Burrell School District - Budget

Budget

In 2011, the average teacher salary in Burrell School District was $66,230.06 a year, while the cost of the benefits teachers receive was $16,936.86 per employee, for a total annual average teacher compensation of $72,166.92. According to a study conducted at the American Enterprise Institute, in 2011, public school teachers' total compensation is roughly 50 percent higher than they would likely receive in the private sector. The study found that the most generous benefits that teachers receive are not accounted for in many studies of compensation including: pension, retiree health benefits and job security.

In 2009, the district reported employing 212 teachers and administrators with a median salary of $55,113 and a top salary of $103,000. Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, professional development reimbursement, paid personal days, 10 paid sick days, as well as other benefits. In 2010, Burrell School Board approved a new 5 year contract with the district's teachers union. grant average annual raises of about 4.35 percent. The starting teacher salary will increase from $37,865 to $41,756 by the end of the 2015-16 year. The salary of a teacher with a master's degree who is at the maximum step, at $73,000 in 2010, increases by 2 percent per year. Teachers will contribute $135 per month by the end of the contract. The new contract was approved in a 7-2 vote with board members Linda Woiewodski and Tom Klebine dissenting.

In 2007, the district employed 122 teachers. The average teacher salary in the district was $46,361 for 180 days worked. As of 2007, Pennsylvania ranked in the top 10 states in average teacher salaries. When adjusted for cost of living Pennsylvania ranked fourth in the nation for teacher compensation.

Burrell School District administrative costs per pupil in 2008 was $831.78 per pupil. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398 per pupil. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association keeps statistics on salaries of public school district employees in Pennsylvania. According to the association's report, the average salary for a superintendent, for the 2007-08 school year, was $122,165. Superintendents and administrators receive a benefit package commensurate with that offered to the district's teachers' union. The school board promoted Assistant Superintendent Sharon Wagner to Superintendent in June 2009.

Reserves In 2008, Burrell School District reported $175,000 in an unreserved-designated fund balance. The unreserved-undesignated fund balance was reported as $3,227,731. In 2010 the unreserved-designated fund balance had increased to $1,210,000.00. The unreserved-undesignated fund balance was $3,303,065.

In 2008, the Burrell School District Administration reported that per pupil spending was $10,906 which ranked 401st among Pennsylvania's 501 school districts. In 2010, the per pupil spending had increased to $12,114.94

In January 2010, the Pennsylvania Auditor General conducted a performance audit of the district. The findings were reported to the school board and administration.

In 2012, the District reported a decline in its overall assessment to $158,320,000 which was a decrease of $557,000, (0.04%) from last the 2011 tax base.

The district is funded by a combination of: a local earned income tax, a property tax, a real estate transfer tax 0.5%, coupled with substantial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pension income and Social Security income are exempted from state personal income tax and local earned income tax, regardless the of personal wealth.