The top 10 highest paid teachers in West Richland CUSD 2 each earned more than $45,000 in total compensation in 2014, according to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
The amount reflects teachers' full adjusted pay — a calculation which includes benefits and all pension contributions by taxpayers for each teacher, and reflects a full year of work instead of the nine months teachers actually worked.
Records show that in 2014, Pamela S. Hancock, a teacher at West Richland Elementary School located at P.O. Box 157, received $61,199.95, the highest full adjusted pay among all teachers in the district.
Included in that amount was $785.38 in taxpayer-funded benefits, $350.40 in retirement benefits, and $434.98 in other benefits.
Overall, the total amount West Richland CUSD 2 spent on its 10 highest paid teachers in 2014 was $500,343.52.
West Richland CUSD 2 had 29 teachers in 2014.
According to the United States Census Bureau's 2014 Census American Community Survey (ACS), the median household income for Illinois was $57,444 in 2014.
ISBE is responsible for administering public education in Illinois and consists of nine board members appointed by the governor and approved by the Senate.
*Editor's note: A previous version of this story incorrectly noted the teacher benefits data was from fiscal year 2015 when it was actually from fiscal year 2014. We have updated the story accordingly.