Ackerman signs deal worth nearly $500,000 as Philadelphia CEO

Incoming Philadelphia schools chief executive Arlene Ackerman has inked a deal that could pay her about $500,000 in salary and benefits, a review of her contract shows.

Ackerman, who starts June 1, signed a five-year pact that would award her extra pay for hitting performance goals and an additional $100,000 for staying with the district until June 30, 2011.

Her base salary is $325,000 annually.

Ackerman's deal is in line with that of former CEO Paul Vallas, who left last year to head the New Orleans Recovery school district. Vallas earned a base salary of $275,000 the year he left, but his perks brought the annual package up to $516,869, slightly more than Ackerman's $494,000.

The package includes salary, performance bonus, pension and life insurance. She is also eligible for health benefits as a district manager and the same annual raises given to district teachers, as negotiated by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers.

Ackerman comes to Philadelphia with experience running the San Francisco and Washington, D.C. school districts. She will run the eighth largest school system in the country, with 167,000 students in 281 schools.