5.3% raise promised for Palm Beach County schools superintendent. How much will he make?

Superintendent Mike Burke will be paid at least $340,000 for his leadership of nearly 180 Palm Beach County Schools, according to a draft of his new employment contract.

The school board will vote Wednesday on the extended contract for Burke that includes a 5.3% boost in his base salary.

Burke, who got the district's top job in 2021, will be able to work through 2028 after the state extended its deferred retirement program this spring. He was originally set to retire in summer 2025 at age 58.

Burke took over the job after years of turmoil under superintendents Donald Fennoy and Robert Avossa. He's paid at a higher rate than his two predecessors, who made $306,000 and $325,000, respectively.

Burke is known for his understated demeanor and extensive knowledge of school finances after 15 years as the district's chief financial officer. The Pompano Beach native's ascension to the superintendent's office was unusual in that he had no teaching or principal experience on his résumé.

From 2021: Mike Burke was the public schools’ money man. Now he’s steering their academic future.

But Burke is now credited with carefully guiding the Palm Beach County's 190,000 students and 23,000 employees out of the pandemic and walking a political tightrope effectively as state leaders turn a critical eye toward public school districts across Florida.

"We all agree that we trust this superintendent and we think he's doing a great job," board Chair Frank Barbieri said at a May 10 meeting. "I would like the message to be sent to the entire world that our superintendent is not up for grabs. He's ours and he's going to stay."

Bible challenged: Palm Beach County father wants Bible out of public school library; board will take up objection

More: Public schools have 'never competed' with private schools, until now. How will they fare?

What is in Superintendent Mike Burke's contract?

Florida's deferred retirement program, called DROP, allows public employees to accumulate retirement benefits and earn compounded interest while they're still working. DROP participants were allowed to participate in the program only for five years until the legislature extended the program to eight years in June.

Burke first enrolled in the DROP program in 2020. The school board hired him in October 2021 knowing he'd be in the job only for four years.

Now, Burke's contract will be a five-year agreement that requires the school board to evaluate him each year. His raises will be based on those evaluations and whether the district's administrative employees, such as principals and assistant principals, get raises that year.

If he's rated "highly effective" by the board, his raise will be equal to the raises received by administrative staff that year. If he's only rated as "effective," he'll receive a raise that's 1% lower than the raise given to administrative staff.

If Burke is not rated as "effective" or if administrative staff don't get a raise, his pay will remain the same, the contract says.

How did my school do? Here are numbers from Palm Beach County on new statewide exams

More: Palm Beach County School Board member suspended from law practice for 10 days

How many vacation days does superintendent get?

Burke's contract includes 22 vacation days each year and 12 sick days, which he accrues throughout the year. However, he's allowed to "sell back" as many as 12 vacation days each year, as it's possible he's not able to schedule that much time off as the district's top official.

"I really hope that you've asked your wife. Because this isn't an easy job," board member Karen Brill said at the May 10 school board meeting. "I think it would be wonderful if you would consider staying and hopefully we can get that done quickly."

Burke's contract requires him to live in Palm Beach County, and includes a $1,200 per month car allowance for his car payments, insurance, maintenance and gas.

If Burke leaves the job, he'll need to give 90 days notice, the contract says. School leaders hope that never happens.

"I just think we'd be very lucky to have him stay so I'm grateful that he's even interested," board member Erica Whitfield said at the May 10 meeting. "This job can be very, very difficult and there's a lot of stressors that come with it. He's been a remarkable superintendent during this time, and so I think we'd be very fortunate to have him."

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story misstated the percentage salary increase included in the superintendent's new contract, although his salary increased 9.5% since July 2022. The School Board approved the contract described above on July 19.

Katherine Kokal is a journalist covering education at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at kkokal@pbpost.com. Help support our work, subscribe today!

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Raise set for Palm Beach County Schools Superintendent Mike Burke