Prairie State Wire

Rondout SD 72 in Lake County receives $1,579 per student from the state to fund pensions for teachers and administrators, leading all other districts, according to a Wirepoints analysis of Teacher Retirement System data.

Ohio CHSD 505 in Bureau County receives $1,299 per student and New Trier Township HSD 203 in Cook County receives $1,177 per student.

Wirepoints examined the system in which school districts pay salaries to teachers and administrators, but not pensions, which are funded by state tax dollars.

"It’s a scheme that allows districts to spend more money on salaries and perks than they otherwise would," Wirepoints reported. "Wealthy districts – like those on the North Shore – benefit far more from the state’s pension payments than poor districts do."

Because high salaries equal high pension costs, wealthy districts, where average salaries are much higher, receive more from the state in retirement benefits. Separating the costs of salaries and pension means districts aren't accountable for their salary decisions. 

In Rondout SD 72, there are six teachers for every student, each earning an average of $93,517. Meanwhile, Bradford CUSD 1 in Stark County has 10 teachers for every student, each earning an average of $36,424. 

Rondout has 65 administrators for every student, and they each earn an average of $131,750. In Bradford, the ratio is 154 to 1, and the average administrator salary is $96,250.

Compared to Rondout's state-provided pension subsidy from the state, Bradford receives just $261 per student in pension benefits.

Wirepoints acknowledged that taxpayers in wealthy school districts pay much more in income taxes which, in turn, fund state education. This is designed to ensure school districts with less property wealth are funded at adequate levels.

"But the state’s scheme for funding teacher pensions runs at cross purposes with that goal," Wirepoints reported. "The state takes in income taxes contributed by all areas of the state, whether wealthy or not, and then sends much of those dollars right back to wealthy areas in the form of pension subsidies. And since nearly 50 percent of state’s total budget appropriations to education have gone to teacher pensions in recent years, those subsidies matter.

"More state money going to pensions means less money for districts in need, everything else equal."

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School districts receiving the biggest pension subsidies

