The remote region of Washington where the average teacher earns far more than the national average
Teachers in a three-city region in Washington state boast incomes of over $90,000—an incredible $20,000 more than the national average of $69,500.
The Tri-Cities – essentially consisting of Kennewick, Pasco and Richland – is the region where teacher salaries are at an all-time high.
Their earnings for the 2023-2024 school year were announced by the Tri-City Herald, which calculated the salaries of more than 3,600 local teachers – including certified educators, substitutes and contract teachers – in nine regions.
The highest salaries were paid in Richland at $95,900 (population 64,190), followed by Kennewick at $91,800 (population 85,549), Columbia (Burbank) at $91,800 (population 3,244) and Kiona-Benton City at $90,700 (population 217,609).
The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Education (OSPI) provided data.
An aerial view of the city of Richland in Tri-Cities, Washington, located in southeastern Washington at the confluence of the Yakima River and the Columbia River.
A breakdown of teacher salaries in the remote region, which are higher than elsewhere
A teacher’s salary depends on his or her level of education and experience.
In most cases, salaries are negotiated with the school district and the teachers’ union.
According to the data, the average educator in the Tri-Cities has been a teacher for 11 to 15 years.
Teachers in Kona-Benton City and Finley had an average of 15 years of experience, followed by Richland, Kennewick, Columbia, North Franklin and Prosser with 13 years, Paterson with 12 and Pasco with 11 years.
Richland pays its teachers a base salary of about $111,000, while Kennewick, Pasco and Prosser pay about $106,000 in basic income.
In the North Franklin, Kiona-Benton City and Columbia school districts, this figure is about $104,000. In the Finley school district, teachers earn about $102,000.
In the southern Benton County school district of Paterson, where teachers only teach through eighth grade, they earn nearly $90,000, according to data obtained by the news agency.
The Tri-Cities in Washington State also include Pasco and Kennewick (pictured in the background)
The Columbia River on its way through the Tri-Cities between Pasco and Kennewick, Washington
The nine regions on which the data was focused are Kennewick, Richland, Pasco, North Franklin, Prosser, Finley, Kiona-Benton City, Paterson, Columbia and Educational Service District 123.
The large salary differences between regions are also due to the additional income that teachers earn through their certifications, whether as department heads or as trainers.
Many of these additional duties require the person to work outside of the mandatory 180 school days.
In Washington state, there is a law that requires school districts to pay a full-time teacher a minimum salary of $40,000, although the amount may vary based on regional or inflationary costs.
In Washington state, there is a law that requires school districts to pay a full-time teacher with a teaching credential a minimum salary of $40,000. The amount can change based on regional or inflationary costs. (Pictured: File photo of a teacher reading to her class)
The Tri-Cities region shown includes Kennewick, Richland, Pasco, North Franklin, Prosser, Finley, Kiona-Benton City, Paterson, Columbia and Education Services District 123.
Pictured: Longfellow Elementary School in Pasco
In the 2023-2024 school year, a newly hired teacher – who had just graduated from college and had no certification experience – earned a salary of $60,600 in Richland, $59,600 in Pasco and $59,500 in Kennewick.
While salaries have skyrocketed in the Tri-Cities region, teachers are leaving the profession in droves because of lower pay.
In fact, the states with the worst retention rates tend to be those with the lowest wages—the only exception being Alaska, with an average salary of $76,371.
In Montana, teachers earn an average of $55,909, while in Florida their salaries are among the worst in the country at $53,098.
The highest-paid teachers live in California, where the average salary is $95,160 and where hiring has increased 0.9 percent since Covid.
