As Indy teachers negotiate their contracts for next year, see how much district pays
Not all Marion County public school teachers are paid equally. Depending on the years of experience a teacher has and in what district they work, pay can be as low as just under $45,000 or more than twice that amount.
While most of Indiana’s teacher bargaining units are still in negotiations for their new contract, some Marion County districts are close to signing or have already agreed to new contracts.
The official bargaining window, where school districts negotiate teacher salaries, wages and other benefits, opened on Sept. 15 and districts have until Nov. 15 to reach an agreement. Some schools have two-year contracts, but this year every Marion County district is in negotiations.
If districts don’t reach an agreement by the deadline, the districts and teacher’s associations will go into mediation. Contracts that are agreed upon now won’t go into effect until next school year.
Marion County districts tend to offer some of the highest starting and average salaries in the state, but some teacher association officials say keeping up with inflation may be difficult in the coming years.
The most recent state budget passed by the legislature this year included an increase in K-12 schools' per-pupil funding. For Marion County schools that increase ranges from 5.2% to 7% for the current school year and then drops to an increase of 1.6% to 2.6% for next school year.
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“We are working hard to create a contract that values teachers as professionals and compensates them appropriately,” said Jack Hesser, vice president of the Indianapolis Education Association. “This is an immense challenge given the absurdly disappointing funding from the state that hasn't even kept up with inflation.”
Here are Marion County districts' base teacher salaries for the 2023-2024 school year.
School District | Teacher salary range | Average teacher salary |
MSD Decatur Township | $50,000 - $101,191 | $57,821 |
Franklin Township Community School Corp. | $44,785 - $90,025 | $62,873 |
MSD Lawrence Township | $48,000 - $96,922 | $61,174 |
Perry Township Schools | $48,000 - $92,881 | $64,688 |
MSD Pike Township | $46,400 - $89,112 | $59,483 |
MSD Warren Township | $47,000 - $88,733 | $60,115 |
MSD Washington Township | $47,000 - $98,856 | $69,254 |
MSD Wayne Township | $48,500 - $97,035 | $71,417 |
Beech Grove City Schools | $48,000 - $85,100 | $59,364 |
Indianapolis Public Schools | $50,400 - $92,600 | $63,210 |
Speedway City Schools | $48,000 - $99,000 | $70,596 |
Some districts already settle new contracts
Retention bonuses for teachers have been a common occurrence in recent years as schools try to retain a dwindling workforce amidst the hardships the COVID-19 pandemic placed on teachers.
Franklin Township Community School Corporation is the only Marion County school district to have reached a new contract agreement as of Tuesday.
In the new contract, Franklin teachers who worked 120 days last school year and are still working this school year will receive a $1,500 loyalty bonus this fall. The district is also allowed to give new hire $1,000 bonuses at their discretion.
Most teacher contracts also involve raises based on teacher evaluations that are set by meeting certain criteria of being an "effective" or "highly effective" teacher. These criteria can be different from district to district.
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Perry Township Schools have reached a tentative agreement on their new contract which increases the minimum base salary from $48,000 to $50,000 and would also provide $500 retention bonuses for qualifying teachers.
IPS gave out retention bonuses throughout the 2022-23 school year. The district recently handed out $10,000 retention bonuses to staff members affected by school closures or mergers from the Rebuilding Stronger plan.
Contact IndyStar reporter Caroline Beck at 317-618-5807 or CBeck@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @CarolineB_Indy.
Caroline’s reporting is made possible by Report for America and Glick Philanthropies. As part of its work in Marion County, Glick Philanthropies partners with organizations focused on closing access and achievement gaps in education.
Report for America is a program of The GroundTruth Project, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening local newsrooms. Report for America provides funding for up to half of the reporter’s salary during their time with us, and IndyStar is fundraising the remainder.
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: What Marion County school districts pay their teachers
