Future educators look beyond low starting wages as Gov. Parson calls for higher teacher wages

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Teachers in Missouri have the lowest starting salary in the country and Gov. Mike Parson wants to give some of those educators a $13,000 raise, but it would need approval from lawmakers.

This comes after a tentative collective bargaining agreement was reached Monday that would put the starting teacher pay in Columbia Public Schools at $40,000.

In December, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) said there are 4,000 teachers in Missouri making $25,000 and $35,000 a year.

Brent Ghan with the Missouri School Board Association said the low wages can be attributed to the teachers' shortage that is being experienced in Missouri and across the country.

"We don't have enough young people going into teaching in the first place. And then we have a lot of teachers leaving the profession within five years and our low salaries that we have in this state are a big part of it," Ghan said.

Ghan said a big part of diminishing the struggles of the teacher shortage is encouraging younger people to go into the profession. He said many districts around the state have started "Grow Your Own" programs to help the process.

"Young people who are expressing an interest in education, maybe when they're in high school, are encouraged to follow through with that are encouraged to maybe mentor, find a mentor teacher in a school district that will encourage them to pursue their degrees in education," Ghan said.

Students majoring in education at the University of Missouri are well aware of the low starting wages they could face but say their passion for teaching goes beyond the paycheck.

"Making a difference in people's lives and education is more important than ever and that's definitely something that will keep me in the field," said Pierce Buffum, a junior Secondary Education major.

"I want to go into schools and encourage people of color to go into this field so the pay is not really what I'm there for, it's more to encourage students to come into STEM," said Ayania Carter, a junior studying Secondary Education at Mizzou.

However, Buffum says his career goals may have to adjust because of the starting pay. "Pay is a concern that probably isn't going to keep me teaching high school," Buffum said.

The starting salary for teachers in the Show-Me State is $25,000, the lowest in the country according to the National Education Association (NEA) and nearly 20% under the national average.

Many of Missouri's surrounding states have higher starting wages. The starting salary in Arkansas is $35,201, Iowa is $37,992, Kansas is $38,314 and Illinois is $40,484.

Ghan said this is an issue that is hurting the recruitment and retention number in Missouri. "We're seeing teachers go to our neighboring states and so there, there are other states that are being very aggressive right now in raising teacher salaries."

The next generation of teachers is not completely ignoring the fact that Missouri is last in starting pay.

"I don't want to stay here in Missouri to teach. I kind of want to go somewhere that pays a lot more and the wage of living is a little bit lower," Carter said.

Michelle Baustark with Columbia Public Schools said the raises still have to go through several steps of approval before it would take effect.  First, the agreement must be ratified by CMNEA. Then, the agreement will go to the Board of Education for approval. Finally, the district must build the increases into its budget for next year and the board must also approve the budget.