THE LEDGER DOESN'T SET SALARIES. IT JUST PUTS THEM SIDE BY SIDE.
Well, this started with a comment under a Saginaw ISD post. And, naturally, Lady Budgetdown went looking for the receipts.
According to Saginaw ISD's own reporting, Superintendent Jeffrey Collier's salary was $160,000 in 2020–21.
By 2024–25?
$297,000.
That is an increase of:
💰 $137,000
📈 85.6%
That got my attention.
So I wondered what $297,000 in public salary looks like next to a few other public positions.
Here you go:
🏫 Saginaw ISD Superintendent: $297,000
📚 Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction: $272,000
⚖️ U.S. District Court Judge: $249,900
⚖️ Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice: $181,483
🏛� Governor of Michigan: $159,300
Yes.
I checked the numbers more than once.
The latest verified salary reported for the Saginaw ISD superintendent is:
$25,000 more than Michigan's Superintendent of Public Instruction.
$47,100 more than a federal district court judge.
$115,517 more than the Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court.
And...
$137,700 more than the Governor of Michigan.
A couple important notes before everyone starts sharpening their pencils:
These are salary-to-salary comparisons.
I did not add benefits, pensions or expense reimbursements to make one number look bigger than another.
And Collier's $297,000 figure is the latest SISD salary I could verify from 2024–25. I am not presenting it as his 2026 salary.
Is $297,000 too much?
That isn't a question for Lady Budgetdown to answer.
School boards set superintendent compensation.
Taxpayers fund it.
And taxpayers are perfectly capable of deciding for themselves what they think when the numbers are placed on the same page.
I just brought the ledger. 🪶
With receipts and respect.