A searchable online database of earnings for 366,640 employees of New York State school districts outside New York City was posted today at SeeThroughNY.net, the transparency website sponsored by the Empire Center for Public Policy.
The newly updated database includes pay for teachers, administrators and others, as reported for the 12 month-period ending June 30, 2012 to the New York State Teachers Retirement System (NYSTRS). It also includes pay for other school employees, such as custodians, aides and bus drivers, for the 12 month-period ending March 31, 2012, as reported to the New York State Employees Retirement System (NYSLERS).
Long Island schools had the highest average pay by region at $73,949. The Mohawk Valley has the lowest average pay at $36,394. A chart of average pay by region is attached. The chart also shows the trend in average pay over the last four fiscal years. Seven regions average pay increased over the four-year period while only the Capital Region and Mohawk Valley have decreased average pay over that period, which includes the worst period of the recession.
For the third consecutive year, Scarsdale School District had the highest average educator pay at $115,659. Scarsdale was followed by Bronxville, Jericho and Byram Hills, all of which reported average educator salaries above $100,000. The averages in many cases are depressed by the inclusion on the list of numerous substitute teachers and part-timers whose reported salaries came to only a few thousand dollars per year. A list of the 50 highest paid districts is attached.
According to the data, the highest paid school employee was Dr. William Johnson, superintendent of the Rockville Centre Union Free School District, who was paid $567,248. According to recent news reports, that sum includes access to a lump sum “bonus.” A list of the 100 highest-paid school employees in districts outside New York City is attached. (New York City school salaries will be updated shortly.)
SeeThroughNY allows the public to examine government expenditures on the Internet. In addition to salary data for school districts, it includes payrolls for New York State and New York City government, counties, municipalities and public authorities throughout the state. Also posted are public employee pension data, state legislator office expenditures, pork barrel “member item” spending, and a benchmarking feature for comparing local government and school district spending.
You may also like
132 NYSLRS Retirees Receive Pensions Over $200K in FY2026
A total of 132 retirees from the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS) were eligible to collect $200,000 or more in pensions during the 2026 fiscal year, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
Among the 132 Read More
Empire Center Poll: Just 4 Percent Approve of New York’s Education System
ALBANY, N.Y. — New Yorkers gave the state’s education system a sweeping vote of no confidence: 47 percent said the state should improve student performance, 41 percent said it should improve performance while spending less, and only 4 Read More
Port Authority Payroll Passes $1.2B as 20 Employees Collect $400k+
Twenty Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) employees collected more than $400,000 each in total pay last year, while average pay agencywide rose three percent, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
The Por Read More
NYC Employee Pension Payments Rise To $6.2 billion
The pension plan covering most New York city government agencies, including the City’s subway system, had 62 members with pension payments of at least $200,000 last year, according to , the Empire Center’s transparency website.
According to the d Read More
Fourteen NYC Educators Receive Over Half a Million Dollars in Pensions
Fourteen retired New York City educators received more than $500,000 in pension benefits in 2025, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
The data was obtained from the New York City Teachers’ Retirement Read More
34 MTA Workers Made $200K+ In Overtime In 2025
Thirty-four employees of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) received more than $200,000 in overtime payments in 2025, as total annual pay surpassed half a million dollars for some, according to , the Empire Center’s governm Read More
Over Five Years Later, Arbeeny Family Support Still Critical to Promoting Government Transparency
Albany, NY — The Arbeeny family and the Empire Center are marking five years of partnership in remembrance of Norman Arbeeny, who passed away six years ago today after contracting COVID-19 in a Brooklyn nursing home.
To honor Nor Read More
Empire Center Breaks Down Albany’s Pork Barrel Spending
Albany legislators steered over $83 million in grants to 293 local projects between April and December 2025 , according to under a Freedom of Information Law request.
The governor and state legislators hand-picked the grantees for mor Read More