“Unbelievable”: State Schools Chief Calls Out Pay Gap Between Teachers and Superintendents
More reaction pouring in today. State 48 News holds exclusive interview with Arizona’s top education official, who calls the superintendent-teacher pay gap “unconscionable."
🚨 Breaking News: State 48 News just wrapped an exclusive one-on-one interview with Arizona's Superintendent of Public Instruction—on the record about our ongoing investigation into superintendent pay.
He didn’t hold back.
“I think superintendents are overpaid.”
He also acknowledged the stark pay disparity between Arizona’s classroom educators and top district executives. “Unbelievable. Unbelievable. Having a big gap between the teachers and superintendent—I think it's unconscionable.”
📺 Watch our exclusive interview now. Only at State 48 News.
Reaction to our Report:
Following the release of our latest investigation into superintendent compensation across Arizona public schools, Dr. Gabriel Trujillo, Superintendent of Tucson Unified School District, contacted State 48 News to clarify how contract transparency is handled in his district.
“As a point of clarification, the article mentions that superintendent contracts are never presented or discussed publicly. That is not the case in TUSD. My contracts are always posted as public attachments for the community to review,” Dr. Trujillo wrote.
He cited specific examples, including contracts publicly posted for the September 22, 2020 and November 15, 2022 governing board meetings. He added that while his original 2017 contract predates the district’s use of a web-based board platform, it was still publicly attached to the paper agenda at the time.
Dr. Trujillo also offered to provide further comment on the roles, responsibilities, and challenges superintendents face, saying:
“I am proud of the work I do and have no issue justifying my compensation or tying it to points of success for our district.”
He acknowledged the findings in our investigation, stating that—with the exception of the Tolleson Union High School District—superintendent compensation across the state remains relatively consistent.
Additionally, Dr. Trujillo addressed comments made by Rep. Matt Gress in our report, noting that during his tenure as a board member for Madison Elementary School District, Gress voted in favor of superintendent contracts that included benefits and performance bonuses, without those contracts being publicly posted.
Clarification:
State 48 News did not report that superintendent contracts are “never” presented or posted publicly. In our investigation, we discussed—alongside school board expert Pam Kirby—how many superintendent contracts in Arizona are discussed in executive session and often require a public records request (FOIA) to access full details.
We appreciate Superintendent Dr. Gabriel Trujillo of Tucson Unified School District for pointing out that TUSD contracts are posted publicly as board meeting attachments, and we will continue to highlight examples of transparency across the state.
Update: More Contacts Coming In
State 48 News has found superintendent compensation across the Arizona schools we surveyed remains largely consistent. The most recent contract obtained—Superintendent Mark Yslas of the Agua Fria Union High School District—falls within the common range of $230,000 to $250,000 seen in many districts.
As stipulated in his contract, Mr. Yslas is required to maintain a valid Superintendent Certificate issued by the Arizona Department of Education.
It’s difficult to determine Superintendent Mark Yslas’ total potential earnings, as performance-based pay is not detailed in his contract. The governing board sets its own performance plan. Yslas receives the same vacation, sick leave, holidays, health insurance, and other benefits as all 12-month certificated administrators in the district.
A district representative confirmed a revised contract was approved for July 1, 2025–June 30, 2028, but it has not yet been signed or executed. As such, the district will not release copies of proposed contracts still under negotiation.
THE MORE YOU KNOW.
State 48 News talks with State Superintendent Tom Horne about ESA vouchers and school choice. Be sure to set alerts.
Public transparency is always a good thing, but context is important. Superintendent salaries in the $200s are not out of line with comparable city or state positions that oversee thousands of employees. They are also a bargain compared to the earnings of some executives of private organizations that run taxpayer-funded schools.
It should be noted that, overall, Arizona has the lowest school administrative spending in the country and administrative spending includes Superintendent salaries.
Also, while the State of Arizona continues to provide among the lowest per pupil funding amounts for K-12 education of any state in the country, our state has teacher salaries that are much closer to the national median. This means that Arizona school leaders are doing a much better job than those in other states of maximizing teacher salaries relative to the funding provided.