How Much Does Edison Schools Superintendent Make? State Data Reveals

EDISON, NJ — Edison Township School District Superintendent Edward Aldarelli earned $293,786 in the 2024-25 school year, above the statewide average, according to new data from the NJ Department of Education.

New Jersey's superintendents earned an average of $202,653, with a median salary of $201,756 — about $40,000 above the national average of $169,343 reported in a survey by the American Association of School Administrators, which drew more than 2,000 responses from superintendents in 49 states.

Of the 586 superintendents listed by the state, more than 400 earn above the national average. Of those, 83 earn more than $250,000 and 16 earn $290,000 or more.

Superintendent Aldarelli ranked among the top 10 superintendent salaries in the state, alongside:

• Howard Lerner of the Bergen County Vocational Technical School District ($346,189)
• Norma Fernandez of Jersey City Schools ($331,616)
• Roger Leon of Newark Public Schools ($330,978)
• Teresa Segarra of Maria L. Varisco-Rogers Charter School ($327,600)
• Silvia Abbato of Union City Schools ($300,719)
• Laurienne Newell of Paterson Schools ($296,514)
• David Aderhold of West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional ($296,351)
• Michael Lasusa of Princeton Public Schools ($295,000)
• Clara Herrera of West New York Schools ($294,389)

Of the superintendents, 265 hold doctorates and 314 hold master's degrees.

There are about a dozen whose degree status was not listed, and about 20 who had other certifications, according to the state.

• Read More: New NJ Superintendent Salary Report: Here’s Who's Paid The Most

Data on New Jersey superintendent salaries comes after the Edison Board of Education approved a $358 million budget for the 2026-27 school year, which cuts approximately 80 staff positions, eliminates the district’s grant-funded pre-K program and raises the local tax levy by 6 percent – half of the 12 percent increase the board initially proposed.

The budget passed after weeks of public backlash, town halls and community petitions that came after the board’s proposed budget in March, which consisted of a $372 million spending plan.

Edison Mayor Sam Joshi even publicly condemned the March proposal as “reckless and irresponsible,” though he acknowledged that his office has no jurisdiction over the independently elected school board.

Even though a revised version of the budget was approved toward the end of April, some community members have still expressed their disappointment with the final budget and the positions that have been eliminated in the school district as a result.

During a Board of Education meeting in May, Edison resident Matthew Pinho spoke about the impact of the 2026-27 budget in his own home, as his pregnant wife, Gabriella, received a non-renewal notice as part of the district's decision to cut about 80 staff positions.

"My wife, Ms. Gabriella Pinho, is not just a name on the list," he told the board. "She is a dedicated teacher, a member of the Edison community, a mother to our three-year-old son, Benjamin, and pregnant with our second child, a daughter we plan to name Everly."

“She deserves more than to be reduced to a line item on a budget that needs to be balanced."

According to Pinho, the couple received the news during Teacher Appreciation Week and right before Mother’s Day, something he described as “nothing short of a slap in the face to educators and their families.”

"The community that we love with all our hearts has rejected us,” he said. “You rejected us, you rejected us, you rejected us.”

Related

• New NJ Superintendent Salary Report: Here’s Who's Paid The Most
• 'You Rejected Us': Edison Dad Tells BOE After Budget Cuts Cost Pregnant Teacher Her Job
• Edison BOE Approves Budget With 6% Tax Hike, Cuts 80 Positions
• Edison Mayor Calls BOE's Proposed Tax Hike 'Reckless,' Cites Financial Mismanagement
• Edison Schools Proposes $372M Budget, A Tax Hike Could Be Coming