Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

How Are Districts and States Using Pay to Staff High-Need Schools and Subjects?

  • 05/30/18

Paying teachers more to work in high-need schools and subjects—known as “differential pay”—is one of the most powerful tools school districts have on hand to secure the teachers they need. 

 While offering a higher salary for positions in high-need schools and subjects is most compelling, it is not the only differential pay action available. A review of a sample of districts and all 50 states plus D.C. shows that some entrepreneurial education leaders have adopted creative differential pay policies, offering incentives that range from up to a $20,000 bonus in D.C. for teaching in a high-needs school to mortgage assistance for teachers in both high-need schools and subjects in Connecticut. 

 In working to adopt and implement differential pay policies, both districts and states should look to these examples from their peers. 

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • A review of the 100 biggest school districts in the country along with the biggest district in each state shows that two out of three districts have some sort of policy that supports additional pay for teachers in high-need schools and of high-need subjects.
  • For both high-need schools and subjects, the most common way that districts provide additional pay is through an annual supplement rather than by raising teachers’ salaries.
  • The districts in this sample are nearly twice as likely to have policies to pay teachers more to teach high-need subjects, such as STEM, ESL, and special education, than to pay teachers more to work in high-need schools.
  • Among all 50 states and the District of Columbia, 35 have some policy regarding differential pay, leaving 16 with none. These include incentives such as loan forgiveness, mortgage assistance, and additional pay in the form of stipends or bonuses or salary awards.
  • States are more likely than districts to have policies encouraging teachers to work in high-need schools, but are less likely to have policies for teachers of high-need subjects. 

To explore the NCTQ Teacher Contract Database, visit: https://www.nctq.org/contract-database/

Featured

  • Round Rock ISD Completes New Early College High School

    Round Rock ISD near Austin, Texas, recently announced that construction is complete on a new, 46,500-square-foot campus for Early College High School, according to a news release. The new facility will allow the school’s students and staff to move from portables into a permanent building and increase its enrollment to 500.

  • College of the Desert Hits Construction Milestone on New Campus

    College of the Desert recently announced that the construction of its new Palm Springs Campus in Palm Springs, Calif., recently reached a major construction milestone, according to a news release. The college is partnering with general contractor C.W. Driver Companies, which recently “topped out” the facility by placing the final beam in its structure.

  • Stanford Completes Construction on Graduate School of Education Facility

    Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., recently announced the end of construction on a new home for its Graduate School of Education, according to a news release. The university partnered with McCarthy Building Companies on the 160,000-square-foot project, which involved two major renovations and one new construction effort.

  • Surging Demand for Student Housing Fuels Major Campus Investment Opportunities

    University leaders throughout the U.S. are accelerating plans to modernize and expand student housing as enrollment stabilizes and demand for on-campus living rebounds. Recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics indicates that total postsecondary enrollment is projected to grow through the end of the decade, with undergraduate enrollment alone expected to increase by more than 8 percent by 2030.