First-year teachers with a bachelor’s degree who work for Holyoke Public Schools earned $51,000 last year. Under the School Committee’s most recent proposal, that salary would increase to $57,075 for the 2025-26 school year, with additional raises as follows:
$61,000 in 2026-27
$64,575 in 2027-28
Over the three-year period, the proposed salary increase would be $13,575 or 26.6%
“This example is just for first-year teachers with a bachelor’s degree,” said Chief of Human Resources Beth Gage. “The Holyoke School Committee’s most recent proposal includes more than a 20% aggregate increase on average over three years, representing an average increase of $12,500 per teacher and a $8.7 million investment in teachers’ salaries. This is an addition to the 19.6% increase received in the previous contract over three years.”
Based on compensation information from nine nearby school districts, the School Committee’s proposals provide higher salaries for new teachers than Agawam, Chicopee, Easthampton, Ludlow, Northampton, South Hadley, Springfield, West Springfield and Westfield.
“These nine districts were selected for comparison due to their proximity to Holyoke, and because there has been a flow of Holyoke teachers and students to and from these communities,” Ms. Gage said. “For example, our bachelors, lane 1, starting salary of $55,000 in the 2025-26 school year is higher than all nine comparison districts. Our masters, lane 5, starting salary of $66,300 is higher than seven of our comparison districts. Our top-level salary of $91,900 for teachers with a professional license is also higher than seven of our comparison districts, when compared to their masters degree lane.”
