Budget
In 2007, the district employed 147 teachers. The average teacher salary in the district was $47,355 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. Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension, health insurance, professional development reimbursement, personal days, 10 paid sick days which accumulate, and many other benefits.
Steel Valley administrative costs in 2008 were $1,571.25 per pupil. The district has the 4th highest administrative spending of 500 school districts. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398, in 2008. The Pennsylvania School Boards Association keeps statistics on salaries of public school district employees in Pennsylvania. According to the association, 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.
In 2008, the administration reported that the district per pupil spending was $12,657. This ranked 205th among Pennsylvania's 500 school districts.
In March 2011, the Pennsylvania Auditor General conducted a performance audit of the district. Multiple serious findings and irregularities were reported to the administration and the school board.
For the 2011-12 school year, the Steel Valley School Board approved a $24,467,184 budget which required furloughing 36.5 employees in response to declining enrollment and program elimination. At the high school the business education program was terminated, cuttying 7 teaching positions. Seventh grade football was also cut.
The district is funded by a combination of: a local income tax, a property tax, a real estate transfer tax, coupled with substantial funding from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the federal government. Grants can provide an opportunity to supplement school funding without raising local taxes. 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 income level.
Read more about this topic: Steel Valley School District
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