Average teacher salaries in Louisiana rank 13th lowest in the U.S.

The average Louisiana teacher’s 2018-19 salary is estimated to be $50,923, the 39th highest in the nation, according to annual rankings and estimates recently released by the National Education Association (NEA).

In current dollars, average teacher salaries in the state rose 4.1 percent between 2009-10 and the current school year, the NEA report found. In inflation-adjusted dollars, teacher salaries in the state dropped 10.8 percent.

Nationwide, the average teacher salary adjusted for inflation declined 4.5 percent over the past 10 years, according to the NEA analysis. In current dollars, however, the average teacher salary in the nation increased by 11.2 percent over that period.

“Across the nation educator pay continues to erode, expanding the large pay gap between what teachers earn and what similarly educated and experienced professionals in other fields earn,” said NEA President Lily Eskelsen García.

The states where school teachers have seen their pay in real dollars lose the most ground were Wisconsin and Michigan, according to the NEA’s state rankings of teacher salaries.

In addition, 63 percent of U.S. school districts continue to offer teachers starting salaries of under $40,000, the report says.

Highest Average Teacher Salaries by State

State 2017-18 Salary 2018-19 Salary 2018-19 Salary Rank Change From 2009-10 to 2018-19 (% in Current Dollars) Change From 2009-10 to 2018-19 (% in Inflation-Adjusted Dollars)
New York $84,227 $85,889 1 19.9 2.7
California $80,680 $82,282 2 21.1 3.8
Massachusetts $80,357 $82,042 3 19.4 2.3
District of Columbia $76,486 $78,477 4 21.6 4.2
Connecticut $74,517 $76,465 5 12.3 -3.8
Washington $55,693 $72,965 6 37.7 17.9
Maryland $69,627 $70,463 7 10.1 -5.7
Alaska $69,682 $70,277 8 15.7 -0.9
New Jersey $69,917 $70,212 9 7.8 -7.6
Pennsylvania $67,535 $68,141 10 15.2 -1.3
Rhode Island $66,758 $67,040 11 12.3 -3.8
Illinois $65,721 $66,600 12 6.2 -9.0
Oregon $63,061 $64,385 13 16.0 -0.6
Delaware $61,795 $62,308 14 9.2 -6.5
Michigan $61,911 $61,825 15 -1.9 -16.0
Vermont $60,556 $61,027 16 24.3 6.5
Hawaii $57,866 $59,757 17 8.5 -7.0
Wyoming $58,352 $58,618 18 4.9 -10.1
Minnesota $57,782 $58,221 19 11.0 -4.9
New Hampshire $57,833 $58,146 20 13.0 -3.2
Iowa $57,018 $58,140 21 17.2 0.4
Ohio $58,000 $57,799 22 3.3 -11.5
Georgia $56,329 $57,137 23 7.6 -7.8
Maine $53,815 $54,974 24 19.0 1.9
Nebraska $54,213 $54,506 25 17.9 1.0
Nevada $54,280 $54,280 26 5.3 -9.7
Texas $53,334 $54,155 27 12.2 -3.9
Montana $52,776 $54,034 28 18.1 1.2
North Carolina $51,231 $53,975 29 15.2 -1.3
Kentucky $52,952 $53,434 30 7.9 -7.6
North Dakota $52,850 $53,434 31 24.6 6.8
Colorado $52,701 $53,301 32 8.4 -7.1
Virginia $51,994 $52,466 33 9.2 -6.4
Oklahoma $46,300 $52,412 34 18.4 1.5
Tennessee $50,900 $51,714 35 13.7 -2.6
Wisconsin $51,469 $51,453 36 0.4 -14.0
Arkansas $50,544 $51,019 37 10.8 -5.1
Indiana $50,614 $50,937 38 1.9 -12.7
Louisiana $50,359 $50,923 39 4.1 -10.8
Alabama $50,568 $50,810 40 6.8 -8.5
Idaho $49,225 $50,757 41 9.2 -6.4
South Carolina $50,182 $50,395 42 6.1 -9.1
Utah $49,655 $50,342 43 8.6 -6.9
Missouri $49,304 $50,064 44 10.9 -5.0
Arizona $48,723 $49,892 45 6.3 -9.0
Kansas $49,754 $49,800 46 6.7 -8.6
South Dakota $47,631 $48,786 47 25.6 7.6
Florida $48,168 $48,395 48 3.6 -11.2
New Mexico $47,152 $47,826 49 3.4 -11.4
West Virginia $45,642 $47,681 50 7.1 -8.2
Mississippi $44,926 $45,574 51 7.7 -7.7

Source: National Education Association

This article was first published on The Center Square.

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