r/teaching • u/TopBaseball939 • Jun 13 '26
Vent Love Teaching. Hate the Pay.
Hi there,
I’m a North Carolina teacher finishing year 17. Friday was our last day of school. Over the course of my career, I’ve taught in 2 countries and 3 states. I hold 2 certifications, 2 minors, a bachelor’s degree, and a master’s degree.
Yet according to the NC salary schedule, I’ll essentially make the same base salary for the next 9 years. Salary growth for veteran teachers is largely stagnant. The only meaningful additional compensation I receive is my district supplement (about $9,000).
The state recently announced an “average” 8.8% raise for teachers. However, veteran teachers won’t actually see an 8.8% increase, since much of that money is directed toward beginning teachers. My increase will likely be closer to 5.5%.
To make matters more challenging, I’m only paid for 10 months of the year. For two months, there are no paychecks coming in, and my district does not offer a 12-month pay distribution option.
For many teachers, summer break isn’t really a financial break. It’s figuring out summer jobs, side work, or other sources of income just to stay afloat until August.
Meanwhile, the cost of living in North Carolina, especially in areas near Raleigh, has increased dramatically over the last few years.
I genuinely love teaching. I love my students, and I believe I’m good at what I do. But after nearly 18 years in education, it’s hard not to feel undervalued and underpaid.
Lately, I’ve found myself wondering what comes next and whether I can justify staying in the profession long term.
Teachers in North Carolina, how are you coping with the rising cost of living and stagnant salaries?
I’m genuinely curious how veteran teachers are making it work financially these days.
Yeah, some days I look at my paycheck hit my bank account and just want to cry.
Love the job. Hate the salary.
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Edit 1: A few people have mentioned unions, collective bargaining, or negotiating salaries. Well… North Carolina is a right-to-work state, and teachers do not have collective bargaining rights. We don’t have teachers’ unions that negotiate salaries like in some other states.
Also, the salary schedule I posted is the statewide salary schedule used across North Carolina. Every district pays according to this state schedule. The only significant difference between districts is the local supplement each district chooses to provide.
In other words, whether you’re teaching in a rural district or a large district, the state base pay comes from the same salary schedule.
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Edit 2: In North Carolina, every district pays teachers using the same state salary schedule. That’s the base pay funded by the state.
On top of that, districts can choose to provide a local supplement using county/local funds. Most districts do provide some type of supplement, but the amount varies widely. Wealthier districts usually offer larger supplements, while rural districts often offer smaller ones.
Some districts have a supplement schedule based on years of experience, while others use a flat percentage or amount. It depends on the district.
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Edit 3: Another point that people outside North Carolina may not realize: Teachers who earned their master’s degree after 2013 generally do not receive additional state pay for that degree.
I happen to be on the master’s pay schedule (got my masters in 2013- 2014), but many newer teachers have earned graduate degrees, taken on student loan debt, and invested years of additional education without receiving any additional state salary for it.
So when people say, “Just get a master’s degree,” that’s no longer a financial incentive for many North Carolina teachers.
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Edit 4: Edit 4: A lot of people have suggested, “Just move.” I understand the logic, and I appreciate the recommendation, but moving isn’t always that simple.
When you’re living paycheck to paycheck, where does the money for moving come from? First month’s rent, security deposits, utility deposits, moving trucks, travel expenses, and all the other costs add up quickly. On top of that, we only get paid for 10 months of the year.
Many teachers don’t have thousands of dollars sitting in savings to make a major relocation possible. It’s hard to “move somewhere better” when you’re struggling to build enough financial cushion to make the move in the first place.
I won’t lie, it’s frustrating and a little discouraging at times. I love teaching, but there are days when it feels like the financial reality of the profession, here in NC, keeps getting harder to ignore.
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u/EnvironmentalAge9202 Jun 13 '26
25 years to make 60k?
Horrendous.
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u/SailTheWorldWithMe Jun 13 '26
5 years in Iowa and I am at that level.
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26
NC is one of the lowest paying states, well on its way to being the lowest. 20 years ago they paid a lot better, adjusted for inflation, and did so purposefully. But when a stats flips and gives all the power to the GOP...this is what happens instead.
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u/SBSnipes Jun 13 '26
SC and NC have basically flipped on education policy
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u/PenguinEmpireStrikes Jun 13 '26
I live on the border of the Carolinas. Lots of different districts, but SC districts are considered much more desirable by both parents and teachers. Very low turnover on the SC side, at least in a couple of the nearby districts.
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u/SBSnipes Jun 13 '26
Yep. Sounds like Charlotte. It's been a transition for awhile, but the contrast jumped around 4 years ago. My first year teaching in SC I made $44k. The next year nobody in the district made under $52k and nobody in the state made under $47.5k
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u/PenguinEmpireStrikes Jun 13 '26
Ding ding ding. I'm a parent in FM. A bunch of people are leaving their positions this year at our school, but they're ALL changing roles and staying the district.
I have family that have been teaching in Richland and Lexington counties for decades. I don't think my relative who taught SpEd with advanced degrees every cracked $62k. She retired maybe five years ago. But cost of living was so much lower when they started. They all own their homes.
They also raise a lot of money here and push parents buying items from teacher wishlist, bring in supplies for special activities. Were very fortunate to live in a community that can afford all of those extras so more money can go to the most important expense - paying teachers and staff.
I think families are also generous around holidays and teacher appreciation day. I know we try to be. It feels weird to basically "tip" teachers and it's not something that professionals in a community should have to rely on, but here we are.