	District	County	Average daily attendance	Percent of district revenue provided by the state	EAV (taxable property) per student	District spending per student	State-provided pension subsidy per student*
1	Rondout SD 72	Lake	134	3%	$2,138,256	$32,278	$1,579
2	Ohio CHSD 505	Bureau	34	3%	$1,008,942	$25,284	$1,299
3	New Trier Twp HSD 203	Cook	3,757	2%	$1,230,873	$25,007	$1,177
4	Kenilworth SD 38	Cook	472	2%	$649,978	$22,200	$1,176
5	Twp HSD 113	Lake	3,169	3%	$1,181,960	$24,762	$1,158
6	Ohio CCSD 17	Bureau	56	9%	$602,003	$26,764	$1,151
7	Sunset Ridge SD 29	Cook	442	3%	$936,299	$25,703	$1,146
8	Winnetka SD 36	Cook	1,577	3%	$764,446	$21,916	$1,103
9	Lake Forest CHSD 115	Lake	1,526	3%	$1,788,747	$24,392	$1,103
10	CHSD 128	Lake	3,053	4%	$871,200	$22,420	$1,096
11	Avoca SD 37	Cook	684	3%	$645,972	$20,148	$1,083
12	Rutland CCSD 230	Lasalle	53	9%	$552,814	$23,525	$1,065
13	Northfield Twp HSD 225	Cook	4,702	4%	$965,838	$22,941	$1,065
14	Niles Twp HSD 219	Cook	4,412	5%	$801,241	$26,951	$1,053
15	Northbrook ESD 27	Cook	1,167	4%	$619,557	$19,668	$1,044
16	Bannockburn SD 106	Lake	161	4%	$1,228,580	$23,340	$1,025
17	Forest Park SD 91	Cook	729	10%	$414,057	$21,911	$1,015
18	Seneca Twp HSD 160	Lasalle	412	3%	$1,617,944	$24,262	$1,011
19	Northbrook SD 28	Cook	1,651	3%	$647,682	$18,949	$1,004
20	Oak Park - River Forest SD 200	Cook	2,872	7%	$651,644	$22,283	$994
21	Northbrook/Glenview SD 30	Cook	1,036	3%	$617,134	$19,010	$987
22	Armstrong-Ellis Cons SD 61	Vermilion	64	8%	$632,841	$18,859	$978
23	Lake Forest SD 67	Lake	1,646	3%	$1,317,990	$18,267	$973
24	Maine Township HSD 207	Cook	5,964	5%	$683,030	$19,219	$963
25	Evanston Twp HSD 202	Cook	2,993	5%	$831,716	$22,742	$963
26	Hinsdale Twp HSD 86	Dupage	4,405	5%	$1,079,225	$19,113	$930
27	Lisle CUSD 202	Dupage	1,359	7%	$398,096	$19,286	$928
28	Erie CUSD 1	Whiteside	545	6%	$448,692	$19,503	$926
29	Steward ESD 220	Lee	55	8%	$465,544	$15,008	$918
30	Township HSD 214	Cook	10,462	5%	$721,510	$20,674	$913
31	CUSD 201	Dupage	1,234	10%	$348,370	$18,699	$911
32	Glencoe SD 35	Cook	1,216	3%	$629,728	$17,849	$908
33	Rosemont ESD 78	Cook	217	7%	$765,058	$18,167	$905
34	Scales Mound CUSD 211	Jo Daviess	205	5%	$449,703	$17,422	$905
35	Fairview SD 72	Cook	632	6%	$622,542	$16,327	$899
36	CHSD 218	Cook	4,795	13%	$421,769	$22,430	$898
37	West Northfield SD 31	Cook	818	5%	$631,531	$17,049	$895
38	Fenton CHSD 100	Dupage	1,363	7%	$768,905	$19,216	$889
39	Hinsdale CCSD 181	Dupage	3,432	4%	$632,277	$17,704	$886
40	Oak Grove SD 68	Peoria	778	4%	$653,422	$16,738	$877
41	Argo CHSD 217	Cook	1,618	17%	$385,701	$19,138	$876
42	Lake Bluff ESD 65	Lake	822	3%	$681,772	$18,354	$865
43	Butler SD 53	Dupage	507	3%	$1,479,209	$17,295	$863
44	North Shore SD 112	Lake	3,791	6%	$555,895	$16,581	$859
45	Kings Cons SD 144	Ogle	67	13%	$327,936	$17,658	$852
46	Adlai E Stevenson HSD 125	Lake	3,860	5%	$796,868	$18,918	$852
47	Park Ridge CCSD 64	Cook	4,093	6%	$345,520	$15,920	$852
48	Lombard SD 44	Dupage	2,832	7%	$348,354	$15,111	$836
49	Lyons Twp HSD 204	Cook	3,784	6%	$724,515	$17,635	$828
50	CHSD 99	Dupage	4,598	7%	$826,118	$17,260	$824
51	Union SD 81	Will	92	4%	$898,590	$28,340	$824
52	Oak Lawn CHSD 229	Cook	1,457	12%	$524,463	$17,890	$821
53	La Grange SD 105 South	Cook	1,369	8%	$403,957	$15,454	$820
