Are BHUSD's Principals Fairly Compensated?

All five Beverly Hills public school principals earn more than $100,000 a year, but their salaries vary widely.

The Beverly Hills Unified School District Assistant Superintendent for Business Services Alex Cherniss confirmed the salaries, which are considered public information.

The principal who earns the most is Interim Principal Irene Stern, who is paid as a consultant rather than an employee. She makes $650 a day for the 200 days that school and staff are in session, bringing her salary to about $130,000 a year.

Stern is staying on as interim principal for a second year, which means she will remain the BHUSD’s highest-paid principal.

Two other leaders of K-8 schools come next in the salary range. Principal David Hoffman and Principal Toni Staser each make $123,167.

The principal of the BHUSD school with the most students—Carter Paysinger of —comes next on the salary scale. He earns $117,564.

Last is Principal Steve Kessler, who makes $108,317.

“The principals are on a five-step administrative salary schedule and this was [Kessler's] first year as an administrator,” Cherniss said.

As a Horace Mann parent, I can verify that Kessler, a former teacher who has been with the BHUSD for 35 years, is an outstanding principal who puts in many extra hours to help the school's 600 families.

The varying salary of the principals mirrors the wide range of salaries of BHUSD teachers, who are paid based on tenure and a union scale. Their salaries for a 10-month year range from $46,000 to $85,000.

New BHUSD Superintendent Gary Woods earns $249,000 a year.

The top bosses of all BHUSD employees, ironically, earn a salary of zero. Every member of the Board of Education serves voluntarily; even a modest food budget was eliminated several years ago.

The five City Council members, in comparison, earn $9,429 a year but also receive considerable health and retirement benefits.

This salary information comes as public debate is stirring about the salaries and benefits of city employees. According to local news reports, many Beverly Hills employees make more than $100,000 a year and have generous benefits, including a pension entirely paid for by the city. City employees—unlike BHUSD employees—can cash in unused vacation time for monetary value.

So are our principals, all of whom are required to have advanced degrees, fairly compensated? Are our teachers? I will leave it for Patch readers to judge.

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