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Digest of Education Statistics
2012 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 97. Number, highest degree, average years of experience, and salaries of principals in public and private elementary and secondary schools, by selected characteristics: 1993-94, 2003-04, and 2007-08
[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Selected characteristic Number of principals1 Percentage distribution by highest degree earned, 2007-08 Average years of experience Average annual salary
in constant 2011-12 dollars2
1993-94 2003-04 2007-08 Bachelor's or less Master's Education specialist3 Doctor's and first-professional As a principal Teaching experience, 2007-08 1993-94 2003-04 2007-08
1993-94 2003-04 2007-08
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Public schools                                                                      
Total 79,620   (235) 87,620 (307) 90,470   (544) 1.5   (0.23) 61.1 (1.01) 29.0   (0.97) 8.4   (0.57) 8.7   (0.10) 7.8 (0.10) 7.5 (0.14) 13.1 (0.14) $85,400   (200) $92,300 (230) $92,200 (410)
                                                                       
Sex                                                                      
Males 52,110   (613) 45,930 (707) 44,950   (1,129) 1.5   (0.36) 64.0 (1.64) 26.8   (1.49) 7.7   (0.78) 10.3   (0.16) 9.1 (0.16) 8.2 (0.20) 12.0 (0.21) 85,500   (250) 92,500 (350) 92,600 (710)
Females 27,500   (542) 41,690 (708) 45,520   (1,129) 1.5   (0.34) 58.1 (1.29) 31.2   (1.42) 9.2   (0.73) 5.6   (0.12) 6.3 (0.13) 6.8 (0.19) 14.3 (0.21) 85,200   (430) 92,200 (410) 91,800 (670)
                                                                       
Race/ethnicity                                                                      
White 67,080   (540) 72,200 (509) 73,160   (1,008) 1.5   (0.30) 60.4 (1.11) 30.2   (1.05) 8.0   (0.57) 9.0   (0.12) 8.0 (0.12) 7.8 (0.17) 13.2 (0.17) 84,800   (210) 91,800 (270) 91,200 (470)
Black 8,020   (351) 9,250 (377) 9,620   (659)   (†) 56.3 (3.45) 29.6   (3.12) 13.4   (1.98) 7.1   (0.21) 6.9 (0.33) 6.2 (0.38) 13.0 (0.50) 89,800   (710) 94,600 (810) 94,400 (1,390)
Hispanic 3,270   (258) 4,680 (355) 5,870   (540)   (†) 73.8 (4.06) 17.5   (4.22) 6.4 ! (2.03) 6.3   (0.37) 6.1 (0.43) 6.5 (0.62) 12.2 (0.71) 86,900   (1,240) 97,200 (1,670) 99,900 (2,850)
Asian 620 4 (109) 460 (87) 570   (146)   (†) 64.5 (12.62) 27.2 ! (13.24)   (†) 6.0 4 (0.60) 6.8 (1.17) 6.3 (0.97) 12.8 (1.48) 92,500 4 (2,220) 101,100 (2,040) 111,200 (7,170)
Native Hawaiian/                                                                      
Pacific Islander   (†) (†)   (†)   (†) (†)   (†)   (†)   (†) (†) (†) (†)   (†) (†) (†)
American Indian/                                                                      
Alaska Native 630   (67) 600 (80) 620   (179)   (†) 69.2 (9.56) 21.4 ! (7.71)   (†) 12.6   (0.67) 6.9 (0.63) 6.4 (1.30) 13.9 (2.80) 79,600   (2,700) 75,800 (2,600) 82,400 (3,540)
Two or more races   (†) 350 (82) 490 ! (155)   (†) 76.6 (11.09)   (†)   (†)   (†) 5.6 (1.12) 5.8 (1.50) 12.9 (2.38)   (†) 92,700 (4,610) 87,800 (6,050)
                                                                       
Age                                                                      
Under 40 5,940   (273) 12,840 (477) 17,290   (785) 2.9   (0.76) 65.9 (2.39) 25.2   (2.18) 6.0   (1.11) 2.8   (0.13) 2.4 (0.10) 2.9 (0.14) 7.6 (0.14) 72,400   (740) 84,200 (670) 85,400 (970)
40 to 44 14,570   (496) 9,540 (449) 13,330   (706)   (†) 63.2 (2.62) 28.8   (2.40) 6.5   (1.47) 5.0   (0.12) 4.5 (0.18) 4.8 (0.22) 10.7 (0.29) 81,000   (600) 88,400 (810) 90,000 (1,200)
45 to 49 25,430   (429) 16,120 (526) 13,690   (767) 1.3 ! (0.59) 59.4 (2.71) 31.6   (2.67) 7.7   (1.36) 7.1   (0.13) 6.1 (0.16) 6.1 (0.26) 13.0 (0.33) 86,300   (410) 89,600 (640) 91,200 (1,030)
50 to 54 18,870   (539) 24,170 (669) 17,570   (746)   (†) 60.7 (2.23) 28.5   (1.98) 10.1   (1.26) 10.3   (0.18) 8.7 (0.19) 8.2 (0.28) 15.2 (0.31) 88,000   (570) 94,200 (530) 93,400 (990)
55 or over 14,820   (441) 24,960 (679) 28,590   (1,000) 1.1 ! (0.46) 58.2 (1.81) 30.6   (1.91) 10.1   (1.02) 15.1   (0.35) 11.9 (0.23) 11.8 (0.29) 16.4 (0.37) 90,000   (770) 97,900 (580) 97,000 (1,000)
                                                                       
