TACOMA, Wash. – School superintendent salaries are a constant source of media attention around the nation.

At a time when American public schools are struggling academically to keep up with schools in other nations, and many school districts have very tight budgets, superintendent salaries keep going higher and higher.

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But few people realize just how much these top school executives really make. It’s typical to see their base salaries published, particularly by local media outlets, but information about all the extras they receive is rarely disclosed to the public.

A good example is Frank Hewins, superintendent of the Franklin Pierce school district in Tacoma, Washington.

In 2015-16, Hewins was paid a base salary of $183,387.50

He also received $11,016.75 for “evening /weekend activities,” $9,138.76 for “extra days,” $6,000 for a car allowance, $3,250 for having an advanced degree, $3,000 for “longevity with district” and $1,500 for having an “advanced certification.”

Those extras ballooned his yearly salary to $217,293.01. And there’s more.

The Franklin Pierce district paid $28,683.58 in retirement benefits on Hewins’ behalf, and contributed $9,000 to his tax-sheltered 403(b) account.

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That brought his compensation for the year to a grand total of $254,976, which is $71,589 more than the base salary that the public typically hears about.

Benefits and pension costs also inflate the teacher payroll in the Franklin Pierce district.

In 2015-16, 521 teachers were paid a combined $34,299,701, for an average base salary of $65,834.

The district also paid out $3,983,716 for teacher benefits, which averages out to $7,646 per teacher. It also paid $4,461,484 in retirement contributions on the teacher’s behalf, which averages out to $8,563 per teacher.

All of that added up brings the average total compensation for a Franklin Pierce teacher to $82,043 – $16,209 more than the average base salary.

Tacoma teachers work 7 ½ hour days. Information provided by the district does not say how many days are in the teacher work year, but most public school districts require between 180 and 190 work days, so we will settle at 185.

Using that presumed work schedule, the average Tacoma teacher compensation package of $82,043 breaks down to about $443 per day and about $59 per hour.