Louisville Metro, Kentucky / Louisville Free Public Library / Executive Director
Job-title file
Lead staff and operations — set priorities, allocate resources, and oversee program delivery.
3 employees hold this title in Louisville Free Public Library. Median total compensation for the role is $73,334, above the department median of $18,597.
Compared with the local labor market
Across all employers in the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN area, the median wage for Chief Executives — about 640 people — is $213,920. Louisville Free Public Library pays a median base salary of $73,334 for this role, 66% below that figure — below the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
The bar is the range of annual wages for Chief Executives across every employer in the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Louisville Free Public Library’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Chief Executives — about 204,350 people — is $213,990. Louisville Free Public Library’s median base salary is 66% below that national figure, below the 10th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Louisville Free Public Library is $73,334, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare departments
Executive Director is held in 18 Louisville Metro, Kentucky departments. In Louisville Free Public Library, the median of $73,334 ranks #12 of 18.
Median total compensation for the Executive Director role in other Louisville Metro, Kentuckydepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.
Compare jurisdictions
This role is reported in 16 jurisdictions. In Louisville Metro, Kentucky, the median of $74,788 ranks #13 of 16. See Executive Director across all of Louisville Metro, Kentucky →
Median total compensation for comparable Executive Director roles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.
Same department
Record list
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Executive Director/Louisville Free Public Library
Source-specific fields
Barbara Smith works as a Executive Director for Louisville Free Public Library. Barbara earned $74,632 in 2026.
Executive Director/Louisville Free Public Library
Source-specific fields
At Louisville Free Public Library, Heather Lowe serves as a Executive Director. Their 2026 pay totaled $73,334.
Executive Director/Louisville Free Public Library
Source-specific fields
At Louisville Free Public Library, Lee Burchfield serves as a Executive Director. Their 2025 pay totaled $70,716.