The Board of Trustees of the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) asked the Council of the Great City Schools, the nation's primary coalition of large urban school systems, to examine the staffing levels of the school system and determine whether the numbers of staff members employed were appropriate for a district serving as many students as DISD does. The Council was not asked to examine the organizational structure of the district itself, but to focus on staffing levels. The districts chosen were: (1) Broward County (Fort Lauderdale, Florida); (2) Chicago; (3) Duval County (Jacksonville, Florida); (4) Orange County (Orlando, (Florida); (5) Hillsborough County (Tampa, Florida); (6) Houston; and (7) Miami-Dade County (Florida). The survey data indicate that in the 2008-2009 school year, the DISD employed some 17,636 individuals (FTE) with general operating funds--including teachers--or about one staff member for every 8.9 students. This level constituted a slightly higher number of staff than the selected comparison districts. The data also show the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) individuals working in the central offices of the selected districts. The numbers indicate that Dallas ISD employed some 2,198 people in a districtwide capacity or about one staff member for every 71.5 students. Other comparison districts ranged from one central office staff member for every 58.4 students in Houston to one central office staff member for every 267.9 students in Chicago. These data suggest that the total number of individuals employed in a central office or regional role in the Dallas ISD is well within the range of the selected comparison districts and is not inordinately high or low. The data, moreover, show considerable variation as one looks at specific types of central office staff. Likewise, there is considerable range across the districts in the numbers of individuals with managerial or supervisory responsibilities for school leadership and campus administrative support. Houston reports having one such staff member for every 2,669.7 students, while Hillsborough County reports having one for every 29,361.3 students. Dallas, once again, is within the range of the selected districts with one such staff member for every 11,231.1 students. The Dallas schools are also within the range of the selected districts in terms of numbers of executive staff positions (1:14,294.2), teaching and learning staff (1:2,419.0), business services and operations staff (1:686.6), and central office support personnel (1:83.9). Appendices include: (1) Supplemental Data; (2) Strategic Support Team; and (3) About the Council. (Contains 17 exhibits.) [This report was submitted to the Dallas Independent School District by the Council of the Great City Schools.]