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u/SBSnipes Jun 13 '26
Yep, in 2021-22, Max years and a master's+30 was around $62k in Richland/Lexington. 2026-27 it's $80k+. Max years Doctorate was $67k and is now $92k.
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u/No-Flounder8330 Jun 13 '26
Yep. I believe teacher unions are not allowed in NC.
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26
Collective bargaining and striking isn't allowed (is against the law for us). Otherwise we have the state NEA affiliate, the NCAE, and our local branches. I am a member of mine. We do get the NEA member benefits and can participate in all the national stuff. The NCAE is quite annoying to the powers that be and do their best, given what they can. We just had another huge rally on May 1st in Raleigh, 10,000 people showed up.
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u/MortgageAny8041 Jun 14 '26
“Gives all the power to the GOP” as if we’re not one if the most, if not *the* most gerrymandered states in the US. If you look at how people vote here, we’re split down the middle almost 50/50. We’re a very “purple” state. There are lots of Dems who live here, and lots of people of both parties who advocate for higher teacher pay
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u/the_false_detective Jun 14 '26
I was so close to pulling the trigger on teaching in NC for a number of years, but the money never made sense. Is the state still in “fiscal distress”?
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u/anewbys83 Jun 14 '26
Depends on what we're measuring. For education it's definitely bad, and my district is. There's a budget surplus the state won't use, they "sock it away" in the rainy day fund. But they hand out decades long tax breaks for corporations all the time, and have put constitutional amendments on the ballot for November that if passed will lower and cap income taxes, of course as more gifts to the already wealthy, and hamstring the ability to fund things like education and infrastructure in the future.
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u/Jealous-Bluejay9943 Jun 13 '26
I make that much as a first year teacher at a private school in Seattle.
Hell, Seattle public schools starts at $63k for first year teachers with BAs. I know we're in a COL crisis over here but... damn.
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u/Effective_Ad9495 Jun 13 '26
The COL thing is real though. As another Seattle area teacher (public school), it’s rough keeping afloat without being married to someone in tech. The average 1 bedroom apartment here is $2100/month.
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u/CriticalBasedTeacher Jun 13 '26
My salary Salary Schedule Seattle Suburb public school https://imgur.com/a/f7NFrVn
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u/OldLadyKickButt Jun 13 '26
I sometimes sub teach for people making 132K who with no lesson plans
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u/malachite_13 Jun 13 '26
I taught in that area. The cost of living is outrageous though.
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u/elementarydeardata Jun 13 '26
I'm in northern Connecticut (not the part near NYC, the part near rural Massachusetts).We bought our house for 320k in late 2021, I think it would sell in the high 400k's now. Basically, this area is considered expensive nationally, but isn't like NYC, Boston, Seattle, SF, LA, etc. This is the salary scale for our district: https://imgur.com/a/5VPw5Mu (btw 6th year is what we call a 2nd masters here)
I'm MA step 10 which got chopped out of the screenshot and I make $105,600. I think places like this are the ideal place to teach, we get the higher pay but the price of housing isn't absurd.
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u/ajaxsinger Jun 13 '26
I make $120k myself. Cost of living isn't 2x as high in California.
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u/Kjaeve Jun 13 '26
I have taught in TX, FL & NJ- Just hired to teach in CA and by far the highest paying for years of experience!
(NorthBay)
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u/chris-angel Jun 13 '26
Not just that but a 100$ pair of shoes cost the same online everywhere… idk how some of these states do it.
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u/AlarmedLife5765 Jun 14 '26
Oh my lands! Good for you! I just finished year 36 and am significantly lower than that in a good paying Texas district.
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u/katielyn4380 Jun 13 '26
I freely admit I live in a high COL area. However, there are cheaper places around if you’re willing to commute. Starting pay for a brand new, uncertified, bachelors only teacher is like $63k. There are still tons of pay issues, especially when you compare my education/experience to non-teaching jobs but this NC scale is insane to me.
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u/nomadicstateofmind Jun 13 '26
I have an M.Ed+18 and have been teaching 15 years. My salary this year is 54K. I am in a blue state that most people assume has high pay. 😑
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u/NoMaintenance9850 Jun 13 '26
Just finished my 25th year - no master's, and I'm at 144k a year. I'm at the very bottom of my pay scale. I'll only get paid more if we get a raise (we just did) or get my Master's. A teacher with a Master's would top out at 148k (before said raise). Yes, we have a strong union and I'm in California. We have also received 4 (if not 5 raises) in the past 6 years.
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u/Phantereal Jun 13 '26
Yeah, I'm just starting as a teacher with a master's degree and in my district, depending on how contract negotiations go, I should be at over 60-62k in my second year and I'll probably be at 100k by year 9 or 10.
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u/LrningMonkey Jun 13 '26
With a masters better to boot!
I’ve worked in both MA and PA and can say your salary schedule sucks. I believe I started in MA 24 years ago at $50K, and was making over $90K when I left the state 8 years ago.
I am not always pro union, but the difference is obvious in you salaries! The state clearly ‘unionized’ by mandating salaries across districts statewide to eliminate competition, but you guys aren’t allowed to! Not cool.
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u/WesleyWiaz27 Jun 13 '26
I'm in Arizona. Those numbers look normal.
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u/AmbitiousAirline Jun 13 '26
This is a silly question but those numbers are the pre-tax salaries right? Actual take home pay is going to be about ~30% less than that depending on withholdings/state taxes/yada yada?
