Retaining Effective Teachers Policy
Indiana neither supports differential pay by which a teacher can earn additional compensation by teaching certain subjects nor offers incentives to teach in high-needs schools. However, the state has no regulatory language that would directly block districts from providing differential pay.
Support differential pay initiatives for effective teachers in both subject shortage areas and high-needs schools.
Indiana should encourage districts to link compensation to district needs. Such policies can help districts achieve a more equitable distribution of teachers.
Indiana pointed out that the state's budget includes Excellence in Performance Awards for Teachers with a total operating expense of $6,000,000 for FY 2011-2012 and $9,000,000 for FY 2012-2013. "The above appropriations may only be used to make grants to school corporations and charter schools to be used to make cash awards to effective and highly effective teachers. The department shall develop a program to administer the program. The program shall include guidelines that permit all school corporations and charter schools to apply for a grant. The guidelines must specify that in order to receive a grant a school must have a system of performance evaluations that meets the requirements of IC 20-28-11.5. The above funds are available for allotment by the budget agency after review by the budget committee." Indiana added that it has a federal Teacher Incentive Fund grant through which participating schools award teachers in hard-to-staff subjects.
The programs cited by the state do not address incentives for teaching in high-need schools or shortage areas and are addressed in Goal 4-F, which deals with performance pay.