Teachers of color earn a smaller share of non-teacher college-graduate wages than teachers overall¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · associational r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2025 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2030: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Between 2016 and 2020, teachers of color earned from 61% of non-teacher wages (Native American/Alaska Native) to 72% (Latino/a), while White teachers earned just above the overall average of 73% (74%). → Carver-Thomas 2025

Evidence¶

Carver-Thomas 2025¶

Carver-Thomas, D., Leung-Gagné, M., & García, E. (2025). Supporting and sustaining a diverse teacher workforce. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/216.666

q2 · i? · associational · r2

Descriptive analysis of teacher-to-other-college-educated-worker wage ratios by race/ethnicity, averaged 2016–20 in 2020 dollars (Table 8). The report states "teachers of color earned from as little as 61% of non-teacher wages" to 72%, versus 74% for White teachers.

"In recent years (2016–2020), all teachers, on average, earned just 73% of what the average non-teacher college graduate earned, after adjusting for state cost-of-living differences. In contrast, teachers of color earned from as little as 61% of non-teacher wages for Native American/Alaska Native teachers to 72% for Latino/a teachers, while White teachers earned just above the average (74%)."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Early educators earn one third to one half of k-12 educators' wages and over half rely on public assistance — related
• Public school teachers earned about 20% less in weekly wages than nonteacher college graduates in 2019 — related
• U.S. teachers earned only 77% of what other college graduates earned in 2021, even after adjusting for the work year — related
• Only about half of beginning teachers of color had taken any teaching classes prior to teaching, compared to 59% of beginning White teachers — related