How Chester, Mendham Teachers' Salaries Stack Up In New Jersey

MENDAM, NJ — Getting a six-figure salary as a teacher isn't impossible anymore — even as many New Jersey school districts are dealing with declining state aid. One New Jersey school district has an annual median pay of $113,869, while 19 others earn $90,000 or more.

After delays caused by the COVID-19 crisis, the state released information to Patch this week that shows how much your school district, special services district, vocational district and charter school have been paying teachers this past year.

Among local districts, here are how teachers are paid and where they rank among their colleagues around the state, according to data released by state education officials.

• West Morris Regional School District: $76,650 per year, 111th
• Mendham Township Schools: $74, 120 per year; 157th
• Mendham Borough Schools: $64,795 per year, 385th
• Chester Township Consolidated Schools: $62,549 per year, 444th

West Morris Teachers received the biggest percentage of pay increase from the 2019-20 school year with a 10.52 percent increase, which ranked 26th among New Jersey public schools, according to state education data. Mendham Township teachers saw a 3.85 percent increase in pay (203rd), Mendham Borough teachers’ pay increased by 2.09 percent (326th), and Chester Township teachers actually saw a 4.99 decrease in pay, which ranked 627th.

Here is a full list of the state rankings for salaries and how much teachers' pay either increase or dipped.

The information is part of the state Department of Education's Taxpayer's Guide to Education Spending that was just released, showing the median salary in every New Jersey school district and charter school.

“For decades, the Department of Education’s annual guide has provided members of the public with insight and information about the expenditures of their public school district,” said Angelica Allen-McMillan, acting commissioner of the state Department of Education. “This kind of transparent, unfiltered information can be the first step toward helping residents better understand the needs and priorities of their local schools.”

Read more: Gov. Murphy Releases New NJ State Aid Figures For Schools

Overall, teachers in 231 school districts make more than the state median of $70,815, a 2 percent increase over the previous year. And it's not just the big towns or the regional districts that pay the most: Ocean City is a great place to get a teaching job, where the median salary is $91,865. So is West Orange, which has a median salary of $90,172.

Patch also determined the difference in salaries between 2019 and 2020. Northfield in Atlantic County had the biggest increase, shooting to $78,482, a 45.71 percent increase. Stone Harbor in Cape May County had the biggest decrease, sinking to $67,565, a 18.68 percent drop.

The salary increases came to many districts despite suffering losses in state aid and the rising costs of getting kids back to school amid the COVID-19 crisis.

In addition to median salaries, the state Department of Education site also shows each district's total spending, average daily enrollment and students from sending districts, the per-pupil costs and the district's total budget spending for 2019 and 2020.

Patch editor Tom Davis contributed reporting to this report.