The Pittsburgh school board voted 7-2 last night to give Superintendent Mark Roosevelt another $15,000 raise, boosting his annual pay to $210,000, and thanked him for his "tireless efforts" to improve academics.

School board members Mark Brentley Sr. and Randall Taylor voted against the raise. Mr. Roosevelt's contract called for the raise to take effect tomorrow.

"I'm proud to support this," school board member Theresa Colaizzi said.

Mr. Brentley and Mr. Taylor repeated criticisms they often have made, saying Mr. Roosevelt's improvement initiatives have not yet been proven successful. Mr. Brentley also said that Mr. Roosevelt is not scrutinized enough.

"At some point, somewhere, somebody has to begin critically analyzing this administration," he said.

Mr. Roosevelt is one of the highest paid school executives in the state, according to Pennsylvania School Boards Association data.

The average superintendent's salary statewide was about $118,000, according to 2006-07 data made available 11 months ago, and at the time only 12 percent made $150,000 or more. The average salary for an urban superintendent was about $146,000. The highest reported statewide at the time was $250,660 for the superintendent of an unspecified district.

Since then, the School District of Philadelphia hired Arlene Ackerman as chief executive officer at a base salary of $325,000, news organizations reported, noting she also could earn performance and retention bonuses worth tens of thousands of dollars more.

Mr. Roosevelt's contract does not provide for bonuses. He joined the district three years ago at a salary of $165,000 and has received $15,000 raises each year.

In July, Mr. Roosevelt provided board members with an overview of his work in 2007-08. A majority of board members agreed that he met his goals, which included a new evaluation system for principals and work to improve high schools.

The board also voted to sell the former Lemington Elementary building to Destiny International Ministries, which now has a location in Homewood, for $125,000.

The 12th Ward Democratic Committee had called for a delay in the sale, saying it wanted additional information about Pastor Michael H. Smith's plans.