AUSTIN, Texas — Texas teachers are making thousands of dollars less than the national average, according to a new report from the National Education Association (NEA), a labor union that represents public school teachers and support personnel.
The report found that, on average, Texas teachers earn more than $9,000 less than the national average. Meanwhile, the State of Texas provides more than $5,000 less per student in school funding than the national average.
To compile its report, NEA looked at financial data from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and estimated the average teacher salary in Texas at $62,463 for the current 2023-24 school year. The national average is $71,699, putting Texas at No. 29 among the states and Washington, D.C.
The report also found that when inflation is considered, teachers' average salaries in Texas are now 6% lower than they were in 2015. The deficiency between Texas teachers' pay and the national average is also larger than it was during the 2022-23 school year, when average teacher pay in Texas was about $8,800 less than the national average.
"Many promising teachers spend only a few years in the classroom before seeking and finding better-paying professions, as their teacher paychecks begin to lose ground to inflation," Ovidia Molina, president of the Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA), said. "This inadequate pay structure and the recent increase in political attacks on teachers are major reasons for Texas' teacher shortage."
To learn more, check out the NEA's "Educator Pay Data 2024" webpage.
