MIDLAND (WKZO) -- The conservative think tank Mackinac Center for Public Policy is out with its rankings of the pay of school superintendents around the state.  Kalamazoo Public Schools Superintendent Michael Rice is the third-highest paid, earning 280-thousand dollars in pay, benefits and perks.

The highest paid is in Utica, with total compensation for Utica Community Schools Superintendent Christine Johns at just under 301-thousand dollars a year.  Of that, 194-thousand dollars is her salary, with insurance, pension, travel expenses and other pay making up the rest.

The lowest-paid full-time superintendent is in Manistee Area Schools at 17,500-dollars a year.