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Aug 30, 2011

"Love is more than a noun -- it is a verb; it is more than a feeling -- it is caring, sharing, helping, sacrificing." --William Arthur Ward

School Superintendent Gives Up $800k

Some people give back to their community. Then there's School Superintendent Larry Powell, who's literally giving back. As in $800,000 -- his expected compensation for the next three years. Until 2015, Powell will run 325 schools and 35 school districts with 195,000 students, all for $31,000/yr. "How much do we need to keep accumulating?" asks Powell, 63. "There's no reason for me to keep stockpiling money." The man who started his career as a high school civics teacher, who has made anti-bullying his mission, wants to ensure that his pet projects survive, and hopes his act of generosity will help restore faith in the government. There's even more to Powell's story: he contracted childhood polio, leaving him with lingering post-polio syndromes. But his view? "It's the most spectacular thing that has happened to me in all my life," Powell said. "People stepped up to help me be successful."