Where Are The Top Teacher Salaries in Georgia?

ATLANTA, GA — Several factors can answer questions about student success in a classroom. Before you get to test scores, student-teacher ratios and hours of instruction, the first factor to consider is the salary for the teacher standing in front of the classroom.

Salaries can determine where talented graduates with teaching degrees decide to apply, and it can determine how long they remain in positions with a county or city. Teachers may decide to shop for a better public school system, shift to a private school program or abandon the field altogether.

Teachers are seeing a widening pay gap when compared to their college-educated peers, according to a study released last week by the Economic Police Institute. The think tank found average weekly wages for teachers decreased $30 a week from 1996 to 2015, while other college grads found wages increased by more than $100 in the same period.

No state in the nation is paying teachers more than their fellow college graduates, and the disparity in Georgia is among the worst, with teachers making less than 70 percent of the average weekly wage of other grads.

Here are the public school systems with the best average teacher salaries for the 2016 fiscal year, according to the Georgia Department of Education.

1. Buford City, 64,549
2. Fayette County, 60,908
3. Atlanta Public Schools, 60,788
4. Walton County, 60,028
5. State Charter Schools- Mountain Education Charter High School, 59,655
6. Cherokee County, 59,006
7. Marietta City, 58,915
8. Cartersville City, 58,876
9. Cobb County, 58,217
10. Fannin County, 58,135
11. Pickens County, 58,125
12. Columbia County, 57,633
13. Dawson County, 57,474
14. Schley County, 57,461
15. Oconee County, 57,433
16. Bremen City, 57,270
17. Paulding County, 57,252
18. State Schools- Georgia Academy for the Blind, 57,113
19. Floyd County, 57,056
20. Calhoun City, 56,996
21. White County, 56,965
22. Forsyth County, 56,837
23. Union County, 56,760
24. Decatur City, 56,674
25. Rabun County, 56,608
26. Polk County, 56,504
27. State Schools- Georgia School for the Deaf, 56,480
28. Gilmer County, 56,432
29. Trion City, 56,372
30. Social Circle City, 56,121
31. Jefferson City, 56,074
32. Camden County, 56,015
33. Coweta County, 55,986
34. Charlton County, 55,832
35. Houston County, 55,744
36. Webster County, 55,581
37. Gwinnett County, 55,554
38. Harris County, 55,553
39. DeKalb County, 55,346
40. Effingham County, 55,244
41. Douglas County, 55,243
42. Glynn County, 55,196
43. Murray County, 55,144
44. Laurens County, 55,139
45. Appling County, 55,104
46. Jackson County, 55,043
47. Putnam County, 54,879
48. Hart County, 54,780
49. Hall County, 54,677
50. Monroe County, 54,676
51. Bleckley County, 54,526
52. Atkinson County, 54,501
53. Fulton County, 54,445
54. Burke County, 54,442
55. Terrell County, 54,430
56. Catoosa County, 54,387
57. Franklin County, 54,333
58. Chickamauga City, 54,311
59. Bartow County, 54,298
60. Madison County, 54,291