Some good news and — and some bad — about teacher pay. See where NC now ranks nationally
A new report shows North Carolina is making gains on starting pay for teachers, but the state still ranks near the bottom nationally in salaries for both new and experienced educators.
The report released this week by the National Education Association ranks North Carolina 42nd in the nation in beginning teacher pay, up four slots from the prior year. But the NEA says North Carolina fell to 38th in the nation in overall teacher pay last school year and is projected to have dropped to 41st this school year.
The NEA salary rankings have been used as a measuring stick for legislators and education groups to gauge the adequacy of teacher pay.
“The latest data shows North Carolina again trailing our neighboring states like Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia on critical measures like per student spending and average teacher pay,” Tamika Walker Kelly, president of the North Carolina Association of Educators, said in a statement Thursday. “North Carolina even fell two spots in the teacher pay rankings to 38th.
“Until we raise teacher pay to at least the national average and fully-fund our public schools, North Carolina is giving our youngest generation less than they deserve.”
Gains in beginning teacher pay
The NEA says North Carolina’s average salary for a beginning teacher has risen to $40,136. That’s up from last year’s report, when the state was ranked 46th, with an average salary of $37,646.
State lawmakers have put more of a focus on raising salaries of beginning teachers than on pay for experienced educators. The state’s base salary for a new teacher is set to rise to $41,000 next school year.
The NEA says the national average starting teacher salary is $44,530.
Beginning teachers have a higher turnover rate than experienced educators.
NC falling in teacher pay rankings
NEA estimates that the average salary for North Carolina is now at $58,292 — up 3% from the 2022-23 school year. Despite the increase, the reports estimates North Carolina is now 41st in average teacher pay, down from 38th in the 2022-23 school year and 36th in the 2021-22 school year.
The only states that the NEA estimates are below North Carolina in average teacher pay are Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, South Dakota, Tennessee and West Virginia.
NEA pulled its North Carolina salary data from the state Department of Public Instruction. DPI includes state base pay, local salary supplements and additional pay that teachers may get from having an advanced degree or certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
Many North Carolina teachers say they make less than the state average.
Nationally, the NEA estimates the average teacher salary is now $71,699 —up 3% from last school year. But, after adjusting for inflation, the NEA says U.S. teachers are making on average 5% less than they did a decade ago.
What will state do to raise teacher pay?
Last year’s state budget provided teachers with an average raise of 7% over a two-year period. The biggest raises of more than 10% went to beginning teachers, while only being 3.6% for the state’s most experienced educators.
Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s new proposed state budget calls for an 8.5% raise in teacher pay this year, The News & Observer previously reported.
But the decision on any pay raises rests in the hands of the Republican-controlled General Assembly. The legislature is working with a $1.4 billion revenue surplus this year as it makes adjustments to the state’s $30 billion spending plan.
Republican legislative leaders have said they’re willing to look at boosting the teacher raises that were put into the budget last year, The N&O previously reported.
