Of course, wages are only part of a compensation package—employee benefits and other perks need to be taken into account. Still, it's valuable to see where your salary levels fit into the bigger picture.
The National Education Association (NEA) recently released its ranking and estimates data for public schools for the 2007-08 school year. The average annual salary for the 50 United States and the District of Columbia was $52,308. California ranked highest at $64,424 and South Dakota lowest at $36,674.
Average Salaries of Public School Teachers, 2007-08
The "Top 20"
1 California $64,424
2 New York $62,332
3 Connecticut $61,976
4 New Jersey $61,277
5 District of Columbia $60,628
6 Illinois $60,474
7 Massachusetts $60,471
8 Maryland $60,069
9 Rhode Island $57,168
10 Alaska $56,758
11 Michigan $56,096
12 Delaware $55,994
13 Pennsylvania $55,833
14 Ohio $53,410
15 Hawaii $53,400
16 Wyoming $53,074
17 Oregon $51,811
18 Georgia $51,560
19 Minnesota $50,582
20 Washington $49,884
Ranked 21 through 51 were: Wisconsin, Indiana, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Colorado, Kentucky, Louisiana, Florida, Virginia, Iowa, Alabama, Vermont, Texas, Arkansas, Arizona, South Carolina, Kansas, New Mexico, Tennessee, Idaho, Oklahoma, Maine, Missouri, Nebraska, Montana, West Virginia, Mississippi, Utah, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
The salary table is followed by nine additional tables that cover enrollment; number of teachers; student-teacher ratio; expenditures per student; total expenditures; total revenues from state governments; total revenues from local governments; and total federal, state, and local revenue receipts.
