
What Alabama teachers are making, and who is making more, in 2017
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The Associated Press – WASHINGTON (AP) Teachers in Alabama are making about $3,500 more per year than their counterparts in neighboring Mississippi, according to a report released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Education.
The report also shows Alabama ranks among the top 25 states in teacher pay for the first time in four years.
The number of teachers with a tenure-track job rose to 5,843, up from 5,714 last year.
The numbers also show the percentage of Alabama teachers with tenure-level jobs grew to 7.1 percent from 6.7 percent in 2017.
The percentage of teachers on full-time or part-time contracts also rose to 10.5 percent from 10.1, the report said.
The education department reported on the figures Thursday.
Alabama’s Education Commissioner, Michael Bennett, praised the numbers as an indicator of progress and said the state is on track to make $8 billion in the next four years from the teacher compensation package.
Bennett said that’s well below the national average, but the percentage was lower than the national trend.
“We can’t say that it’s out of the question,” Bennett said.
“There’s still a lot of work to do.”
Alabama is also in line for a $1 billion funding boost from the U-M-B grant program, which provides a portion of the state’s state funds for public schools.
That money will help pay for an array of projects, including a school-building program that will be the first to be implemented in the state, including an arts and social sciences arts program.
The state also needs to raise money to pay for other education programs.