As State School Superintendent, my top priority is making sure our education system prepares every student for life – for productive, successful, fulfilling futures. That starts with investing in our educators, the people who make learning possible.

We’ve made strong progress toward this goal in Georgia. Thanks to the efforts and financial stewardship of Governor Brian Kemp and the General Assembly, Georgia teacher salaries have increased by $9,500 since Governor Kemp took office. In 2022, our Teacher Burnout Task Force underscored the need to build stronger supports for Georgia’s educator workforce, and in 2024, we launched the Teach in the Peach initiative with the goal of making Georgia the number-one state for teachers to teach. Earlier this year, Education Week named Georgia the state with the highest teacher morale in the nation.

This investment in the education workforce is paying off for Georgia’s public-school students and communities. This year, we announced an all-time-high graduation rate of 87.2%, with Georgia students continuing to outperform the national average on the SAT and ACT. Our rollout of new math standards has returned academic performance, in many grades, to pre-pandemic levels. Likewise, our statewide emphasis on the science of reading has increased Georgia Milestones grade-level reading scores in our lowest-performing schools as much as 29 percentage points.

But we cannot take a victory lap and declare that our work on behalf of Georgia’s teachers and students is done.

The top state for talent must be the top state for teachers

Currently, Georgia’s state agencies – led by Governor Kemp – are laser-focused on ensuring Georgia is the Top State for Talent. This initiative brings together education, workforce, and economic development partners to create clear, connected pathways from the classroom to meaningful careers – ultimately preparing every Georgian for success, and strengthening the foundation for our state’s continued growth.

I’ve also had the privilege to be involved, alongside several other members of our Georgia Department of Education team, in the Senate Resolution 237 Teacher Recruitment and Retention Task Force that is aligning the efforts and expertise of state agencies in support of Georgia’s educator workforce. It’s exciting to see this broad support and collaboration across agencies, with overwhelming and bipartisan support from our legislative partners, in support of public education as we enter the 2026 legislative session.

All of this work is vital to Georgia’s long-term prosperity, and it’s absolutely dependent upon a strong educator workforce – teaching is a high-demand career. We cannot be the Top State for Talent without investing in the educators who guide and prepare our students for careers and life.

Recommendations to strengthen and sustain Georgia’s educator workforce

To build on the progress of the past and underscore our efforts to secure Georgia’s status as a national leader in education and workforce development, I am calling for the following:

• An additional $10,000 in raises for Georgia teachers and certified staff over the next five years: As I have stated, we must ensure that our teacher salary schedule remains competitive and recognizes teachers’ preparation and professionalism, particularly given continued increases in the cost of living across the state and nation.

• Establishing a competitive state salary schedule for classified staff: Currently, there is no state salary schedule for the support staff – such as paraprofessionals, school nutrition workers, bus drivers, maintenance team members, and all other education support professionals – who ensure a safe and productive environment for students to learn. We must create a competitive pay scale for classified staff that includes health insurance and robust teacher retirement benefits.

• Expanding the teacher salary schedule beyond 21 years: As it currently stands, teachers stop receiving salary increases based on experience after 21 years in the classroom – meaning they are not recognized for continued longevity and expertise for nearly a third of their careers, and may go a decade or more without receiving a raise.

• Restore funding to increase compensation for educators who earn a leadership degree: Just as we encourage our students to be lifelong learners, we should incentivize the same for our educators – and we should recognize the importance of leadership at every level, including in the classroom.

These recommendations build on our past progress, support the work of the SR 237 Task Force, and position Georgia to lead the nation in developing and retaining the best of the best educational talent.

Why it matters:

Ultimately, behind every policy proposal are the students, educators, and families whose lives are shaped by the choices we make – by whether we choose to move forward or stand still. I want to share with you a few stories of real Georgians (whose names, and some identifying details, we’ve changed to protect their privacy).

This work matters because of Georgians like Lamar, a beginning teacher with a college degree who only makes $43,592 on the teacher salary schedule. Despite recent increases in pay, Lamar must hold down an additional job to make ends meet, forced to balance pursuing his passion for teaching with pursuing additional income. 

Next there’s Evelyn, a highly-qualified veteran teacher trained in the science of reading who, under the teacher salary schedule, would not have received a raise for the last nine years of her career. Because of this, Evelyn retired early and is working another job to increase her income – a loss to her school, students, and community. When we compensate veteran teachers for their experience, we retain our human capital, bolstering student achievement and deepening mentorship of new teachers.

Another teacher, Maria, wants to become an Assistant Principal. But to do this, she needs to personally pay thousands of dollars for a leadership degree. She won’t receive a pay increase for the degree until – and unless – she secures a leadership job. Because of this financial strain on her family without the promise of any additional compensation, Maria is professionally frozen and unable to grow.

Finally there’s Sam, who’s worked for 30 years as an electrician in a school district’s facilities and maintenance department. Sam will make $17 per month, per year worked in retirement – since most classified staff aren’t part of the Teachers Retirement System. Our schools can’t operate without the support staff who make them safe, clean, and productive places for students to learn. After 30 years serving Georgia’s students, Sam will only make $510 per month in retirement.

A call to action on behalf of our students and educators

The stories of Lamar, Evelyn, Maria, and Sam matter because these are the people giving of themselves to support Georgia’s students – the promise and future of our state.

Nothing matters more than the success of the children who enter our classrooms each day. We owe it to them to stand with the educators and staff who open those classroom doors – to recognize their work, reward their commitment, and secure a future where every student is prepared for life.

Richard Woods, an educator with more than 30 years of Pre-K through 12th-grade experience in public education, is Georgia’s State School Superintendent. The policy proposals outlined in this op-ed will be included in the Georgia Department of Education’s 2026 legislative priorities, which will be published later this week.