Sparta Teachers Among 10,000 In NJ To Make $99K Or More

SPARTA, NJ – The Department of Education has released its annual list of teachers and their salaries for 2019 and the list of educators making $100,000 or more — a list that barely had any teachers on it more than a decade ago — has grown in recent years.

Here in Sparta that list includes educators with decades of experience. It is also important to note that some of these teachers are supervisors, work on curriculum and coach. It is also worth noting this group is a small fraction of the more than 100,000 people who teach in public and charter schools in this state. But the highest earners also come from all different schools — not just the so-called "wealthy" districts that routinely rank highly on national and state lists for best schools.

This information is public, and the salaries are paid out from taxpayer money which is generally a source of interest. Some districts who have teachers higher up on the salary guide are obligated to use a larger portion of their annual budget to pay it out. The charge of the local school boards is to honor the financial commitments while making capital improvements and staying within the two percent annual tax cap.

Here are the teachers in our district who earn the top salaries, with their school, their school district and, finally, their salaries (the teachers have been divided by their years of experience):

30 to 39 years of experience:

• PATRICIA CURTIS, Helen Morgan School, SPARTA TWP, SUSSEX $104,930
• PATRICIA AUGER, Alpine Elementary School, SPARTA TWP, SUSSEX $102,140

20 to 29 years of experience:

• DEBORAH GIANUZZI, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $107,290
• SUZANNE JOURAVLEV, Sparta Middle School, SPARTA TWP, $104,530
• SUZANNE SMITH, Mohawk Avenue School, SPARTA TWP, $104,230
• CATHERINE WILLE, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $104,230
• RUSSELL BROWN, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $104,230
• KAREN MARTIN, Sparta Middle School, SPARTA TWP, $104,130
• MELISSA BANDEL, Helen Morgan School, SPARTA TWP, $104,130
• DANIELLE CIESLA, Alpine Elementary School, SPARTA TWP, $104,030
• ROBERT DIXON, Sparta Middle School, SPARTA TWP, $103,930
• GERALD CARTER, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $103,830
• JEFFREY TRZCINSKI, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $101,340
• SUZANNE NADEMUS, Mohawk Avenue School, SPARTA TWP, $101,090
• CATHERINE JENNINGS, Helen Morgan School, SPARTA TWP, $101,090
• SUSAN SAWEY, Sparta Middle School, SPARTA TWP, $101,090
• MICHELLE ABBATE, Alpine Elementary School, SPARTA TWP, $99,940
• ANGELA FELDMANN, Helen Morgan School, SPARTA TWP, $99,740
• DEBRA ALLSHOUSE, Sparta High School, SPARTA TWP, $99,640
• PATRICK PERGOLA, Sparta Middle School, SPARTA TWP, $99,440

10 to 19 years experience:

• ANDREW BICKERTON Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $107,745
• SERGE WESSELS Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $107,745
• JOHN HIER Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $105,790
• ANTHONY PAPA Sparta Middle School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $103,530
• BRENDIAN MORIARTY Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $102,630
• COURTNEY HYLAND Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $102,465
• DOROTHY TALTY Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $101,810
• SUZANNE RUSSO Sparta Middle School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $100,890
• MARK MEOLA Sparta High School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $99,440
• GERILYN WALSH Alpine Elementary School SPARTA TWP SUSSEX $99,340

In 2018-2019, the median salary for teachers totaled $68,985, according to a Patch analysis of salary data for public school districts and charter schools. The increase was about 1.6 percent higher than the previous year. Patch previously reported the complete list, for those looking to see other districts.

The Department of Education has said the department double-checks the data before delivering it to the media.

Thanks for reading! Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Have a news tip you'd like to share? Or maybe you have a press release you would like to submit or a correction you'd like to request? Send an email to russ.crespolini@patch.com

Subscribe to your local Patch newsletter. You can also have them delivered to your phone screen by downloading, or by visiting the Google Play store.