By rssfeeds-admin In the same time period, teachers in rural schools saw their median salaries decrease between 4-5%. State Rep. Ed DeLaney (D-Indianapolis) and State Rep. Tonya Pfaff (D-Terre Haute) pushed for the LSA to study median salaries, something State Rep. DeLaney said needs to be increased.
“We’ve got to do more,” State Rep. DeLaney said. “We’ve got to get the beginning teachers up to maybe $55,000 a year…That gives more hope to people who are going to make a career out of it.”
According to Ball State University Economist Michael Hicks, Indiana falls behind all of its neighboring states when it comes to the average teacher salary except Kentucky.
“We’ve been cutting spending on schools, inflation-adjusted, for 15 years,” Hicks said. “If you look nationwide, the real challenge for us is the growth in this has been right near the bottom.”
According to the IDOE website, the state has more than 1,100 unfilled teaching jobs.
“[We’re] 39th in the nation in terms of educator salaries,” ISTA President Jennifer Smith-Margraf said. “We hear consistently from our members…if they are going to do things like have a family or buy a house or not have to work three and four jobs, that they’re going to have to take the skills they have and go seek other employment.”
State Rep. DeLaney said he doesn’t anticipate the IGA taking any further action to raise teacher salaries until the next budget cycle in 2027.
“I think we’re going to put the idea out there, put the information out there,” State Rep. DeLaney said. “I hope that we’ll shut off some negative conversations about teacher pay and start a positive one that will probably bear fruit in 18 months, not in six months.”
The final report from the Fiscal Policy Interim Committee did not include any recommendations for lawmakers to consider for the next legislative session.
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