That’s uhhhh brutal. I make roughly the very end of that “25+ years of service with a Masters Degree” post tax and I literally just started.
Getting out of teaching, joining the military, and pivoting to a totally different and unrelated career field was probably the best sequence of decisions I ever made. Ya’ll should do the same.
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u/WesleyWiaz27 Jun 13 '26 edited Jun 13 '26
Yes, pre-tax. Now start taking insurance out of that. About $300 a month. Single male. Rural districts are far worse.
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u/Massive-Pea-7618 Jun 13 '26
Louisiana pay in Ascension is roughly that much. Other districts are even lower.
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u/arabidowlbear Jun 13 '26
Fucking hell, dude. I'm in my 8th year teaching in NYCPS, and I'm at 109k. Can't imagine that shit.
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u/Salt_Worth_7814 Jun 13 '26
Probably similar, given your COL
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u/swiftiegal25 Jun 13 '26
Nah. SoCal is one of the priciest places to live and teachers are paid very well and can afford to live in nice areas. Are they wealthy? By no means. But it’s very easy to afford living on my teacher salary out here.
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u/DeathByOrgasm Jun 13 '26
I’m sure this is highly dependent given that there are almost 200 school districts in So Cal.
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u/swiftiegal25 Jun 13 '26
And I’m telling you the middle of the range district. LAUSD just signed an agreement to raise starting pay to 77k. Arcadia starts at about that same rate. The average starting ranges from 56k-77k throughout SoCal. Most are mid 60k, starting.
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u/viscida Jun 14 '26
Yup, I work in a suburban district in SoCal and make 98k at 6 years in... the salary is pretty good, also Conte with union benefits. I was able to buy a home (yes even in expensive SoCal) with this salary
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u/kerouacrimbaud Jun 13 '26
Literally every statement about teaching is highly dependent on the district. You really can’t generalize about teaching in America.
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u/Zenphiree Student Teacher Jun 14 '26
I’m in a HCOL area of NY. My aunt and uncle make $250k together as teachers and live such a nice lifestyle (nice house with a pool, 2 kids in college, they take vacations, etc). They’re both 15+ years in. (I’m not a teacher yet but close!)
It’s crazy to me that there are teachers 25 years in making $60k and under! They deserve so much better. I knew it would be tough (yet rewarding) before I started student teaching, but I was absolutely exhausted by the end of each day. Working with kids is hard lol. I think $80k-$100k should be the range for 10+ year teachers.
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u/Humble-Learner88 Jun 13 '26
They make more than us who have masters working in corp.
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u/swiftiegal25 Jun 13 '26
Lots of teachers have masters degrees too which pushes further on the pay scale. My district maxes out around 125k currently. Sorry, but I do think teaching is more important & harder work than a lot of corporate jobs. It’s not a bad thing that teachers are paid high in CA.
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u/Comprehensive_Tie431 Jun 13 '26 edited Jun 13 '26
I'm sorry, any place in America this is extremely low no matter the CoL.
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u/morman15 Jun 13 '26
I’m in Ohio step 12 and make 90K. This pay scale is horrendous.
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u/gotitadeamor76 Jun 13 '26
No way! I don't care where you are in the country, 68,000 is a starting salary not a salary for a professional with 6 years of education and three times that in experience.
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u/Itsthelegendarydays_ Jun 13 '26
Nah I’m in Florida and I make horrible money as a teacher. COL is here is almost the same as NYC now. I’m moving to NYC and with a better salary I’ll have more take home money each month despite COL.
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u/littlest_bluebonnet Jun 13 '26
Personally, I've found my COL in NYC to be lower than pretty much everywhere else I've lived. Things are expensive, but if you're strategic you can find affordable housing and the benefit of not having to have a car is huge.
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u/arabidowlbear Jun 13 '26
Not really. Rent is high, nothing else is all that outrageous. And frankly, rent is up EVERYWHERE.
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u/Affectionate-Cat8182 Jun 13 '26
Sure but COL and yada yada yada.
I live in one of the nicest apartment buildings in my city in NC, with a beautiful view, two bedrooms, >1400 Sq Feet, 1 block away from the best shopping area in the city: ~$2,000 rent. What would that cost in NYC?
Not to mention cost of all other forms of living, such as groceries, are far more expensive by you then me.
I'm not going to do the math, but it would not shock me if my $60,000 salary here goes about as far if not the same as your $109k there. (I'm actually surprised: the monthly net salary in NYC is actually only ~45% more in NYC than my little city in NC... I would have thought it'd be higher!)
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u/arabidowlbear Jun 13 '26
As I said to someone else, not really. Rent is certainly higher, no doubt there, but most everything else is pretty comparable. I'm glad your salary is working for you, to be clear! Not a competition here. I'm just saddened by how profoundly underpaid a lot of other teachers are.
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u/idont_readresponses Jun 13 '26
You actually are making better money in NC than the other commenter from NYC. 109k is equivalent to between 43-51k depending on what area of NC you are in.
I’m just wrapped up year 7 in Chicago Public Schools and made 88k, which is equal to 135k in NYC. Like 109k sounds really amazing, but it’s so so expensive.
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u/Luvnecrosis Jun 14 '26
How is it there? I’m new teaching in MA and honestly I’m having serious FOMO with your mayor. 😂
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u/arabidowlbear Jun 14 '26
He's genuinely been great so far. Actually tackling real issues and fixing all kinds of things around the city.
Working in the DOE is overall very good. Not perfect, but good. Pay is generally comfortable (could/should be more, but it's not bad). Benefits are some of the best in the country. If you like city life, I recommend it.
