Educator Workforce — Missouri K-12 Education Reference

Table of Contents

1. PSRS (Public School Retirement System)
2. PEERS (Public Education Employee Retirement System)
3. Health Insurance & Benefits
4. Compensation & Salary Schedules
5. Teacher Shortages
6. Alternative Certification Pathways
7. Loan Forgiveness Programs
8. Teacher Pipeline & Recruitment
9. Retention Strategies
10. Educator Wellness
11. Labor Relations
12. Substitute Teacher Workforce

1. PSRS (Public School Retirement System of Missouri)

Overview

PSRS is the defined benefit pension system for certificated (certified) employees of Missouri public schools: teachers, administrators, counselors, librarians, and other professional staff.

Membership

• Mandatory for all full-time certificated employees of Missouri public school districts, community colleges, and DESE
• Employees contribute a percentage of salary (member contribution rate set annually by the PSRS Board — historically around 14.5% of salary, shared between employee and employer)

Retirement Eligibility

Benefit Calculation

Annual Benefit = Years of Service × Multiplier × Final Average Salary

• Multiplier: 2.5% per year of service (for most members)
• Final Average Salary (FAS): average of the 3 highest consecutive years of salary
• Maximum benefit: capped at a percentage of FAS (check current PSRS rules)

Key Features

• Vesting: 5 years of creditable service
• Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA): PSRS has provided COLAs historically (not guaranteed; depends on board action and funding status)
• Disability retirement: available for members who become disabled
• Survivor benefits: death benefits for surviving spouse/dependents
• Service purchase: members may purchase credit for certain types of prior service (military, out-of-state teaching, etc.)
• No Social Security: most PSRS members do NOT participate in Social Security for their school employment (Missouri is a non-Social Security state for public school employees)

WEP and GPO

Because PSRS members typically do not pay Social Security:

• Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP): may reduce Social Security benefits earned from other employment
• Government Pension Offset (GPO): may reduce spousal/survivor Social Security benefits
• Important financial planning consideration for educators

2. PEERS (Public Education Employee Retirement System)

Overview

PEERS is the defined benefit pension for non-certificated (classified) employees of Missouri public schools: paraprofessionals, bus drivers, custodians, food service, office staff, and other support staff.

Key Differences from PSRS

PEERS Membership

Mandatory for non-certificated employees working 20+ hours/week for at least 5 months. Some seasonal or part-time employees may not meet the threshold.

3. Health Insurance & Benefits

Missouri Consolidated Health Care Plan (MCHCP)

MCHCP does NOT cover K-12 public school employees (it covers state employees and some other public entities). Missouri school districts independently provide health insurance.

District-Provided Health Insurance

• Each district selects and administers its own health insurance plan(s)
• Common approaches: self-insured, fully insured, or health insurance pools/cooperatives
• Plans typically include: medical, dental, vision, life insurance, disability
• Employee contribution varies widely by district (from fully employer-paid to significant cost-sharing)
• Dependent coverage available but often at higher employee cost

Other Benefits

• Sick leave: accumulated per board policy (no statewide minimum for school employees)
• Personal leave: varies by district
• Bereavement leave: varies by district
• FMLA: applicable to districts with 50+ employees (12 weeks unpaid leave for qualifying reasons)
• Workers' compensation: required for all employees (Missouri state law)
• 403(b) retirement savings: supplemental tax-deferred savings (district may or may not match)
• Section 125 (cafeteria) plans: pre-tax premium payments, FSA, dependent care FSA

4. Compensation & Salary Schedules

Missouri Salary Landscape

• Missouri teacher salaries historically rank below the national average
• Minimum teacher salary: RSMo 163.172 establishes a minimum starting salary (adjusted periodically by the legislature — verify current amount)
• Most districts use step-and-lane salary schedules (based on years of experience and education level)

Salary Schedule Structure

Steps increase with years of experience (typically 15-30 steps).

Extra-Duty Pay

• Coaching stipends (vary significantly by sport, level, and district)
• Activity sponsor stipends (academic bowl, yearbook, drama, etc.)
• Department chair/team leader supplements
• National Board Certification supplement (RSMo 168.345 — up to $2,000/year)
• Hard-to-staff area supplements (some districts)
• Summer school and extended year pay

5. Teacher Shortages

Shortage Areas in Missouri

DESE identifies teacher shortage areas annually for federal Teacher Loan Forgiveness and TEACH Grant purposes. Persistent shortage areas include:

• Special education (all levels)
• Mathematics (secondary)
• Science (secondary — physics, chemistry especially)
• English Language Learners (ELL/ESL)
• Career and Technical Education (CTE)
• School counseling
• School psychology
• World languages
• Early childhood
• Rural districts (most content areas)

