher salaries and rehabilitating unsafe school sports facilities across the county. School administrators had already closed the school twice, which is why local residents said they showed up at rallies to support the budget.

“It’s just about doing the right thing,” said Eric Graves, a member of the Gallatin Quarterback Club.

“There are some fundamental problems here and this budget, as I understand it, has solved those problems,” Arias said.

Issues such as upgrading those broken and deteriorating bleachers that have been deemed unsafe at several schools in the county. The budget includes an addition of $5.4 million to an existing budget of $15.8 million for the repair and construction of two new school stadiums.

“We want to get these grandstand projects completed and underway and have adequate facilities that are ADA compliant and safe for everyone in this county, that’s all we want,” Arias said.

“Many of these people who work as assistants are paid less than the fast-foot employees, and that’s a disgrace,” Holt said.

The budget proposes an annual salary of $47,800 for teachers and a pay of $16 per hour for other support staff instead of $12.

However, some commissioners said they voted against those increases because the district continued to give them incorrect project estimates, little progress and demanded more money.

“I think it’s a small group and personal grievances, and a lot of it is directed at me because I was chairman of the county commission,” said Scott Langford, director of Sumner County Schools.

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