Don’t Confuse Me with the Facts

In this February School Administrator article, New Jersey Association leader Richard Bozza debunks six myths about school administration and related costs. He does so by examining the data available in states and nationwide.

Myth 1: School administration is just another layer of government bureaucrats whose work brings nothing meaningful to student achievement.

Reality: Bozza points to McREL meta-analysis of research that finds a statistically significant positive relationship between district leadership and student achievement.

Myth 2: Superintendent salaries in our state are out of line with those in other states

Reality: Data reported in the Educational Research Service’s annual report “Salaries and Wages Paid Professional and Support Personnel in Public Schools” reveals that Michigan pays administrator salaries on the low end in a region that’s second lowest in the nation.

Myth 3: Superintendent salaries exceed those in comparable jobs outside education.

Reality: The study New Jersey commissioned found that universities and college presidents in New Jersey with comparable student populations to that of superintendents earn more than double what superintendents make. Hospital executives earn more than four times the salary of a superintendent. Corporate CEOs collect on average more than six times the average salary of a superintendent.

Myth 4: School administration costs are a huge chunk of school district budgets.

Reality: Despite popular perceptions about the percentage of the school dollar going to administration, nationally 10.8 percent of school districts’ current expend-itures are devoted to school administration, according to reports published by the National Center for Education Statistics. 

Myth 5: Too many school administrators have been added to the payroll over the years.

Reality: Between 1989-90 and 2005-06, student population in our state grew 30 percent, the number of teachers increased by 47 percent. School administrators and supervisors increased by only 2.6 percent during the same period.

Myth 6: School administration costs more in smaller school districts than in larger ones.

Reality: The data for New Jersey, which has nearly 600 school districts, demonstrate the average cost per pupil in K-6, K-8 and K-12 school systems is remarkably similar. (Editor's note: Michigan data echoes that of New Jersey).

Read the full article...