New report finds Michigan teacher pay continues to slide

Teacher salaries in Michigan continue to lose ground relative to other states and professions, potentially weakening the state’s ability to recruit and retain academically talented educators.

Michiganders strongly support reversing this troubling trend by boosting teacher pay through increased state education funding, according to Teacher Compensation in Michigan: Recent Trends and Public Opinion, 2025 Update, released today by Michigan State University’s Education Policy Innovation Collaborative, or EPIC.

The report highlights a concerning trend: Michigan now ranks 44th nationally in average starting teacher pay, down five positions since the 2021-22 school year. New teachers in Michigan earn approximately $41,600 annually, almost $4,900 below the national average.

Experienced teachers fare slightly better, but Michigan’s overall average salary ranking has also fallen from 16th to 19th nationally, now sitting at $69,100, roughly $3,000 less than the U.S. average. These declines are driven by major policy efforts in other states to increase teacher pay while Michigan has done little in this area.

At the same time, the wage gap between teachers and comparably educated professionals in other fields is growing wider. Michigan teachers now earn nearly 23% less than other workers with similar levels of education and experience.

These patterns have direct implications for Michigan’s ability to address the state’s ongoing teacher shortages and, in turn, likely also negatively impact students.

Jason Burns, EPIC research specialist and the report’s lead author, emphasized the policy implications: “Low pay makes it harder to recruit and retain high-quality educators. Without stronger compensation, Michigan risks prolonging its current teacher shortages, which will negatively impact student achievement.”

However, public opinion shows strong support for raising teacher pay. In this year’s report, EPIC again examines public opinion with new data from the spring 2025 round of the State of the State Survey, a long-running survey administered to a representative sample of 1,000 Michigan adults. The report finds that Michiganders believe new teachers should earn around $54,600, roughly $13,000 more than current starting salaries. Additionally, they support raising average teacher salaries by $2,400 per year, for a preferred average salary of approximately $71,400.

Along with broader pay increases for all teachers, the public supports policies that would target important dimensions of Michigan’s teacher shortages, such as incentives for teachers who work in hard-to-staff schools and subjects.

When asked about financing these increases, Michiganders overwhelmingly favor allocating more state funding to education. To fund teacher salary increases, nearly three-quarters support increased state investment in K-12 education, while fewer than one in five would support cutting existing educational programs or increasing class sizes.

Report co-author, Madeline Mavrogordato, EPIC director and professor in MSU’s College of Education, highlighted the opportunity for policymakers: “The public has outlined a clear roadmap, and state leaders should take note. As Michigan policymakers debate the upcoming state budget, findings from our report suggest there is a real opportunity to strengthen the educator workforce and ultimately improve educational outcomes by increasing K-12 funding for teacher salary increases.”

See the full report.