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School district · Arizona · LEAID 0403780

Higley Unified School District (4248)

Higley Unified School District (4248) spends $11,950 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable Arizona districts with a reliable figure. Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Higley Unified School District (4248) come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$64,700
Est. avg teacher salary

Near benchmark

$11,950
Per-pupil spending
12,882
Students enrolled
56th
Pct. in AZ
$64,700

Higley Unified School District (4248) spends $11,950 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable Arizona districts with a reliable figure. Estimated average teacher salary is $64,700, below the national average of $70,245, serving 12,882 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Lower per-pupil spending: Higley Unified School District (4248) spends $11,950 per pupil, in the lowest third among comparable Arizona districts with a reliable figure.
  • 56th percentile for Arizona
  • 48th percentile nationally
  • 34% 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.
  • Higley Unified School District (4248) ranks #66 of 152 Arizona districts by estimated teacher salary and #125 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
  • +22.8% 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, Higley Unified School District (4248)'s instructional payroll puts 15.2% into special education , 4.4 points above the state median of 10.8%. That heavier special-education share usually means more of the teacher-salary pool is tied to IEP-driven staffing than at a typical Arizona peer.

Program Higley Unified AZ median Gap
Regular program 80.0% 84.0% -3.9 pp
Special education 15.2% 10.8% +4.4 pp
Vocational programs 2.9% 1.7% +1.2 pp
Other programs 1.9% 0.0% +1.9 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 0403780 · FY2023.

LEAID 0403780 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

Higley Unified F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-INLINE Near state avg RANK-ST-MID P56 in state RANK-NAT-LOW P48 national PPE-LOW $12K/pupil ENR-LARGE 12.9K students INSTR-LOW 34% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Gilbert FY-2023-MID FY2023 book

FY2023: $64,700 estimated average teacher salary · P56 in Arizona · P48 nationally · 34% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Gilbert (+$707est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for Higley Unified

Salary neighbourhood · Higley Unified

Higley Unified sits mid-pack among in-state peers; the chart brackets it between the top and bottom pay poles (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 Higley Unified

Higley Unified School District (4248)'s estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$64,700 48th percentile higher than 48% 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. This district $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

What stands out about Higley Unified School District (4248)

  • Estimated teacher pay here moved +22.8% between FY2019 and FY2023, trailing Arizona's statewide +25.8% by 3.1 points, a growth rate faster than 50% of the 199 Arizona districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.

Arizona sits close to national prices

Nominal district estimate
$64,699.783

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
$64,223

-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 Higley Unified School District (4248)

What the Numbers Say About Higley Unified School District (4248)

Higley Unified School District (4248) is a mid-sized school district in Arizona, serving 12,882 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $11,950. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $64,700, placing the district in the lower-spending tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 0403780 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Arizona statewide average of $63,921, teacher pay in Higley Unified School District (4248) runs roughly in line with the state benchmark, a 1.2% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (7.9% differential). Among enrolling districts in Arizona, it pays more than 56% 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, Higley Unified School District (4248) reports $153.9M in total expenditure against $171.2M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 34% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $38.0M, special-education teacher pay is $7.2M.

How does Higley Unified School District (4248) compare?

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

Higley Unified School District (4248) $64,700
Mesa Unified District (4235) $67,420
Arizona avg $63,921
National avg $70,245

Higley Unified School District (4248) pays -4.0% less than Mesa Unified District (4235) · per-pupil $11,950 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, Higley Unified School District (4248) sits closest to Gilbert Unified District (4239); on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Sunnyside Unified District (4407). 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. Gilbert Unified District (4239)
  2. Nogales Unified District (4457)
  3. Sunnyside Unified District (4407)
  4. Queen Creek Unified District (4245)
  5. Scottsdale Unified District (4240)
  6. Crane Elementary District (4501)
  7. Lake Havasu Unified District (4368)
  8. Madison Elementary District (4270)
  9. Liberty Elementary District (4266)
  10. Humboldt Unified District (4469)
  11. Kingman Unified School District (79598)
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. Sunnyside Unified District (4407)
  2. Avondale Elementary District (4272)
  3. Buckeye Elementary District (4269)
  4. Catalina Foothills Unified District (4410)
  5. Florence Unified School District (4437)
  6. Fowler Elementary District (4273)
  7. Crane Elementary District (4501)
  8. Prescott Unified District (4466)
  9. Sierra Vista Unified District (4175)
  10. Pendergast Elementary District (4283)
  11. Vail Unified District (4413)

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Nationwide districts with profiles like Higley Unified

Two out-of-state peer sets for Higley Unified School District (4248): closest on enrollment (12,882 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($64,700 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

$171.2M
Total Revenue
$153.9M
Total Expenditure
$51.9M
Instruction Salaries
34% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$38.0M
Regular Program
$7.2M
Special Education
$1.4M
Vocational
$0.9M
Other Programs

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in Higley Unified School District (4248): the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 91% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 9% 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. Higley Unified School District (4248) places 53 of 128 comparably sized districts, squarely in the middle band the state average actually represents. 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

The bar behind each salary shows its magnitude within this Arizona sample (including Higley Unified). Hover or focus a value for the exact comparison.

Marana Unified District (4404)
$58,766
12,627 students
Queen Creek Unified District (4245)
$63,250
13,205 students
Tolleson Union High School District (4288)
$82,860
13,741 students
Cartwright Elementary District (4282)
$86,704
13,790 students
Amphitheater Unified District (4406)
$59,626
11,961 students
Kyrene Elementary District (4267)
$59,162
14,059 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 Higley Unified School District (4248)
What is the average teacher salary in Higley Unified School District (4248)?

The average teacher salary in Higley Unified School District (4248) is $64,700 (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 Higley Unified School District (4248) teacher pay compare to the Arizona average?

Higley Unified School District (4248) pays 1.2% more than the Arizona state average of $63,921. The district's average is $64,700.

How does Higley Unified School District (4248) teacher pay compare to the national average?

Higley Unified School District (4248) pays 7.9% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $64,700.

What is the per-pupil spending in Higley Unified School District (4248)?

Higley Unified School District (4248) spends approximately $11,950 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of Higley Unified School District (4248)'s budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 34% of Higley Unified School District (4248)'s total expenditure of $153.9M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for Higley Unified School District (4248)
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. Higley Unified School District (4248)'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.