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A new national study shows teacher pay is not keeping up with inflation.
Wages for educators across the country have stagnated, according to a group of new reports from the National Education Association.
The report ranks West Virginia 47th in the nation for average teacher salary. The state legislature approved a 3% raise for teachers during their regular session earlier this year, but the inflation rate as of March is over 3%.
Dale Lee, co-president of teacher’s union Education West Virginia, said the low pay makes it difficult to retain teachers.
“When you can make anywhere from $5,000 to $20,000 more in many of our border counties by driving 30 minutes across the state line, you’re seeing younger teachers and even experienced teachers, more and more go out of state where they can make more money,” he said.
Lee has spent years lobbying the state government for increased teacher pay and school spending. He said without a comprehensive long-term plan to address the issue, the state’s outlook cannot improve.
“When we had a pay increase for a couple years, and then you have a year where there’s no pay increase, you actually lose ground,” Lee said. “We will drop from 47th in the nation back down to 49th in the nation.”
The low pay is also affecting teacher recruitment, with fewer students choosing to pursue education degrees. Lee said many education-specific majors like math are being discontinued because those students are finding jobs in more lucrative fields.
“We are seeing a decline in the number of students that are going into education in our colleges, particularly in many of our West Virginia colleges,” Lee said. “We just have to concentrate on getting salaries competitive with our surrounding states and with other professions. I mean, if you want to attract the best and brightest, you have to pay and be competitive.”
Despite all this, Lee remains positive about the state’s schools and its educators.
“If you want to make changes for the better in public education, go to the people who can advise you and tell you what changes need to be made, and those are the educators,” he said. “Then you have to fund it and give them the time and the resources to get the kids where you want them to be. Our educators are so good in West Virginia. I truly believe, if you give us the time and the resources available, we’ll not only get them where you want them to be, we’ll get them beyond that.”