Research says Alaska teacher salaries below Lower 48 average

Teacher salaries in Alaska are not competitive when compared to much of the Lower 48, according to new research from the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research.

Alaska teachers are paid below the national average once their salaries are adjusted for the high cost of living in Alaska, said Matthew Berman, a professor of Economics at UAA and one of two authors of the study published last month.

The topic of public school funding and teacher pay has been a main focus in the Alaska Legislature this session and of local school boards statewide.

Alaska Gov. Mike D...