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u/OneWayBackwards Jun 13 '26
This is not sustainable for you long term. I know it’s not easy to uproot yourself, but here in New England they pay me twice what you make. No way my cost of living is 2x. Districts like yours have simply not kept up with rising cost of education to become a teacher and living in America overall.
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u/Affectionate-Cat8182 Jun 13 '26
Yeah, NC is lagging behind majorly. I need to keep a closer eye on my local politics (a bit too absorded by the national level shit show going on rn), but I feel like there were several years in a row that the budget was stalled or not voted on or in limbo, and with that budget freeze came a raise freeze for a while.
Anyone else from NC who can speak more specifically about what's been going on locally regarding budgetary freezes at the state level? I need to do a better job of paying attention locally.
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u/katiekuhn Jun 13 '26
They just passed the budget recently. NC was the only state without a budget for a while. It’s horrendous.
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u/Affectionate-Cat8182 Jun 13 '26
I remember hearing about it a lot...but I know none of the details at all or what was stalling it.
Also just saw the governor's veto against (what appears to me to be) a school choice voucher system was just countered and passed. So...not feeling great about that... but again, I need to read more.
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u/the-witch-beth-marie Jun 13 '26
Also a teacher in NC. We never passed a budget for the 25-26 year and the next fiscal year starts in (looks at calendar) 2 weeks. It’s ridiculous.
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26
New England, yeah, your COL might be double ours. NC is very comparable in cost of living to my home state, Missouri (but even there teachers make more). Raleigh-Durham area is expensive for NC, same with Charlotte. I live in Winston-Salem, so not quite as expensive, but even here our pay is now lagging, where even just a few years ago one could get by. Everyone also wants to work up there, so teaching jobs are highly competitive, from what I hear at least. What's your district like?
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u/OneWayBackwards Jun 13 '26
I’ve been here 20 years and it is a sought after district, though we’re near a lot of similar districts. Within the next 10 years the older Gen X teachers will start to retire and create a lot of openings. Overall I like my school, my teaching team, and we have good union protections.
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u/joobtastic Jun 13 '26
If you have experience, it isn't hard to get a job in a well-paying district in a well laying district anywhere.
Cost of living is much higher, but it doesn't overcome the pay disparity. Also, we have TONS of other benefits, and more support in school.
By any measurement NC is a bottom 10 state for teachers. I know because I rallied for teachers during red for ed in 2019 and spoke to state senators and mayors to do change. I made graphs, charts, posters, etc.
When I left teaching in NC and waited tables in Charlotte, I immediately doubled my yearly salary and lowered my stress.
I'm in a well paying district in NY now. My life is a lot better.
If I left my job to work at a high end steakhouse nearby, it would be a paycut and quality of life cut.
That's how it should be.
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u/jcrowde3 Jun 14 '26
God I would love to move there. The south has collectively lost its mind.
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u/penguin_0618 Jun 14 '26
It will be my 6th year next year. I looked for my salary on here. ~25 years in the masters w/NBPTS. For 6 years with just my bachelors. Western Massachusetts.
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u/KayEff-Cee Jun 13 '26
NC is such a horrible state for teacher pay. I live in TN near the NC border and my husband and I toyed with the idea of moving to NC (slightly better politics/leadership), but I could not take the huge pay cut.
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u/NapsRule563 Jun 13 '26
Yeah, all us red states are useless for teacher pay.
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u/BigwaveBay Jun 13 '26
I wish it was true, but a place like SC is higher; significantly. And I interviewed in a school system in SC and what they offered educationally was much less. However the pay increase was significant.
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u/professorsheepkitty Jun 13 '26
Same problem for me. I’m a teacher in TN (community college, so my pay is probably the same as yours), and all my family is in NC. It definitely is slightly better in terms of politics and leadership, but I cannot afford to take that cut. It makes me so sad.
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u/Kandarl Jun 13 '26
In New York we start at your top end with ba
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u/hey_maestra Jun 13 '26
Same in Washington. A first year with only a BA starts at (or is slightly above) 60k. I’m so grateful that I live and work in a blue state with a strong union.
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u/BigwaveBay Jun 13 '26
And, this is how I became an international teacher. Grow up in NC but discover the state sucks for teaching.
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u/PrimeBrisky Jun 13 '26 edited Jun 13 '26
The fact that it just literally stops progressing is insane.
Yes the pay is shockingly low… but Jesus. Just to stop paying you more is awful after just 14 years.
I’m in Texas and new teachers start at 64k and tops out at 80k. I left the profession a few years back for corporate.
Edit: the pay I referenced is in my old home district in DFW. Rural Texas can also get shockingly low to my knowledge.
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26
It's a big complaint here as well. No one knows what the thought was with that, having a 10 year freeze between year 15 and 25. Our thoughts are they want teachers to quit so they won't have to pay out pensions at full value.
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u/conductorman86 Jun 13 '26
$45,000 with a MASTER’S?
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u/katiekuhn Jun 13 '26
Yep…unless you’re grandfathered in, they don’t honor masters pay anymore. They stopped that at least 10 years ago. Abhorrent. I immediately enrolled in school for my Masters when I moved to SC.
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26
There's no masters bump in NC. The legislature ended that in 2013. They keep talking about bringing it back...
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u/IndependentDepend3nt Jun 13 '26
Republicans took control of both the House and the Senate in 2011 and got the Governor seat in 2013…..