Contributing Factors

• Low compensation relative to other professions requiring similar education
• High workload and accountability pressure
• Student behavior challenges and safety concerns
• Lack of professional autonomy
• Inadequate administrative support
• Cost of certification and preparation
• Retirement eligibility (experienced teachers leaving)
• Career changers not pursuing teaching due to barriers to entry
• COVID-19 accelerated burnout and exits

Measuring Shortages

• DESE's annual Teacher Vacancy Survey
• Unfilled positions data reported through Core Data
• Emergency/temporary certifications issued (indicator of shortage)
• Class size increases and program cuts in shortage areas

6. Alternative Certification Pathways

Missouri Alternative Routes to Certification

Grow Your Own Programs

Some Missouri districts are developing "grow your own" teacher pipeline programs:

• Paraprofessional-to-teacher pathways (tuition assistance for paras earning education degrees)
• High school teaching cadet programs (Future Educators, Educators Rising)
• Community partnerships with local universities
• Residency programs (year-long student teaching with mentor, stipend, and certification)

7. Loan Forgiveness Programs

Federal Programs

State Programs

Missouri has periodically offered state-level loan forgiveness or scholarship programs for teachers in shortage areas. Availability varies by legislative appropriation. Check MDHEWD for current programs.

8. Teacher Pipeline & Recruitment

University-Based Preparation

• Missouri has 30+ DESE-approved educator preparation programs (universities and alternative providers)
• Programs must meet DESE's Educator Preparation Program Standards
• EPP (Educator Preparation Program) graduates must pass: content assessment (MoCA/Praxis), performance assessment (edTPA/MoPTA), and basic skills (MoGEA or equivalent)

Recruitment Strategies

• Competitive starting salaries and benefits
• Signing bonuses for hard-to-staff positions
• Housing assistance (some rural districts)
• Relocation stipends
• Partnership with university teacher preparation programs
• Targeted recruitment at HBCU and HSI institutions
• Career fair participation (MSTA, MNEA, university job fairs)
• Social media and online recruitment
• International teacher recruitment (J-1 visa programs)
• Military-to-teaching programs (Troops to Teachers)
• Paraprofessional-to-teacher pathways

9. Retention Strategies

Evidence-Based Retention Practices

• Mentoring and induction: structured multi-year support for new teachers (not just year 1)
• Administrative support: responsive, respectful, and supportive building leadership
• Professional development: meaningful, teacher-directed, job-embedded PD
• Compensation improvement: competitive salary and benefits; addressing stagnation at mid-career
• Working conditions: manageable class sizes, adequate planning time, safe facilities, functional technology
• Teacher voice: including teachers in school decision-making
• Career pathways: teacher leader roles, instructional coaching, department chairs, curriculum writing
• Recognition: meaningful, authentic recognition of teacher contributions
• Work-life balance: reasonable expectations for after-hours work, meeting load, duties

10. Educator Wellness

See references/health-wellness.md (Staff Wellness section) for detailed information on secondary trauma and burnout.

Key Support Structures

• Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)
• Wellness committees (building and district level)
• Mental health days (some districts have begun explicitly designating these)
• Flexible leave policies
• Peer support networks
• Administrative practices that protect planning time and reduce meeting overload

11. Labor Relations

Missouri Law (RSMo 105.500-105.530)

• Missouri is a permissive collective bargaining state (not mandatory)
• School districts are NOT required to negotiate with teacher unions/associations
• Teachers have the right to organize and join unions/associations
• Teachers DO NOT have the right to strike (RSMo 105.530)
• Many districts engage in "meet and confer" or collaborative relationships with teacher organizations
• Teacher organizations in Missouri: MNEA (Missouri National Education Association), MSTA (Missouri State Teachers Association), AFT-Missouri

At-Will Employment

• Non-tenured teachers are essentially at-will during their probationary period (may be non-renewed without cause)
• Tenured teachers have due process protections (RSMo 168.114)
• Non-certificated staff are generally at-will employees (unless board policy or contract provides otherwise)

12. Substitute Teacher Workforce

Persistent Challenges

• Chronic substitute shortages across Missouri (urban, suburban, and rural)
• Low daily rates discourage participation
• Lack of benefits for short-term substitutes
• Inconsistent training and support
• Increasing complexity of classroom management

Strategies to Address Substitute Shortages

• Increase daily pay rates (competitive analysis with neighboring districts)
• Provide long-term substitute benefits (health insurance, pro-rated)
• Streamline substitute certification process (DESE substitute certificate requires only 60 credit hours)
• Build a dedicated substitute pool (recruit retirees, community members, college students)
• Partner with substitute management companies (Kelly Education, Swing Education, etc.)
• Internal coverage systems (admin coverage rotation, study hall consolidation, combined classes as last resort)
• Virtual substitute options (pre-recorded lessons supervised by a monitor — limited application)
• Retired teacher substitute programs (PSRS allows limited substitute teaching without affecting retirement benefits — check current earnings limits)