One Arizona school superintendent could earn about $475,000 this year in salary and other compensation, according to ABC15’s analysis of school administrator contracts and salary data from across the state.
Jeremy Calles became the superintendent of the Tolleson Union High School District nearly three years ago. Last year, he received a base salary of $334,800 plus bonuses and perks, which raised his total compensation to approximately $433,000. His current contract could push his total pay above $475,000 for the 2025-2026 school year.
TUHSD ranks 16th statewide in enrollment, but Calles ranks first in total compensation, based on ABC15’s review of superintendent contracts for 84 school districts in Arizona, including nearly every district in Maricopa, Pinal, and Pima counties.
The five-month investigation found that total compensation packages often included thousands of dollars in additional benefits beyond base salary. In 33 of the 84 contracts, the maximum additional compensation totaled more than $50,000.
"When I took over the job, I told the board, I can do more than what's being done," Calles told ABC15 investigator Melissa Blasius in an interview last week.
Calles defended his compensation, noting his district pays Arizona's highest teacher salaries.
"When you look at everything as a multiplier of where's your average salary? Where's your CEO or your superintendent's salary? Our range is not outside the norm," Calles said.
Calles said higher salaries in public education attract top teachers and reduce turnover. He said the pay structure is key to improving student performance, and it bucks some public perception.
"We constantly want everyone out of school to be willing to accept less money, almost do it like charity work," Calles said. “We need to get back to having the level of respect that we need for public education.”
Calles’ total compensation exceeds last year's salary for Phoenix's City Manager, Jeff Barton, who oversees the nation's fifth-largest city. Phoenix's open data website showed Barton earned $431,734.40 in 2024.
"I know what I bring to the table,” Calles said. “At the point that my community or my board feel that I have exceeded my worth, I'm sure they'll be the first to let me know."
Calculating Perks and Pay
In April, the ABC15 Investigators began asking school districts to provide the most recent contract for their superintendent. In some cases, the contract provided was for a retiring superintendent or dated back 2-3 years.
ABC15’s analysis involved calculating the maximum allowable bonuses, stipends, allowances, and other compensation listed in the contracts. The searchable database with this article includes both base salary and the combined compensation, which is listed in the “salary with extras” column.
We found at least 13 Arizona superintendents earning over $300,000 annually in combined base salary and extra compensation.
"I'm sure that the boards who make those contracts with superintendents look at what the market value is for those positions and responsibilities," said Paul Tighe, the executive director of Arizona School Administrators.
When asked if $300,000 would seem excessive to taxpayers, Tighe said, "I imagine people would, especially if they're in a situation where they're living paycheck to paycheck and trying to struggle to pay their bills and their salaries."
Not all superintendents receive the maximum allowable compensation each year. However, some superintendents may earn more than ABC15’s calculated amount due to unused vacation time payouts, retention bonuses, doctoral degree stipends, or other fringe benefits not enumerated in the contract.
While no two contracts were identical, our ABC15 investigation revealed common salary boosters across districts. Additional compensation included car allowances, technology/phone allowances, civic engagement funds, additional retirement contributions beyond state pensions, and housing allowances. At least 30 districts also provided lump-sum stipends, with some exceeding $20,000.
Steve Bebee, superintendent of the Buckeye Union High School District, said his $1,300-a-month car allowance was also given to the prior superintendent.
“That may be because we are so far out in the West Valley that I regularly drive 30 minutes to an hour to get to events that I need to attend,” Bebee said in an email to ABC15.
In the Gila Bend Unified School District, Superintendent Robert Varner’s contract offers a housing allowance of up to $1,200 per month.
“This arrangement is not an extra perk, but a practical, cost-effective solution to ensure consistent leadership for the district,” Varner said. “The housing allowance is a small piece of a competitive benefits package designed to overcome the staffing challenges faced by many rural school systems.”
Littleton Elementary District, Dysart Unified School District, and Paradise Valley Unified School District all included final pay totals for their superintendents, and ABC15's database reflects their actual compensation instead of contracted amounts.
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For many superintendents, the biggest potential salary addition was a performance bonus, which can be as high as 20% of base salary, per state law. Chris Thomas, director of legal strategy for education policy at the Goldwater Institute, questions whether superintendents should earn more if they meet their goals.
"I would argue that the whole thing should be performance pay," Thomas said. "You have a contract to do a certain job, and if you don't do that job, which is to improve student achievement, you shouldn't have a contract."
The Goldwater Institute, a conservative public-policy think tank in Phoenix, also released a research report this week on Arizona superintendent salaries.
Thomas explained that superintendent contracts are often negotiated in closed-door school board executive sessions, and he says the lack of transparency may be intentional.
"It's frankly embarrassing when you look at the amount of compensation that some people are making," said Thomas.
Tighe said school boards try to provide competitive compensation packages. He adds that stipends may exist to simplify district accounting rather than tracking individual expenses.
"They might say, well, we'd rather give a travel stipend than have you logged your miles and get reimbursed every month for your mileage and have to track all of that," Tighe said.
Everyone ABC15 interviewed for this story supported increased transparency in superintendent compensation, and all mentioned that a handful of Arizona school districts do post their superintendent contracts online.
While Calles doesn't post his contract online, he said he supports making contracts and total pay easier to understand.
"When I took over the position, I gave that option to the board. I'm like, you can throw this all in as base salary. It's fine by me," Calles said.
You can reach Melissa by email at melissa.blasius@abc15.com or call 602-803-2506. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @MelissaBlasius or Facebook.
