NC teacher pay competitiveness (student loans, schools, utilities)

[go tribe!]

I am from OH, moving to NC for a teaching job, and have heard MANY people speaking up that the teacher pay is incredibly low here (those people are likely teachers and teacher families).

Coming from OH, it appears that starting salaries for NC teachers are very similar to those in OH (once adjusted for the lower cost of living). The difference lies in years of experience - while NC teachers can expect 500-700 increases a year on the pay scale, OH teachers easily get 1300-2000 increases per year. People argue that "the cost of living is higher in OH," but that is only if you are a homeowner in a nice suburb. I have lived their for years and gas, groceries, utilities, maintenance, and various other things are the same.

A lot of people argue that teacher salaries are too high already and that taxpayers should not have to keep footing the bill when schools already underperform. To a certain extent, I agree. In any other job, pay would not increase for a lack of job performance. However, if the state is interested in keeping qualified teachers, I think more needs to be given for years of experience. Teachers will start the same in OH and NC, but in 10 years, OH teachers will make over $15-20K more a year than a NC teacher with the same experience.

While I am not arguing the "fairness" of this, I am saying that NC must do more to keep qualified teachers. Today's graduates have a great deal of student loans as well, and the only way one can stay out of the red each month is with a higher salary. Some states have recognized this, NC has not. NC does offer a nice boost for National certification - but, on the flip side of job performance, no other profession requires advanced degrees and pays so little. NC will continue to lose good young teachers because, especially with student loan debt, the pay scale does not reward teachers accordingly.

There is a reason jobs are so plentiful in the South. While it is certainly more beautiful and the weather is great, it is difficult (and becoming increasingly difficult) to make it as a teacher, raise a family, or ever possibly own a house. Of course, this certainly applies more to teachers with student debt.