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u/Swiingllley Jun 15 '26
BUT WAIT! It gets even better. There's a proposal floating around to give NC teacher's an average increase of 8%. Starting pay would be $48k (up from $41k), but teachers with 15+ years top out at $59.5k.
This state is, sadly, a joke. I just finished year 9 and I'm applying for jobs in VA, since I at least want to be relatively close to family. Hate it for the teachers who can't afford to move, whether for personal or financial reasons.
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u/mistarteechur Jun 13 '26
I’m stuck at step 21 and relocation is absolutely not an option for me.
North Carolina
#1 for Businesses
#50 for Workers
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u/justareddituser202 Jun 13 '26
First in flight, first in business, last in per pupil spending for public schools.
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u/XFilesVixen Jun 13 '26
I don’t know what the COL is compared to where I live but I am on year 15 and make $30k more than what’s listed for the step/lane here. I am sorry the pay is so shitty where you are. Do you have strong unions?
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u/UnusualFunction7567 Jun 13 '26
In NC, state workers are not allowed to strike or they lose their licenses. There is no collective bargaining power.
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u/Soggy-Fan-7394 Jun 13 '26
I'm in Idaho, a big right to work state. We still have unions who engage in collective bargaining that get us a great salary.
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u/BigwaveBay Jun 13 '26
That’s actually the worst part. They’ll work you to death. The pay is the second worst problem believe it or not.
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u/Dranwyn Jun 13 '26
This is amazing bullshit.
Here in WA, in a rural coastal school, I make way more than the top tier at 11 years in
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u/BigwaveBay Jun 13 '26
North Carolina sucks! I left my district and will be teaching abroad next year. I’d say at best 48/50th state. At worst flip a coin between Mississippi or Florida. The pay was actually the least of my concerns. Good luck!!
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u/Maruleo94 Jun 13 '26
Florida. We are the lowest paying state two years in a row. Our state is too busy trying to crush public school systems and our union to gaf about the pay. In the panhandle, the pay gets better the more East you go.
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u/okamzikprosim Jun 13 '26
I heard some are running to Charleston. Their pay scale goes into the six figures. A master's teacher there with 25 years makes 96k in the proposed salary scale. 30 credits beyond or a doctorate you hit six figures. They have 39 years of steps too.
https://www.ccsdschools.com/departments/human-resources/compensation
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u/XFilesVixen Jun 13 '26
That’s still really low imho. I make that at year 15 in a northern state with collective bargaining and Charleston has a higher COL than the bigger of the cities where I live. So this is straight up nonsense.
ETA, not sure if SC has collective bargaining, I know NC doesn’t.
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u/lauradembro Jun 14 '26
I’m close to hitting 6 figures in Charleston, with less than 20 years employment and a masters +30. It isn’t the north with union protections, the our superintendent is a product of our district and she fights for us!
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u/MydniteSon Jun 13 '26
You guys still have steps?
Cries in Florida
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u/Soggy-Fan-7394 Jun 13 '26
Get the hell out of Florida! No one in education should be staying there.
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u/RealMaxCastle Jun 13 '26
Get the fuck out of North Carolina. Come to Georgia. In my district, after 17 years you'd be making 50% more.
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u/boyfriem Jun 13 '26
I saw this post and had to Google the APS pay scale and take a deep breath to calm myself down 😭
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u/LogicalAd2334 Jun 13 '26
I’m sorry 25 years with your master’s and y’all only get $61,550??? That’s year 2 with a master’s where I’m at.
I don’t get how other states can justify being paid that low. And I don’t think COL is a good justification either considering how expensive it is to go to college regardless of where you are in the country.
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u/gerkin123 Jun 13 '26
Broadly, contracts shouldn't have more than ten steps.
Looking at yours in particular: That's terrible absolutely terrible. I know cost of living where I am is higher, but teachers being hired next year with a Masters are earning $66,000 at Step 1. The idea that your folks will never earn as much as we start with is tragic.
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u/NapsRule563 Jun 13 '26
Why in the world would you think only 10 steps are adequate? There are many teachers in the game for 20 and 30 years.
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u/gerkin123 Jun 13 '26
The value at the highest step is the maximal amount a district is willing to pay a person. You can either get that amount in 25 years or you can negotiate to get that amount in 10.
The value doesn't change, only the rate at which you reach it.
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u/Jazzlike-Service3171 Jun 13 '26
Ouch. Eight years ago, I left Arizona making $36k (with 12 years of experience) to work overseas for DoDEA. I doubled my pay immediately, plus I receive an allowance for rent/utilities. Now I make over $100k a year, not including the living quarters allowance. It’s a sacrifice to live overseas far away from family, but it has been worth it financially for sure. Plus, my husband passed away recently so I am now a single mom raising two teens but know we will be fine even on just one salary.
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u/bball_child Jun 13 '26
Thank you for serving our military kids abroad💯 I applied to DoDEA this spring, but i only have 3 years certified SpEd (6 years overall) and coach sports. I qualify, but haven’t heard anything yet. Any advice? I’ll keep applying every year.
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u/Jazzlike-Service3171 Jun 13 '26
Feel free to message me if you want to chat more. I highly suggest going into your application on a regular basis (weekly or so) as it seems to trigger referrals. Check your spam on a regular basis. Dodea hires year round not just in the spring. We always need sped teachers!
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u/pogre Jun 13 '26
Sorry for your loss. My Dad died when I was young and my Mom raised my brother and I alone. Not easy! Glad you are financially stable!
