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School district · Arizona · LEAID 0400520

Ajo Unified District (4409)

Ajo Unified District (4409) is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Arizona districts (391 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Ajo Unified District (4409) come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$69,838
Est. avg teacher salary

Above benchmark

$24,980
Per-pupil spending
391
Students enrolled
76th
Pct. in AZ
$69,838

Ajo Unified District (4409) is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Arizona districts (391 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $69,838, near the national average of $70,245, serving 391 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Smaller enrollment scale: Ajo Unified District (4409) is in the smallest third by enrollment among comparable Arizona districts (391 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
  • 76th percentile for Arizona
  • 59th percentile nationally
  • 17% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • Arizona ranks #29 of 49 on the salary estimate and #16 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • Ajo Unified District (4409) ranks #35 of 152 Arizona districts by estimated teacher salary and #9 of 152 by per-pupil spending. Safford Unified District (4218) pay #1 at $99,366 is not Red Mesa Unified District (4159) spending #1 at $38,950 per pupil
  • +28.7% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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Instructional payroll mix vs Arizona median

Among 213 Arizona districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Ajo Unified District (4409)'s instructional payroll puts 4.2% into vocational programs , 2.5 points above the state median of 1.7%. That heavier vocational share usually means career/technical programs claim more of the teacher-salary pool than at a typical Arizona peer.

Program Ajo Unified AZ median Gap
Regular program 82.4% 84.0% -1.6 pp
Special education 12.5% 10.8% +1.7 pp
Vocational programs 4.2% 1.7% +2.5 pp
Other programs 0.9% 0.0% +0.9 pp

Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 213 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 0400520 · FY2023.

LEAID 0400520 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

Ajo Unified F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-ABOVE +9% vs state RANK-ST-MID P76 in state RANK-NAT-MID P59 national PPE-HIGH $25K/pupil ENR-TINY 391 students INSTR-LOW 17% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Pima FY-2023-LIGHT FY2023 book

FY2023: $69,838 estimated average teacher salary · P76 in Arizona · P59 nationally · 17% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Deer (+$95est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for Ajo Unified

Salary neighbourhood · Ajo Unified

Ajo Unified already leads most of its in-state peer set; the chart plots it against the top and bottom pay poles for context (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).

est. salary
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey As of FY2023
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Ajo Unified

Ajo Unified District (4409)'s estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$69,838 Top 41% higher than 59% of 10,684 US districts

Show national distribution $30,000–$40,000: 155 US districts (1%). Below this entry. $40,000–$50,000: 1,360 US districts (13%). Below this entry. $50,000–$60,000: 2,382 US districts (22%). Below this entry. $60,000–$70,000: 2,402 US districts (22%). This entry sits in this band. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). Above this entry. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). Above this entry. $90,000–$100,000: 662 US districts (6%). Above this entry. $100,000–$110,000: 371 US districts (3%). Above this entry. $110,000–$120,000: 249 US districts (2%). Above this entry. $120,000–$130,000: 156 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $130,000–$140,000: 112 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $140,000–$150,000: 57 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $150,000–$160,000: 25 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $160,000–$170,000: 13 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $170,000–$180,000: 10 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $180,000–$190,000: 0 US districts (0%). Above this entry. Ajo Unified District (4409) $30,000 $190,000 every reliable-salary US district, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023

Ajo Unified in Arizona's upper-third pay band

Same 152 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows Ajo Unified District (4409) ranks #35 of 152 Arizona districts by estimated teacher salary and #9 of 152 by per-pupil spending. Safford Unified District (4218) pay #1 at $99,366 is not Red Mesa Unified District (4159) spending #1 at $38,950 per pupil

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

The same districts by per-pupil spending

Ajo Unified District (4409) is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Red Mesa Unified District (4159) leads spending at $38,950 per pupil; Safford Unified District (4218) leads pay.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

What stands out about Ajo Unified District (4409)

  • Enrolment fell from 437 to 391 students (10.5% down) across FY2019–FY2023 while the instructional salary pool per teacher went up. Districts on that path are usually holding staffing steady against a falling roll, which lifts the per-teacher figure without anyone getting a raise, so read this page's salary estimate alongside the enrolment line rather than on its own.
  • It is a very small district (391 students), where the enrollment-based salary estimate is more sensitive to staffing mix.

Arizona sits close to national prices

Nominal district estimate
$69,837.838

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

Arizona price level
100.7 / 100

BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.

National-price equivalent
$69,323

-1% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in Arizona sit close to the national average, so the nominal and national-price figures tell nearly the same story here. That is not true in the most and least expensive states.

Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how Arizona compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.

