Teacher Compensation Policy
Shortage-subject Areas: New York's Teachers of Tomorrow Teacher Recruitment and Retention Program allows those serving in a teacher-shortage area to be eligible for an annual award of $3,400, renewable each year for three additional years. New York defines a teacher-shortage area as a public school that had a shortage of certified teachers in the previous school year.
The state also offers a Teachers of Tomorrow Science, Mathematics, Bilingual Education and English as New Language Tuition Reimbursement Program. Teachers are eligible to apply for tuition reimbursement if they teach science, mathematics, bilingual education, and/or English as a new language, in a low-performing school.
New York also offers the Math and Science Teaching Incentive program. This a loan repayment program for teachers of math and science that sign a five-year contract to teach secondary math and science in New York public schools.
High-need Schools: New York's Teachers of Tomorrow Program defines a teacher-shortage area as a public school that had a shortage of certified teachers in the previous school year. The Teachers of Tomorrow Science, Mathematics, Bilingual Education and English as New Language Tuition Reimbursement Program offers tuition reimbursement for teaching these subjects in a low-performing school.
There is also a Teachers of Tomorrow Master Teacher Program, which requires National Board certification and pays annual awards of $10,000 for up to three years to teachers in low-performing schools.
As a result of New York's strong high-need schools and subjects policies, no recommendations are provided.
New York notes that its Teachers of Tomorrow Teacher Recruitment and Retention Program provides grants to school districts for teacher recruitment, retention, and certification activities necessary to increase the supply of qualified teachers in school districts experiencing a teacher shortage. The state defines a teacher shortage area as a public school or subject area in which there was a shortage of certified teachers in the previous school year and there is a projected shortage in the current school year. Currently, there are six grant categories, two of which address this goal. The Teachers of Tomorrow Teacher Recruitment Incentive Program allows those serving in a teacher shortage area to be eligible for an annual award of $3,400, renewable each year for three additional years.
8B: High-Need Schools and Subjects
States should help address chronic shortages and needs. States should ensure that state-level policies (such as a uniform salary schedule) do not interfere with districts' flexibility in compensating teachers in ways that best meet their individual needs and resources. However, when it comes to addressing chronic shortages, states should do more than simply get out of the way. They should provide direct support for differential pay for effective teaching in shortage subject areas and high-need schools.[1] Attracting effective and qualified teachers to high-need schools or filling vacancies in hard-to-staff subjects are problems that are frequently beyond a district's ability to solve. States that provide direct support for differential pay in these areas are taking an important step in promoting the equitable distribution of quality teachers.[2] Short of providing direct support, states can also use policy levers to indicate to districts that differential pay is not only permissible but necessary.