School type                                                                      
Elementary 53,680   (294) 61,480 (361) 62,340   (584) 1.2   (0.27) 61.3 (1.36) 29.1   (1.28) 8.3   (0.66) 8.9   (0.14) 7.9 (0.13) 7.7 (0.17) 13.3 (0.20) 84,300   (260) 92,200 (270) 91,600 (530)
Secondary 18,260   (161) 19,700 (272) 21,550   (460) 1.3 ! (0.40) 61.0 (1.61) 28.6   (1.47) 9.1   (0.85) 8.0   (0.12) 7.5 (0.19) 7.1 (0.19) 12.7 (0.25) 88,100   (260) 97,100 (540) 97,000 (760)
Combined 2,750   (143) 6,450 (263) 6,580   (364) 4.2 ! (1.71) 58.8 (3.38) 29.5   (3.00) 7.5   (1.47) 7.5   (0.29) 7.4 (0.36) 7.1 (0.43) 13.1 (0.51) 82,200   (790) 79,100 (750) 81,400 (1,330)
                                                                       
School locale                                                                      
City   (†) 22,690 (425) 21,560   (731) 1.5   (0.45) 61.3 (2.07) 26.5   (2.11) 10.7   (1.29)   (†) 7.3 (0.17) 7.0 (0.25) 13.0 (0.35)   (†) 98,100 (460) 98,000 (800)
Suburban   (†) 25,600 (506) 25,880   (921)   (†) 58.2 (1.92) 28.6   (1.92) 12.2   (1.23)   (†) 7.9 (0.23) 7.7 (0.28) 12.9 (0.30)   (†) 104,400 (580) 104,200 (990)
Town   (†) 13,700 (424) 13,860   (669)   (†) 63.5 (2.58) 30.3   (2.24) 4.9   (0.85)   (†) 8.1 (0.28) 7.8 (0.34) 13.6 (0.38)   (†) 84,300 (610) 83,300 (760)
Rural   (†) 25,640 (492) 29,170   (1,012) 2.0   (0.55) 62.3 (1.70) 30.7   (1.74) 5.1   (0.65)   (†) 7.9 (0.22) 7.5 (0.27) 13.1 (0.29)   (†) 79,500 (430) 81,400 (710)
                                                                       
Private schools                                                                      
Total 25,020   (198) 27,690 (677) 27,960   (328) 32.6   (1.37) 50.2 (1.20) 10.0   (0.75) 7.2   (0.63) 8.8   (0.20) 10.0 (0.24) 10.0 (0.22) 13.9 (0.29) $49,900   (570) $61,400 (750) $61,800 (860)
                                                                       
Sex                                                                      
Males 11,610   (301) 12,110 (552) 13,070   (457) 32.8   (2.33) 50.4 (1.85) 8.1   (0.96) 8.6   (1.03) 9.0   (0.26) 11.0 (0.35) 10.6 (0.37) 12.6 (0.50) 55,400   (880) 67,700 (1,230) 67,700 (1,450)
Females 13,410   (283) 15,580 (491) 14,890   (369) 32.5   (1.82) 49.9 (1.68) 11.7   (1.23) 5.9   (0.75) 8.6   (0.27) 9.2 (0.28) 9.5 (0.26) 15.0 (0.37) 45,400   (950) 56,600 (1,030) 57,000 (1,030)
                                                                       
Race/ethnicity                                                                      
White 23,130   (270) 24,850 (715) 24,400   (409) 31.9   (1.47) 51.2 (1.20) 9.7   (0.68) 7.2   (0.66) 8.7   (0.22) 10.3 (0.24) 10.4 (0.25) 14.0 (0.32) 49,800   (620) 61,900 (740) 63,100 (940)
Black 1,060   (124) 1,440 (155) 1,820   (184) 36.5   (5.16) 40.7 (5.19) 15.7   (4.61) 7.1 ! (3.29) 8.3   (1.04) 7.1 (1.08) 7.1 (0.90) 12.7 (1.37) 53,500   (3,850) 54,200 (4,230) 53,100 (2,310)
Hispanic 520   (91) 820 (116) 1,110   (149) 40.4   (6.38) 40.5 (6.72) 11.2 ! (4.49)   (†) 10.1   (1.43) 6.6 (1.29) 7.8 (0.87) 14.0 (1.15) 48,800   (3,050) 58,700 (4,820) 51,800 (3,540)
                                                                       