How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Ajo Unified District (4409)

What the Numbers Say About Ajo Unified District (4409)

Ajo Unified District (4409) is a small school district in Arizona, serving 391 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $24,980. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $69,838, placing the district in the high-investment tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 0400520 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Arizona statewide average of $63,921, teacher pay in Ajo Unified District (4409) runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 9.3% gap, and near the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (0.6% differential). Among enrolling districts in Arizona, it pays more than 76% of them. Arizona itself ranks #29 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, Ajo Unified District (4409) reports $9.8M in total expenditure against $9.4M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 17% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $1.1M, special-education teacher pay is $0.2M.

How does Ajo Unified District (4409) compare?

Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Arizona average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.

Ajo Unified District (4409) $69,838
Mesa Unified District (4235) $67,420
Arizona avg $63,921
National avg $70,245

Ajo Unified District (4409) pays +3.6% more than Mesa Unified District (4235) · per-pupil $24,980 vs $14,903

Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.

Data-derived comparison paths

Find comparable Arizona districts

On pay, Ajo Unified District (4409) sits closest to Pima Unified District (4220); on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Pinon Unified District (4390). These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.

Closest on estimated pay
  1. Pima Unified District (4220)
  2. Santa Cruz Valley Union High School District (4454)
  3. Fort Thomas Unified District (4221)
  4. Colorado City Unified District (4370)
  5. Naco Elementary District (4176)
  6. Baboquivari Unified School District #40 (4412)
  7. Sanders Unified District (4156)
  8. Palo Verde Elementary District (4275)
  9. Bagdad Unified District (4468)
  10. Williams Unified District (4193)
  11. Ash Fork Joint Unified District (4471)
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. Pinon Unified District (4390)
  2. Nadaburg Unified School District (4252)
  3. Beaver Creek Elementary District (4481)
  4. Grand Canyon Unified District (4194)
  5. Sanders Unified District (4156)
  6. Baboquivari Unified School District #40 (4412)
  7. Continental Elementary District (4416)
  8. Altar Valley Elementary District (4418)
  9. Colorado City Unified District (4370)
  10. Fort Thomas Unified District (4221)
  11. Ganado Unified School District (4157)

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near Ajo Unified District (4409)'s smaller enrollment

Two out-of-state peer sets for Ajo Unified District (4409): closest on enrollment (391 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($69,838 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.

Similar enrollment

Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).

Similar estimated salary

Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.

Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.

Revenue & Expenditure

$9.4M
Total Revenue
$9.8M
Total Expenditure
$1.7M
Instruction Salaries
17% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$1.1M
Regular Program
$0.2M
Special Education
$0.1M
Vocational
$0.0M
Other Programs

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in Ajo Unified District (4409): the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 76% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 24% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.

Arizona Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized Arizona districts belongs to Safford Unified District (4218) at $99,366. Ajo Unified District (4409) sits in the upper quarter of that field at 30 of 129, nearer the ceiling than the floor. On BEA's price parity Arizona sits near the national average, so its salaries need less adjustment than most; Virginia and Colorado are its nearest price peers.

View all Arizona districts →

Other Arizona Districts

Smaller-district sample from 153 Arizona peers; bar length shows pay magnitude within this enrollment band.

Sedona-Oak Creek JUSD #9 (4467)
$61,025
728 students
Fort Huachuca Accommodation District (4167)
$67,014
755 students
Eloy Elementary District (4448)
$55,174
787 students
Riverside Elementary District (4257)
$54,951
814 students
Tombstone Unified District (4168)
$61,770
864 students
Palominas Elementary School District 49 (4180)
$58,566
870 students

This is a sample of 6 from 153 Arizona districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about Ajo Unified District (4409)
What is the average teacher salary in Ajo Unified District (4409)?

The average teacher salary in Ajo Unified District (4409) is $69,838 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).

How does Ajo Unified District (4409) teacher pay compare to the Arizona average?

Ajo Unified District (4409) pays 9.3% more than the Arizona state average of $63,921. The district's average is $69,838.

How does Ajo Unified District (4409) teacher pay compare to the national average?

Ajo Unified District (4409) pays 0.6% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $69,838.

What is the per-pupil spending in Ajo Unified District (4409)?

Ajo Unified District (4409) spends approximately $24,980 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of Ajo Unified District (4409)'s budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 17% of Ajo Unified District (4409)'s total expenditure of $9.8M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for Ajo Unified District (4409)
Disclaimer & data sources

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher

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Editorial standards & source notes

According to the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) F-33 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, PlainTeacher's figures are computed directly, no number is typed in by an editor. Ajo Unified District (4409)'s salary and finance figures are computed directly from its FY2023 F-33 submission, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of FY2023.