Salary Parity

RETAINING HIGH-QUALITY STAFF

In Spring 2021, Maryland House Bill 1365 was approved for the purpose of requiring the State of Maryland's contribution to the cost of educating children with disabilities in nonpublic programs to be increased for teachers only, in order to bring about parity in salaries between public school teachers and non-public school special education teachers.

The Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) submitted a report to the Maryland General Assembly noting that, when accounting for total paid hours, the wage disparity between similarly situated special education teachers in public schools and in nonpublic schools increased to between 23.3% and 40.7%; and Chapter 36 of the Acts of the General Assembly of 2021 added $4 billion in annual State and local spending above current spending projections by fiscal year 2030 to ensure parity for teachers.

What the Maryland House Bill 1365 did not do is increase compensation for related service providers (Speech-Language Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, Social Workers, and Psychologists), classroom instructional assistants, and school-based administrators. In an effort to retain and attract high-quality staff in these areas, BLS continues to strategize and coordinate efforts to increase compensation for these staff members through our annual fund, grant inquiries, and other fundraising opportunities.  

BLS recognizes the importance of these staff members in meeting our school mission, in being an innovative learning community fostering scholarship and creativity in students with unique strengths and diverse learning needs. These staff members help ensure an environment of inquiry, hands-on exploration, and the arts, and they are critical in helping students learn to advocate for themselves as they become engaged and compassionate members of a global society.