Cary Teachers Among Highest Paid in State

Cary School District 26 teachers’ are among the highest paid in McHenry County, according to the Illinois School Board of Education statistics.

At the April 11 finance committee meeting, board members said they will be asking the teachers union for $2.5 million in wage and benefits concessions.

The cuts would contribute to an effort by the school board to balance its budget, which requires at least 2.1 million from its 2012 budget and another $5.5 million by 2015.

 However, if concessions aren’t made by May 1, the school board may close another school, which would cut about $1.2 million from the budget.

Board President Chris Spoerl presented an employee compensation overview at the meeting showing district administrators' and teachers' average salaries.

The presentation included graphs and tables showing Cary teachers as among the highest paid in the state at about $69,000 per year. The presentation also showed district administrators are paid just below the state average at $98,000 per year. 

"It is the hardest kind of conversation because when you are dealing with professionals—and we are hard-working professionals, people who internalize their job—and after you do that for a number of years especially, it becomes who you are," Spoerl said. "And to a certain degree, the amount of compensation you get kind of validates that, who you are, what you're doing, the success with what you're doing."

According to the employee compensation overview, teachers' salaries are 33 percent above state average, within the state's 93 percentile and 25 percent higher than McHenry County comparables.

But, some critics argue that the numbers aren't black and white. The majority of district 26 teachers have a masters' degree and teachers have about 15 years of experience on average.

During public comment, one audience member asked, if district 26 is being compared on the compensation level to other school districts, where is the education level of those school districts? 

Spoerl said, "There's no perfect measure of comparison."

Has the board considered the fact the numbers presented are compared to school districts across the state?

Spoerl said, "Oh yea." 

With the district still facing tough decisions, Spoerl said, "We as board members don't want to see anybody go anywhere and that's apart of the problem, I mean, the numbers aren't just adding up."

The next regular board meeting will be held 7 p.m. April 25, at Prairie Hill School, 233 Oriole Trail.

Employee Compensation By the numbers

        Cary's Teacher's Salaries' over 33 percent higher than State Average

Comparable McHenry Districts

                  Cary's Teacher Salaries Highest in McHenry County

                   Cary's Administrative Salaries (2% below State Average) 

Administration as % Revenue