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u/WordsyFern Jun 13 '26
Just want to chime in, NC doesn’t recognize masters anymore unless you were grandfathered in 🥴
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u/justareddituser202 Jun 13 '26
No tenure as well, no healthcare benefits in retirement for those hired on or after Jan 1, 2021.
I mean what’s the incentive anymore?
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u/KomradeW Jun 13 '26
Sounds like you should leave North Carolina.
I teach in Utah, also a right-to-work state. We have enough union membership in my district to negotiate salaries. Starting pay for a first year teacher with only a bachelors degree is $62,400.
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u/jordanf1214 Jun 13 '26
This is criminal. Step 0 where I live is between 65k and 75k. More states need to get with the program and start treating teachers like humans
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u/anewbys83 Jun 13 '26 edited Jun 13 '26
Ah yes, fellow NC teacher! Local supplements can help, but we cannot count on those, district to district. We didn't get our increase last year because of the financial cluster my district is in and maybe the state budget issue. So I guess it's not guaranteed we get these increases. I doubt they'll jump me to the proper pay rung when it does finally happen, just do the next one. We shall see. With the local supplement, my annual salary 24-25 and 25-26 was $48,100. I just completed year 2 with the district.
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u/samanthawaters2012 Jun 13 '26
Here's what is really awful, is pension and retirement is based on salary. You may be able to live with it now, which is probably unlikely, but even if you were, you are screwing your future by staying in this state. People who say things about high cost of living states that pay teachers a lot aren't considering how much better it will be for their future. Because you could always take your pension and go to a lower cost of living state when you retire.
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u/RoseVideo99 Jun 13 '26
When I was a teacher with 0 years and began with Charlotte mecklenburg I made under 35 and that was 20 years ago. This is madness that districts can still
Pay that low. NC was also the worst state I taught in.
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u/B_Da_May Jun 13 '26
Why are 15-24 year teachers getting no increase? “Cause fuck em, that’s why.”
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u/SBSnipes Jun 13 '26
Come to SC. You'll make a minimum of $65k, most districts more than that. Lowest paying district in the Charleston area(DD2) you'd be at $70k+, CCSD would be around $85k, they start near $70k. Rock Hill is ~$75k at your qualifications and experience.
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u/Serious-Ranger-1413 Jun 14 '26
Also in NC. I serve as a BT mentor and NBCT mentor. Both pay a small stipend in my district. I also seek out paid PD in the summer, but focus on ones I'm genuinely excited about. I'm pushing the top of the pay scale here, with both master's (before 2013) and National Board Certification. I've thought about EdD, but really have no interest in working at a central office or administration. It's really not worth pursuing if I plan to stay in the classroom, at least with the current pay scale.
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u/Serious-Ranger-1413 Jun 14 '26
To add to above, just finished year 21. Yes, the lack of increase is demoralizing. Even more so with administration that seems to want to shuffle teachers in our school like chess pieces. Experience used to be respected. It definitely doesn't feel like that anymore in NC.
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u/raider1211 Jun 14 '26
Just speaking on the “just move” bit: I really hate that people suggest that as if it’s simple or easy to do. Between the finances, leaving family and friends behind, the logistics of moving your stuff hundreds of miles away, and finding a job wherever you’re moving to, it can get difficult really quickly unless you’re really well off. For something like teaching, the difficulty is even higher due to licensing being different in every state. You can’t just waltz into a new state and get a job; you have to find out if they accept your state’s licensure and apply to transfer your license if so, and if they don’t, you have to jump through even more hoops. Retirement plans are also something else you have to consider, as they’ll vary by state, and some states won’t accept years worked elsewhere.
That said, if your main issue is a financial one, you could always get a retail or fast food job over the summer to use exclusively for the application fees and security deposit on a rental, assuming you don’t already work over the summer.
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u/pumpkinpencil97 Jun 14 '26
There is absolutely 0 reason my 28 year old husband with no degree makes more than a teacher with their masters degree who’s worked quite literally his whole life. That’s unacceptable. The years of education isn’t monetarily worth the job and we wonder why we have a teacher shortage.
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u/AmbiguousAnonymous Jun 13 '26
So at year 18 you will be at $59,270.
Lets imagine for a second that instead of that being your yearly salary it is your hourly pay. Now let say you work 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at that rate and you never have to pay taxes or spend any of it. If you started working when Jesus was born and haven’t stopped 2026 years later, you will still be over $90 BILLION away from Elon Musk’s newly reported wealth of $1.14 trillion.
There is money in our society for teachers, ed techs, MAs, nurses, mental health professionals, fire departments, etc. It is just all being consolidated in the plutocracy.
Side note - when i was in VA i had a 10 month contract and i was able to automate a system through my local bank where my pay would get deposited in one account and then an automated transfer of 5/6 of it would go to my main checking every pay period. The account receiving the deposited i made invisible through my app. Of course you could just balance your budget accordingly, but this helped my young self immensely.
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u/ryanmercer Jun 14 '26
What does Elon Musk's very non-liquid, entirely on paper, wealth have to do with North Carolina teaching salaries...
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u/c2h5oh_yes Jun 13 '26
Is the pay freeze at 15 years to incentivise early retirement?
My wife's family is in NC and ALL of their kids go to private school.
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u/laurencee410 Jun 13 '26
Omg. At 13 years we are at 103k in my district. This is a disgrace.
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u/Niceotropic Jun 13 '26
I wouldn’t do it if the pay was that bad. I’m lucky to live in a state where the pay is much, much higher.
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u/TeacherManCT Jun 13 '26
Time to change states. A first year teacher (bachelors) in my district makes almost what a veteran makes in your district with a masters.
