Madison School Superintendent Salary Above Average In State

Besides their hefty six-figure salaries, Connecticut school superintendents also command enviable perks and bonuses, according to a report in the New Haven Register.

Madison School Superintendent Thomas Scarice will make $203,000.00 for 2012-2013. With a total of 3,709 students in the district, that is a cost per student of $54.73. He is allowed $7,000 for mileage, gets 25 vacation days, 18 sick days and five personal days, according to the report.

Here are some other salaries for comparision:

• In the nearby Guilford school district, Superintendent Paul Freeman will be paid $205,369.00 for 2012-2013. With a total of 3,765 students, that is a cost per student of $54.55. Freeman gets $2,400 for mileage, 25 vacation days and 20 sick days.
• In Clinton, Superintendent: John Cross will be paid $160,858.00 for 2012-2013. With 2,084 students in the district, that is a cost per student of $77.19. Cross will get $4,800 for mileage, 30 vacation days, 20 sick days, and four personal days.
• Killingworth is in the Region 17 district, where Superintendent Howard Thiery III will make $162,500.00 for 2012-2013. With 2,542 that is a cost per student of $63.93. Thiery is allowed $3,600 for mileage, 25 vacation days, 20 sick days and four personal days. 
• Durham is in the Region 13 district, where Superintendent Susan Viccaro will make $160,390.00 for 2012-2013. With 2,126 students, that is a cost per student of $75.44. Viccaro is allowed $4,500 for mileage. She is allowed 25 vacation days, 15 sick days, and five personal days.
• Westport's Elliot Landon takes home the most pay, at $285,077 ($49.93 per student), followed by Wilton Superintendent Gary Richards at $267,587 ($61.12 per student) and Fairfield Superintendent David Title at $264,500 ($26.57 per student).
• In Weston, where Scarice used to work, Superintendent Colleen Palmer will make $236,060.00 ($91.32 per student).

According to the analysis by the New Haven Register, the Register-Citizen of Torrington and the Middletown Press, the average pay for a superintendent in Connecticut is about $166,000 a year, with 27 making more than $200,000 per year.

Along with its sister news organizations, including the Middletown Press and the Litchfield County Times, the Register found that the average pay for school superintendents in Connecticut is $166,000 and that they can significantly boost that pay with other negotiated perks and benefits, including compensation for unused sick time, meal allowances, travel pay and bonuses.

The Register included in its story a database of its review of the pay of 148 superintendents, along with links to their contracts.