This publication, part 1 of a three-part report, is based on a survey conducted in fall 1978 that collected data on salaries scheduled and salaries paid for 23 select professional positions and 10 select support positions in public school systems throughout the United States. The questionnaire was mailed to 1,877 of the approximately 11,502 public school systems enrolling 300 or more pupils. All the systems enrolling 10,000 or more pupils were sent questionnaires. The total sampled group accounts for approximately 99 percent of all those employed in the public schools of the nation. A total of 1,100 of the school systems responded to the survey. This volume gives the salaries scheduled by school systems in 1978-79 for superintendents, deputy or associate superintendents, assistant superintendents, certain other central-office administrators, and for principals, assistant principals, classroom teachers, counselors, and other select professional personnel. For the first time this year, information is included on the number of school systems with salary schedules for professional position categories surveyed. Summary tabulations bring together data for analysis by enrollment strata, by categories of per-pupil-expenditure for current operations, and by geographic region of school systems. The school systems included in the system-by-system listing are arranged in alphabetical order by state without regard to enrollment size. (Author/LD)