In Oklahoma, less than half of school funding goes to instruction in roughly 150 of the state’s more than 500 school districts, according to state records.

Yet total superintendent compensation in some of those districts continues to climb. In several notable cases, schools with low levels of instructional spending also have superintendent compensation that ranks among the most lavish in the state, according to information reported by schools to the Oklahoma State Department of Education.

A growing number of Oklahoma superintendents now receive total compensation of at least a quarter-million dollars per year, and the trajectory of the state’s highest-paid superintendents suggests some will reach the half-million mark within the next few years.

For example, in 2018 the superintendent in the Union district received $278,434 in total compensation. By 2024, the Union district was paying $445,962 in total compensation to its superintendent, an increase of 60 percent.  

Just 48 percent of school funding in the Union district went to instruction in the 2023-2024 school year, the most recent for which data are available.

Union is not the only district with low levels of classroom funding and high levels of superintendent compensation.

The Oklahoma City district provided $419,265 in total compensation to its superintendent and devoted only 48 percent of funding to instruction last year. Even though per-student funding in Oklahoma City is well above the state average, only 18.3 percent of students in the Oklahoma City district met or exceeded grade-level standards on state testing in 2023-2024.

In Tulsa, the superintendent was paid $379,281 even as just 47 percent of total school funding went to instruction. Tulsa’s per-student funding is also above the state average. Just 18.8 percent of Tulsa students met or exceeded grade level standards on state testing in 2023-2024.

In Muskogee, the superintendent is paid $274,330 in total compensation even as only 47 percent of funding reaches the classroom. Per-student funding in the Muskogee district is above the state average, but just 29.9 percent of Muskogee students achieved proficiency or better on state testing in 2023-2024.

In several other districts, school spending on instruction comprises only slightly more than half of all spending even as superintendent pay ranks among the top levels in the state.

In the Lawton district, only 51 percent of spending went to instruction. The district’s superintendent receives total compensation of $305,945. Just 27.6 percent of students in the Lawton district met or exceeded grade-level standards on state testing in 2023-2024.

In the Midwest City-Del City district, just 51 percent of funding goes to instructional expenses. The superintendent is paid $251,094. Just 23.3 percent of students in the Midwest City-Del City district met or exceeded grade level standards on state testing in 2023-2024.

In the Jenks district, only 51 percent of funding goes to the classroom, while the superintendent’s total compensation has reached $287,380. Less than half of students in the Jenks district achieved proficiency on state tests.

In Broken Arrow, only 52 percent of funding goes to instruction. The district superintendent is paid $297,579. Just 36.5 percent of Broken Arrow students met or exceeded grade-level standards on state testing in 2023-2024.

In Bixby, just 52 percent of spending goes to instructional expenses. The school superintendent receives a total compensation of $214,882. Less than half of Bixby students achieved proficiency or better on state tests.

Since 2018, total revenue per student in Oklahoma’s public school system has surged by 51 percent, rising from $9,067 per student to $13,736 per student.

Superintendent pay has surged along with that increase, despite academic outcomes steadily declining since 2018.

In 2018, Oklahoma public schools spent $59.9 million on superintendent compensation. By 2024, that figure had increased to $75.4 million.

In 2018, only four districts paid their superintendents more than $250,000 in total annual compensation: Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Union, and Beggs.

But by the 2023-2024 school year, 17 Oklahoma school districts paid their superintendents a total annual compensation of a quarter-million dollars or more. Those high-paid superintendents were in the Union, Oklahoma City, Norman, Tulsa, Moore, EPIC Charter School, Lawton, Yukon, Mustang, Broken Arrow, Miami, Jenks, Muskogee, Durant, Putnam City, Bartlesville, and Midwest City-Del City districts.

In 2018, more than 300 superintendents received at least $100,000 in compensation. By 2024, that group included more than 450 superintendents.

More Bang for the Buck

However, not all schools have slashed spending on instruction below 50 percent. And some school districts that devote more money to instruction also have superintendents whose earnings are far from the top of state rankings.

In the Bethany district, school officials have directed 63 percent of funding to instruction, and its superintendent’s pay was lower than nearly 80 other districts. Even though per-student funding in Bethany is lower than the state average, 62.3 percent of students reached state grade-level standards on state tests, compared to a statewide average of 36.1 percent in 2024.

In the rural McCord district, officials directed 63 percent of funding to instructional expenses, and the superintendent’s salary ranks around 435th out of more than 500 superintendents at $108,769.

While McCord’s per-student funding is slightly below the state average, 64 percent of students in the K-6 district were proficient or better on state tests, including 64 percent of economically disadvantaged students.

The Yukon district, one of the largest in the state, was one of the few where a highly paid superintendent and high levels of classroom funding coexisted.

While the Yukon superintendent’s total compensation was $305,320, the district still devoted 60 percent of funding to instruction.

Notably, school administrators, their representatives, and lobbyist allies recently opposed legislation that would have mandated a minimum amount of state funding for instruction in public schools.

House Bill 1280, by state Rep. Chad Caldwell, R-Enid, would have required that 50 percent of a school district’s annual budget go to “instructional expenditures” starting in the 2025-2026 school year.

The Oklahoma State School Boards Association, a lobbyist group funded with schools’ tax dollars, opposed the bill, claiming HB 1280 “is an intrusion on local control and prevents school boards from allocating funds based on the needs of students.”

Form-style letters sent to lawmakers on behalf of school administrators and their allies declared, “Locally elected school boards and our local superintendents should be able to make the best decisions for their students when allocating their budgets.” One such email called the 50-percent mandate “arbitrary” and warned it “could result in schools being forced to purchase unnecessary classroom supplies.”

The Oklahoma Parent Legislative Advocacy Coalition (PLAC) backed school administrators who opposed the legislation, dismissing calls to make classroom funding a priority as “spending unnecessarily in classrooms in order to meet a baseless budget mandate.”

HB 1280 failed on a 36-57 vote in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.