National survey finds Hawaiʻi’s SPED differential highest in the country

A​ national survey reveals that Hawaiʻi’s $10,000 shortage differential for special education teachers remains the highest in the country and has greatly reduced the number of unlicensed SPED teachers in the islands.

The survey found that more school districts have adopted extra pay for SPED teachers to mirror the success we’ve had in Hawaiʻi at filling vacancies among classroom teachers who serve children with special needs.

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) survey released last week found that the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education’s $10,000 annual shortage differential for classroom special education teachers is the highest of all the school districts across the country that it surveyed this year.

Hawaiʻi’s incentive, NCTQ wrote, “has been effective in drawing general education teachers (who presumably hold a dual certification) into special education roles and has reduced the number of open special education roles filled by unlicensed teachers by 35 percent.”

The Hawaiʻi State Teachers Association worked closely with the HIDOE to begin the shortage differentials for special education and Hawaiian immersion teachers in the spring of 2020, based on chronic shortages. Also that spring, teachers at some hard-to-staff schools began receiving shortage differentials for the first time while others saw their hard-to-staff differentials increase.

Special ed differentials being added in other school districts

Nearly 60% of the school districts in NCTQ’s sample across the country—84 districts—explicitly name special education as a role eligible for additional compensation. The true number is likely even higher, as 30 more districts use broad or vague language that allows district leaders to determine which roles qualify for incentives. Notably, this is an increase since 2024, when 72 districts explicitly named special education roles—suggesting districts are becoming more direct in targeting those positions for additional pay.

The survey found several other districts have significant or unique financial incentives to attract and retain special education teachers:

• In Alaska, the Anchorage public school district provides special education teachers working in self-contained classrooms with additional pay of up to 6% on top of their base salary. These teachers are also eligible for a $5,000 signing bonus with a commitment of at least two years of service or relocation assistance of up to $10,000 for those who commit to at least four years. Additionally, school leaders have discretion to offer up to 10% in supplemental pay on top of an employee’s salary for certain high-need positions, schools, etc.
• Several districts, such as Howard County Public School System (Md.), Kanawha County Schools (W.Va.), and Sacramento Public Schools (Calif.), pay their special education teachers using a separate, higher-paying salary schedule.
• Oklahoma City Public Schools (Okla.) pays special education teachers an additional 5% on top of their base salary.

For a deeper dive into how districts are attracting and retaining special education teachers, see NCTQ’s analysis of special education incentives from earlier this year.