54	Township HSD 211	Cook	11,564	6%	$581,633	$18,196	$815
55	Lincolnwood SD 74	Cook	1,182	6%	$487,602	$16,810	$813
56	Niles ESD 71	Cook	503	6%	$771,961	$15,735	$799
57	CCSD 62	Cook	4,269	11%	$359,111	$16,921	$799
58	Lincolnshire-Prairieview SD 103	Lake	1,610	5%	$545,810	$16,671	$796
59	Gower SD 62	Dupage	783	5%	$823,339	$16,015	$794
60	Deerfield SD 109	Lake	2,826	4%	$509,582	$16,200	$790
61	Reavis Twp HSD 220	Cook	1,689	10%	$486,475	$16,278	$790
62	River Trails SD 26	Cook	1,383	7%	$343,131	$16,288	$790
63	LaGrange Highlands SD 106	Cook	774	6%	$431,069	$14,269	$786
64	Glenbard Twp HSD 87	Dupage	7,426	8%	$626,492	$16,384	$786
65	DuPage HSD 88	Dupage	3,427	9%	$709,128	$18,404	$784
66	Allen-Otter Creek CCSD 65	Lasalle	87	10%	$624,425	$15,998	$782
67	Bremen CHSD 228	Cook	4,513	27%	$256,722	$15,765	$781
68	Laraway CCSD 70C	Will	384	15%	$544,776	$18,814	$778
69	River Forest SD 90	Cook	1,312	6%	$372,380	$14,966	$775
70	Wilmette SD 39	Cook	3,367	5%	$442,566	$14,658	$774
71	Evanston CCSD 65	Cook	7,242	10%	$343,702	$14,521	$774
72	Seneca CCSD 170	Lasalle	453	5%	$1,192,106	$15,186	$773
73	Leyden CHSD 212	Cook	3,531	7%	$512,823	$17,595	$771
74	Wheeling CCSD 21	Cook	5,988	11%	$266,962	$16,792	$768
75	Mannheim SD 83	Cook	2,367	12%	$271,148	$16,489	$767
76	Pleasantdale SD 107	Cook	775	6%	$654,032	$14,559	$767
77	Lostant CUSD 425	Lasalle	58	15%	$429,559	$19,150	$758
78	Homewood Flossmoor CHSD 233	Cook	2,560	20%	$247,627	$17,840	$756
79	Maercker SD 60	Dupage	1,191	8%	$456,373	$14,307	$752
80	Skokie SD 68	Cook	1,715	9%	$502,747	$15,179	$751
81	Lemont Twp HSD 210	Cook	1,274	6%	$771,309	$19,519	$749
82	Cons HSD 230	Cook	7,076	9%	$602,444	$16,204	$748
83	Newark CHSD 18	Kendall	161	7%	$644,522	$16,448	$747
84	Comm Cons SD 59	Cook	6,343	12%	$391,148	$14,512	$745
85	Rich Twp HSD 227	Cook	2,833	14%	$319,893	$20,958	$745
86	Ridgewood CHSD 234	Cook	746	5%	$711,701	$20,135	$744
87	Winfield SD 34	Dupage	291	5%	$406,744	$17,687	$743
88	Lake Park CHSD 108	Dupage	2,433	5%	$715,425	$17,745	$743
89	Skokie SD 73-5	Cook	998	8%	$258,762	$16,039	$742
90	Thornton Twp HSD 205	Cook	5,038	30%	$232,243	$18,470	$742
91	CCSD 180	Dupage	572	20%	$452,051	$17,075	$741
92	Evergreen Park CHSD 231	Cook	820	11%	$440,085	$16,529	$741
93	Benjamin SD 25	Dupage	609	8%	$330,965	$16,252	$737
94	Aptakisic-Tripp CCSD 102	Lake	2,079	7%	$379,838	$14,514	$734
95	Rooks Creek CCSD 425	Livingston	49	12%	$318,177	$15,706	$728
96	Glen Ellyn SD 41	Dupage	2,970	6%	$388,827	$13,954	$728
97	Naperville CUSD 203	Dupage	15,574	8%	$267,316	$14,659	$726
98	River Ridge CUSD 210	Jo Daviess	477	7%	$351,262	$13,717	$726
99	Grayslake CHSD 127	Lake	2,749	18%	$300,188	$17,652	$726
100	Marquardt SD 15	Dupage	2,317	21%	$207,510	$14,692	$725

Source: Illinois State Board of Education, ILEARN data 2016; Total earnings data received from a 2018 FOIA request to the Teachers' Retirement System; TRS actuarial report 2017; Wirepoints calculations

*Proxy of the pension subsidy provided to each school district. District subsidy is calculated by taking the TRS employer normal cost in 2017 ($871 million) and multiplying it by each district's share of TRS total employee earnings. To calculate the subsidy per student, each district's share is divided by their average daily attendance.