Age                                                                      
Under 40 4,790   (302) 4,420 (267) 4,750   (318) 47.0   (3.68) 42.4 (3.16) 6.5   (1.55) 4.1   (1.13) 3.5   (0.22) 2.9 (0.20) 3.0 (0.22) 6.0 (0.33) 40,900   (1,350) 50,000 (1,930) 50,200 (1,490)
40 to 44 4,400   (217) 3,040 (250) 3,250   (277) 42.7   (4.36) 43.8 (4.18) 7.7   (1.93) 5.8 ! (2.01) 5.3   (0.24) 5.4 (0.38) 5.3 (0.35) 9.8 (0.65) 47,400   (1,440) 53,400 (2,100) 58,100 (2,880)
45 to 49 5,140   (216) 4,020 (250) 3,420   (246) 39.7   (4.20) 47.2 (3.52) 7.8   (1.80) 5.3 ! (1.68) 8.3   (0.27) 7.6 (0.28) 6.2 (0.38) 11.5 (0.72) 53,900   (1,150) 63,200 (1,790) 58,300 (2,210)
50 to 54 4,120   (228) 5,820 (337) 4,390   (263) 29.6   (3.23) 55.6 (3.06) 7.7   (1.44) 7.1   (1.43) 9.6   (0.34) 10.1 (0.35) 9.0 (0.45) 14.1 (0.66) 58,700   (1,550) 64,100 (1,920) 63,100 (1,970)
55 or over 6,550   (244) 10,390 (425) 12,150   (398) 23.4   (2.02) 53.8 (2.09) 13.4   (1.27) 9.4   (0.96) 14.8   (0.40) 15.2 (0.40) 15.4 (0.43) 18.6 (0.44) 49,500   (1,180) 66,000 (1,360) 67,600 (1,540)
                                                                       
School type                                                                      
Elementary 13,350   (158) 16,750 (327) 16,110   (297) 32.2   (1.81) 52.0 (1.64) 10.5   (1.17) 5.2   (0.70) 9.4   (0.27) 9.9 (0.30) 9.9 (0.30) 14.1 (0.37) 44,800   (690) 57,800 (820) 59,600 (1,040)
Secondary 2,300   (244) 2,510 (364) 2,930   (168) 18.0   (3.06) 59.5 (3.47) 11.8   (2.07) 10.7   (1.62) 7.8   (0.36) 9.3 (0.77) 9.9 (0.58) 14.6 (0.61) 68,000   (1,220) 79,500 (3,170) 80,700 (2,550)
Combined 6,770   (115) 8,430 (281) 8,920   (271) 38.1   (2.20) 43.8 (2.18) 8.5   (1.11) 9.6   (1.18) 8.0   (0.34) 10.3 (0.39) 10.2 (0.44) 13.2 (0.53) 52,300   (1,730) 63,100 (1,850) 59,200 (1,590)
                                                                       
School locale                                                                      
City   (†) (†) 9,610   (268) 23.2   (1.90) 55.8 (2.11) 12.2   (1.46) 8.7   (1.17)   (†) (†) 10.8 (0.38) 14.8 (0.43)   (†) (†) 69,800 (1,390)
Suburban   (†) (†) 9,510   (229) 29.8   (2.19) 52.2 (2.04) 10.1   (1.14) 7.9   (1.06)   (†) (†) 10.5 (0.36) 13.8 (0.43)   (†) (†) 66,200 (1,530)
Town   (†) (†) 2,780   (205) 30.7   (3.76) 49.2 (4.10) 13.0   (3.67) 7.1   (1.96)   (†) (†) 9.4 (0.80) 16.1 (1.22)   (†) (†) 47,600 (2,310)
Rural   (†) (†) 6,060   (296) 52.8   (3.49) 38.5 (3.22) 5.0   (1.04) 3.6   (1.03)   (†) (†) 8.1 (0.53) 11.5 (0.72)   (†) (†) 46,100 (1,760)
—Not available.    
†Not applicable.    
!Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent.
‡Reporting standards not met (too few cases for a reliable estimate).    
1 Counts of principals in this table differ from totals appearing in some other tables because this table reflects counts of full-
and part-time principals, while other counts of principals are reported as full-time equivalents.
2 Constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index, prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis. Excludes principals reporting a salary of $0.
3 Education specialist degrees or certificates are generally awarded for 1 year's work beyond the master's level. Includes certificate of advanced graduate studies.    
4 Data include Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander.    
NOTE: Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding and survey item nonresponse.    
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), "Public School Principal Questionnaire" and "Private School Principal Questionnaire," 1993-94, 2003-04, and 2007-08. (This table was prepared July 2012.)

2012 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest