Your State’s Highest Paid Employee is Likely an NCAA Coach
Let the #culture Tweets ensue.
According to a study done by Deadspin published yesterday, the highest compensated active public employee in 40 of 50 states is an NCAA coach. The list includes 27 football coaches, 13 basketball coaches, and one hockey coach (it adds up to 41 because Minnesota has a tie).
Our own Pennsylvania sits in the majority of the data, with Penn State paying Bill O’Brien approximately $2.3 million annually. To put that in perspective, Governor Corbett made $183,000 last year — the highest of any governor in the country but still almost 13 times less than O’Brien brings in.
Don’t fret too much — most of the compensation does not come from your tax dollars, but instead from revenue generated at each individual program. Football coaches are still technically public employees if they coach at state school, though (remember when Jerry Sandusky lost his state pension?).
You can read more about the study on Deadspin.
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