Schools Superintendent in Upscale New York District Rakes in More Than $500,000 a Year

Education sure does pay.

A schools superintendent on New York's Long Island is under fire for her annual pay: more than half a million dollars.

The base salary of Carole Hankin, who's in her 21st year as superintendent of the Syosset School District, is just over $400,000 a year, but with benefits factored in, her final haul is $542,000, MyFoxNY.com reports.

The Syosset district also pays 37 other employees more than $100,000 a year each, LongIslandSchools.com reports.

The district defended Hankin’s salary, indicating that she serves around 7,000 students in 10 schools, and they spent more than $18,000 per pupil in 2009.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo had a less favorable view, saying Hankin’s pay rate was an example of wasteful school spending.

Click to read more on this story from MyFoxNY.com.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.