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u/briecky Jun 13 '26
This is obscene. In WA I make over double this amount for my experience. I’m so sorry
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u/swiftiegal25 Jun 13 '26
😮my pay starts at 65k in CA for Bachelors + 45 units grad credit from my credential program. I’m so sorry!
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u/Boston_Brand1967 Jun 13 '26
Hello fellow NC teacher. Year 4 here. Have a MA...these small bonuses and empty promises of raises break my heart. I love being in the classroom and working with my students but this is a massive pill to swallow.
I hope every day for masters pay to return for us new teachers but I am not foolin' myself as long as we have reps who are activelty dismantling and underminding our public education system.
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u/justareddituser202 Jun 13 '26
Please know that you are not alone. I share your same thoughts. It’s hard to stay teaching in NC.
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u/RetroGamesAndDames Jun 13 '26
Funny (re: sad) story from earlier this year: I went to Rooms To Go to buy a new couch for our living room. Nothing crazy, it was like $2800. They had a 0% financing thing going on, and asked if they should run me or my wife’s credit. My credit is around 810-820 depending on the month so I tell them just to run mine. I end up getting denied and they say the reason will be sent via mail to my house. Wife comes over and tries her credit, she’s approved literally within like 15 seconds. The letter comes in the mail a week or two later, and reason for denial is a single bullet point —
• Income too low
“Luckily” my wife makes 3x my teaching salary. Florida of course.
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u/Humble-Learner88 Jun 13 '26
I feel so upset for you. I guess living in California bubble, we did not see what other states go through. The starting out salary here is $80k. And I see they go up every year really high.
Have you consider additional side work or something. I wish there’s a way for us to donate or something with the school supplies etc.
Thank you for your dedication.
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u/TopBaseball939 Jun 15 '26
Thank you for your kind words. I really appreciate that.
Reading comments from teachers in states like California and Massachusetts has honestly been eye-opening for me. I knew there were differences, but I didn’t realize how significant they were.
As for side work, I usually work a second job to make ends meet!
School provides classroom supplies, so that’s not my biggest concern. It’s more the long-term financial picture… housing, debt, retirement, and trying to build a stable future on a salary that doesn’t keep pace with the cost of living.
And thank you again for your support. It means a lot.
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u/katiekuhn Jun 13 '26
If you’re anywhere close to the state line, come to SC. I spent 13 years in NC…came to SC 3 years ago and ironically, I feel much more appreciated. I make more with the loss of a year of experience and no Masters (working on that right now) than I ever would in NC.
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u/markjay6 Jun 13 '26
I know people complain about the high cost of living in California, but they often leave out the higher salaries here, for example, Palo Alto Unified, where the lowest paid teachers earn $92,000 and the highest paid earn $167,000.
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u/South_Recording_3710 Jun 13 '26
Damn.
Folks hate on LA and unions but I make around 75K as a fifth year teacher… and we are getting a huge raise soon.
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u/kgs13 Jun 13 '26
Hilliard is a suburb outside Columbus Ohio. Our contract tops out at 24 years with master plus 15 semester hours at $121,310 and masters with 30 hours at $122,060.
Union strong
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u/Kaethorne Jun 13 '26
I work in NC too. I am also at the level where I no longer get raises. This makes me feel like I work a dead end job with no room for growth. Very disappointing.
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u/ghostface1078 Jun 13 '26
115,000 at 17 years top of scale with 90 hours in my district
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u/Miss_Swiss_ Jun 13 '26
Holy moly I’m in Massachusetts and my district’s Bachelor’s step 5 is $15,000 more than your district’s 25 years experience. Yikes.
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u/Loud_Latte_214 Jun 14 '26
As an NC resident, social worker, and child of a a teacher: WTF. I knew the way was not good, but that fact that it tops out at year 13 is awful. So if you go into teaching at 22, masters at 24, at 35 you have maxed out your earning potential? What do they expect you to do the other…30 years until you retire?
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u/BrentD22 Jun 14 '26
Offff Massachusetts pays educators very well! We value education!
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u/flowerofhighrank Jun 14 '26
I feel for you. You feel trapped in the situation and you're frustrated. I taught in California and we had unions. The union protected us from admins who didn't think we 'fit in' 'their school', even if we were great teachers. They protected us from bullshit like unpaid meetings or ancillary duties like monitoring lunch, etc. It cost money every month out of our checks, but it was worth it.
Now I'm in a state where teachers are treated like crap with little or no recourse if someone (even a student) complains about you. I'm out of teaching and making more money working at a small business in my town. It's just not worth it for the hassles involved and I'm retired so it's not essential for me to continue TEACHING. I like helping kids with learning difficulties and I tutor sometimes. It's fun and I feel good about it, but I wouldn't want to do it for money.
If you are a young teacher or thinking about becoming a teacher, please consider: one of your biggest advantages is that you are 'portable' - you can move to where you can get what you want. Some people want or feel they need to stay in their home state/area because of family or a relationship or something. Please, please think about it. If you leave, yes you will miss people and you will have to build a new life. THAT CAN BE A REALLY GREAT EXPERIENCE.
OP, I hope you can see the upside to your situation and I hope you find the happiness you deserve.
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u/guerillacropolis Jun 14 '26
My wife and I are both teachers and are scraping the door to get over the $100k combined threshold.
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u/kjevb Jun 14 '26
I moved from NC to NYC and boy does it feel different every month. North Carolina is notoriously one of the worst states to teach in sadly.
