Over the past few years, South Dakota has gained negative publicity for the status of education– as they compare to other states.
According to the American Legislative Exchange Council, South Dakota is ranked 49 of 51 (by including the District of Columbia) in terms of state-by-state education.
The ALEC looked at state academic standards, state private schools, charter schools, teacher quality, online learning, and home school regulation burdens.
Teacher Portal also put South Dakota at the bottom of the list, but this time on the average salary list. The average salary of a South Dakota teacher is $39,018, while New York, who is ranked No. 1, has an average teacher salary of $75,279.
In terms of starting teacher salary, South Dakota ranks second to last (ahead of Montana) with an average starting salary of $29,851.
SDPB’s Stephanie Rissler will sit down with multiple guests to discuss the status of education in South Dakota this Thursday on South Dakota Focus at 8 pm CT/7 pm MT.
