North Allegheny School District - Budget

Budget

In 2011, the average teacher salary in North Allegheny School District was $71,430 a year, while the cost of the benefits teachers receive was $20,075 per employee, for a total annual average teacher compensation of $91,506.

In 2009, North Allegheny School District reported employing 807 teachers and administrators with a median salary of $71,547 and a top salary of $184,875. The teacher’s work day is seven hours forty five minutes, for 195 days (184 teaching days) in the contract year. Additionally, the teachers receive a defined benefit pension, health insurance (employee pays up to $125 per month), dental insurance, vision insurance, life insurance, disability insurance, professional development reimbursement, 3 paid personal days, 10 paid sick days, and other benefits. Teachers who contract a communicable childhood disease (even when employee is unvaccinated) will receive full pay and benefits with no deduction of sick days while out sick. Teachers are paid $35 per hour for required work out side of regular work day. In 2011, the average teacher salary in North Allegheny School District was $71,430.68 a year, while the cost of the benefits teachers receive was $20,076.42 per employee, for a total annual average teacher compensation of $91,506.11. 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 2007, the average teacher salary in the district was $71,181 for 180 days worked. The district ranked first in Allegheny County for average teacher salary in 2007. The average teacher salary in the commonwealth was $54,977.

North Allegheny School District's administrative costs, in 2008, were $910 per pupil which ranked 96th out of Pennsylvania's 501 public school districts. The lowest administrative cost per pupil in Pennsylvania was $398 per pupil. In June 2012, the school board eliminated the position of coordinator of academic technology.

In 2008, the district administration reported that per pupil spending was $15,710 which ranked 47th among Pennsylvania's 501 school districts. In 2010 the per pupil spending was $14,455.09. Among the states, Pennsylvania’s total per pupil revenue (including all sources) ranked 11th at $15,023 per student, in 2008-09. In 2007, the Pennsylvania per pupil total expenditures was $12,759. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that Pennsylvania spent $8,191 per pupil in school year year 2000-01.

Reserves In 2008, the district reported an unreserved designated fund balance of $5,922,836.00 and an unreserved-undesignated fund balance of $10,985,345.00 In 2010, North Allegheny Administration reported an increase to $$7,283,157.00 in the unreserved-undesignated fund balance and $6,552,164 in its unreserved designated fund for a total of over $13.8 million in reserves. Pennsylvania school district reserve funds are divided into two categories – designated and undesignated. The undesignated funds are not committed to any planned project. Designated funds and any other funds, such as capital reserves, are allocated to specific projects. School districts are required by state law to keep 5 percent of their annual spending in the undesignated reserve funds to preserve bond ratings. According to the Pennsylvania Department of Education, from 2003 to 2010, as a whole, Pennsylvania school districts amassed nearly $3 billion in reserved funds.

In January 2010, the Pennsylvania Auditor General conducted a performance audit of the North Allegheny School District. The findings were reported to the School Board and the District’s administration.

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. Interest earnings on reserved accounts also provide nontax income to the district. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, pension income and Social Security income are exempted from state personal income tax and local earned income tax, regardless of the level of the individual’s personal wealth.