NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — This year's report by the National Education Association ranked the Volunteer State 38th in the U.S. for its average teacher salary. While it's an improvement from the prior school year's ranking, some educators believe Tennessee is still lagging behind.

The NEA listed $61,934 as Tennessee's average teacher salary in the 2023-24 school year.

JC Bowman, CEO and executive director of Professional Educators of Tennessee, told News 2 that teacher pay has not kept up with inflation and the increased cost of living. He said it's part of the reason the state is short of educators. The other main contributing factor to the teacher shortage is working conditions, he said.

“Teachers aren’t in it for the money, but it does make an impact when working conditions get hard,"

See Full Page