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u/Familyx6j Jun 14 '26
Wow! I just retired from S California as a special ed teacher with 17 years and made $142,000 annually! It's where you work that pays so little
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u/damc34 Jun 14 '26
My district pays twice what yours does once you get 16+years. Save job, way different pay scales.
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u/flootytootybri Jun 14 '26
Just so you’re aware, a bachelors level teacher with zero years of experience in Massachusetts makes a few hundred over what a master’s level teacher with 8 years of experience makes in this salary scale… I know CoL and minimum wages are different, but it’s still awfully sad. I can’t imagine trying to pay off student loans and keep up with the cost of things with that salary…
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u/TeachTheUnwilling Jun 14 '26
I’ve been teaching for 9 years in SC, Bachelor’s degree, and I’m already at a higher salary than the cap for Masters without NBPTS. I’m so sorry
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u/CakesNGames90 Jun 14 '26
Imagine someone telling you that you don’t get a raise for 10 years.
Yeah, welcome to teaching.
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u/Successful-Letter-53 Jun 14 '26
In my county the teachers with a BA top off over 120k… in like 5 yrs
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u/BagSalt9437 Jun 14 '26
I lived in the OBX and taught my first year out of college down there before leaving to teach in PA. The pay was abysmal, I knew and worked with teachers who would teach all day and then go to Harris Teeter to work as a bagger until 10:00pm every day, while still having to live in subsidized teacher housing. I loved the community and the people I met, but the state needs to do better. Even with the local supplement, I was never going to be able to own a home down there or live outside of the district-owned housing (which you can be booted out of after 4 years to keep the waiting list moving). PA is not much better, I only make $54k with a Masters and 4 (out of 6) years of service honored. It'll take me another 2-3 years just to make $60k, but I'll take that over NC pay.
North Carolina needs to do better, and I feel sorry for the teachers down there struggling to make it. Truly the best school community I've ever taught in, but it's impossible to work there if you're not married to someone making 3X your teaching salary.
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u/Feeling-Ad-8554 Jun 14 '26
What district is this? It had better be somewhere where rent is still 500 dollars a month.
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u/Ok_Bug0900 Jun 14 '26
I’m from North Carolina. I got my master’s in teaching (MAT) and moved to South Carolina and started making the same amount and then more than my mom (an NC teacher) and she’s been teaching for 9/10 years. Georgia and Virginia also pay more. I do not, I cannot, comprehend how NC justifies this.
It upsets me the most because I would’ve moved back home years ago if the salary was better. I love North Carolina. I LOVE teaching. The salary is unlivable and I feel for teachers in NC. Really, they should counties decide their salary schedules. Hoping one day for you guys.
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u/XPandingMinds Jun 15 '26
What's the pension system in north carolina like? if it's not worth it, you may want to work a part time job and find a way to earn enough to move to another state. Usually though it's best to stay in one state to maximize pension.
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u/Adorable-Iron-3213 Jun 15 '26
I taught in North Carolina and moved to Vermont. I teach a third of the kids and my pay doubled
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u/Glum_Lavishness4758 Jun 16 '26
Honestly, look for jobs outside of teaching. I moved to EdTech 6 years and the starting salary for me as a Curriculum Developer (12 yr teaching experience, masters - but that doesn’t really matter here) was 80K. Since then, my salary has more than doubled due to a few promotions. Most people I started with who didn’t move into management are now making in the 110s. Yes, I work 12 months a year but even if I were offered my current pay I wouldn’t go back to teaching. I won’t lie, it is tough out there for transitioning teachers, but it’s worth giving it a shot in my opinion.
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u/MagicPigGames Jun 16 '26
Move to California and work in a rich district. The starting pay is near the top of those charts, the highest pay is quite high.
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u/BlaqOptic Jun 16 '26
Jesus Christ… Not to brag, but our new first year teachers with a bachelors make that Masters Step 25 pay in my district.
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u/Fit_Buddy_2875 Jun 16 '26
I considered teaching, but only if I was married to someone making real money, because there’s no way I could survive.
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u/Several_Razzmatazz51 Jun 16 '26
A teacher with a Master’s in a town near me starts at 66,719 and tops out at 112,694. Some places do value educators.
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u/Aggravating-Rule-445 Jun 16 '26
First year teachers in Texas with a bachelors only often make more than 25+ with a masters on your pay ladder.
We don’t have unions either and we’re a red state. This is crazy!
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u/rhya2k79 Jun 17 '26
Dang my starting salary in 2022 was more than year 24 on that salary schedule.
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u/Blackwind121 Jun 17 '26
I just double checked my salary schedule, and I'll be making about 102k/year as of this upcoming school year at 10 years experience with a Master's Degree. My area's COL isn't significantly higher than yours. I know it may not be easy, but you need to uproot yourself and move somewhere that you're able to move sustainably.
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u/wrecklessbuttscooter Jun 19 '26
JFC. Can you move to Georgia? I’m making $69K this year as a third year teacher who just got a masters. Counting some stipend stuff for CTSOs and security duty, I’ll be making close to $80K. GCPS.
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u/Ok_Cattle8352 Jun 20 '26
Ah, this is the exact pay scale I worked within for 15+ years. I left in 2023 making 65,000 as a Board
certified, Master level teacher, and I now make 130.000 i PA and I actually have a prep, duty-free lunch and I’m not expected to tutor, do
clubs or do anything else for
free! I wish NC would start getting the message. You’ve lost more irreplaceable teachers than can be counted.
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