By Illinois Radio Network/Cole Lauterbach
SPRINGFIELD – A school board has put the state’s highest-paid school superintendent on leave just weeks before he planned to retire after public scrutiny of a planned $762,000 end-of-career payout.
With about 1,200 students, Calumet School District 155 is a relatively small district. Two out of three students in Calumet School District 155 come from low-income families. Superintendent Troy Paraday is set to retire at the end of the month. At more than $400,000 a year, he’s already the highest-paid superintendent in the state. He’s 56 years old.
Paraday’s paycheck is up from $384,138 last year. He’s also cashing out more than 500 sick and vacation days this year, expected to put his pay at $762,000. After a Fox 32 Chicago investigation, the district placed Paraday on leave while looking into the accuracy of his payroll records.
Open the Books CEO Adam Andrzejewski wrote about Paraday earlier this year. He and others in his organization found that more than 500 administrators in Illinois out-earn every governor in the nation, bringing in at least $180,000 per year.
“You have half of the ‘Illinois educators’ that are not even in the classroom,” Andrzejewski said. “These are all the ancillary positions outside of the classroom in support of the classroom teacher but not teaching and educating kids in the classroom.”
The small suburban district spends an average of $122,000 per administrator, several thousand dollars more than the average district in Illinois.
Andrzejewski said this practice is found not only in Illinois school districts but all 7,000 units of government in the state, contributing to higher property taxes.
“Many times, your property tax payment to government, including local school districts, exceeds what you’re actually paying on your mortgage,” he said.
Illinois has among the highest property taxes in the nation.
Lawyers for the district confirmed Paraday was on paid leave, but wouldn’t comment further.
A lawyer for Paraday told Fox 32 that his client denied any wrongdoing.
