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School district · Kansas · LEAID 2007500

West Elk

West Elk sits in the highest third of Kansas districts on estimated teacher pay at $85,991 (above 99% of in-state peers with reliable estimates). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for West Elk come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$85,991
Est. avg teacher salary

Well above benchmark

$34,799
Per-pupil spending
551
Students enrolled
99th
Pct. in KS
$85,991

West Elk sits in the highest third of Kansas districts on estimated teacher pay at $85,991 (above 99% of in-state peers with reliable estimates). Estimated average teacher salary is $85,991, above the national average of $70,245, serving 551 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • Upper-third pay in state: West Elk sits in the highest third of Kansas districts on estimated teacher pay at $85,991 (above 99% of in-state peers with reliable estimates).
  • 99th percentile for Kansas
  • 81st percentile nationally
  • 29% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • Kansas ranks #37 of 49 on the salary estimate and #30 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • West Elk ranks #3 of 249 Kansas districts by estimated teacher salary and #4 of 249 by per-pupil spending. Rock Creek pay #1 at $111,971 is not Moundridge spending #1 at $44,656 per pupil
  • +2.0% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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Instructional payroll mix vs Kansas median

Among 286 Kansas districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, West Elk's instructional payroll puts 38.2% into special education , 38.2 points above the state median of 0.0%. That heavier special-education share usually means more of the teacher-salary pool is tied to IEP-driven staffing than at a typical Kansas peer.

Program West Elk KS median Gap
Regular program 56.8% 92.6% -35.8 pp
Special education 38.2% 0.0% +38.2 pp
Vocational programs 4.9% 4.6% +0.3 pp

Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 286 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 2007500 · FY2023.

LEAID 2007500 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

West Elk F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-HIGH +47% vs state RANK-ST-TOP P99 in state RANK-NAT-MID P81 national PPE-HIGH $35K/pupil ENR-SMALL 551 students INSTR-LOW 29% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near South FY-2023-LIGHT FY2023 book

FY2023: $85,991 estimated average teacher salary · P99 in Kansas · P81 nationally · 29% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Arkansas ($7,714est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for West Elk

Salary neighbourhood · West Elk

West Elk 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 West Elk

West Elk's estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$85,991 Top 19% higher than 81% 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%). Below this entry. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). Below this entry. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). This entry sits in this band. $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. West Elk $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

West Elk in Kansas's upper-third pay band

Same 249 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows West Elk ranks #3 of 249 Kansas districts by estimated teacher salary and #4 of 249 by per-pupil spending. Rock Creek pay #1 at $111,971 is not Moundridge spending #1 at $44,656 per pupil

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

The same districts by per-pupil spending

West Elk is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Moundridge leads spending at $44,656 per pupil; Rock Creek leads pay.

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

What stands out about West Elk

  • Estimated teacher pay here moved +2.0% between FY2019 and FY2023, trailing Kansas's statewide +15.7% by 13.6 points, a growth rate faster than 10% of the 279 Kansas districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.
  • Enrolment grew 47.7% here, from 373 students in FY2019 to 551 in FY2023, against a national picture where far more districts shrank than grew over the same period. Growth of this kind typically arrives before the funding that follows it, so per-pupil figures often dip while a district absorbs it.
  • Its per-pupil spending of $34,799 is among the highest in the nation.

This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests

Nominal district estimate
$85,991.379

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

Kansas price level
89.9 / 100

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

National-price equivalent
$95,644

+11% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in Kansas run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.

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 Kansas 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 West Elk

What the Numbers Say About West Elk

West Elk is a small school district in Kansas, serving 551 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $34,799. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $85,991, placing the district in the high-investment tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 2007500 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Kansas statewide average of $58,516, teacher pay in West Elk runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 47.0% gap, and above the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (22.4% differential). Among enrolling districts in Kansas, it pays more than 99% of them. Kansas itself ranks #37 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, West Elk reports $19.2M in total expenditure against $13.5M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 29% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $2.3M, special-education teacher pay is $1.5M.

How does West Elk compare?

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

West Elk $85,991
Wichita $48,876
Kansas avg $58,516
National avg $70,245

West Elk pays +75.9% more than Wichita · per-pupil $34,799 vs $17,945

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 Kansas districts

On pay, West Elk sits closest to South Barber; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Quinter Public Schools. 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. South Barber
  2. Humboldt
  3. Abilene
  4. Marion-Florence
  5. Baxter Springs
  6. Deerfield
  7. Rawlins County
  8. Eureka
  9. Galena
  10. Stafford
  11. Lakin
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. Quinter Public Schools
  2. Sedgwick Public Schools
  3. Wamego
  4. Cunningham
  5. Pike Valley
  6. Syracuse
  7. Wellsville
  8. Burlington
  9. Stafford
  10. Circle
  11. Paola

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near West Elk's smaller enrollment

Two out-of-state peer sets for West Elk: closest on enrollment (551 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($85,991 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

$13.5M
Total Revenue
$19.2M
Total Expenditure
$5.6M
Instruction Salaries
29% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$2.3M
Regular Program
$1.5M
Special Education
$0.2M
Vocational

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 3 programs in West Elk: the regular program, special education and vocational programs. It reports no separate figure for other programs. Together they are 71% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 29% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.

Kansas Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized Kansas districts belongs to Rock Creek at $111,971. Only third place separates it from the ceiling: among the 152 districts of comparable size, West Elk is paid at the very top of the state, and the state average sits well below it. Kentucky and West Virginia are the states closest to Kansas on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.

View all Kansas districts →

Other Kansas Districts

Smaller-district sample from 248 Kansas peers; bar length shows pay magnitude within this enrollment band.

Oakley
$60,408
483 students
Northeast
$44,307
482 students
Barber County North
$46,365
478 students
Sterling
$59,134
474 students
North Ottawa County
$61,452
629 students
Mission Valley
$57,169
465 students

This is a sample of 6 from 248 Kansas districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about West Elk
What is the average teacher salary in West Elk?

The average teacher salary in West Elk is $85,991 (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 West Elk teacher pay compare to the Kansas average?

West Elk pays 47.0% more than the Kansas state average of $58,516. The district's average is $85,991.

How does West Elk teacher pay compare to the national average?

West Elk pays 22.4% above the national average of $70,245. The district average is $85,991.

What is the per-pupil spending in West Elk?

West Elk spends approximately $34,799 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of West Elk's budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 29% of West Elk's total expenditure of $19.2M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for West Elk
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. West Elk'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.