Teacher pay ranks
20th in the nationThe pay for teachers in Hawaii
is actually an improvement
over the previous year
Salaries for Hawaii's public school teachers averaged $44,464 annually last year, ranking the state 20th in the nation, according to a new report by the National Education Association.
The U.S. average was $45,891 for the 2002-2003 school year, with a high of $56,283 in California and a low of $32,416 in South Dakota, the report said. In the previous year, Hawaii placed 21st in the nation, with a salary of $42,615.
Spending facts
Public school teacher salaries, 2002-03Hawaii: $44,464
U.S average: $45,891Annual per pupil spending
Hawaii: $7,455
U.S. average: $7,875
Source: National Education Association
A new contract just approved by the Hawaii State Teachers Association will give most public school teachers a 7 percent raise by June 2005.
Despite recent gains in pay, association President Roger Takabayashi noted that if inflation is taken into account, teacher salaries in Hawaii have declined in constant dollars from 1993 to 2003, according to the report.
"The teacher shortage is a serious problem in Hawaii," he said. "Every day our teachers are being lured away by school districts on the mainland who offer not just more money, but more respect and support."
The NEA report, released Wednesday, pegged Hawaii's per-pupil spending at $7,455 in the 2002-2003 school year, ranking it 24th among the states and the District of Columbia. The national average was $7,875. Per pupil spending ranged from $11,588 in New York to $4,907 in Utah.
The HSTA is the local affiliate of the National Education Association. The complete report, "Rankings & Estimates: Rankings of the States 2003 and Estimates of School Statistics 2004," is available at www.nea.org/edstats.
