Financial Incentives

A number of school systems have gone beyond traditional compensation to attract and retain the high-quality staff they need. Strategies being employed include:

Salary Supplements

Salary supplements are based on ASHA certification—comparable to bonuses for teachers with certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards—and for increased paperwork related to Medicaid billing.

See a complete list of ASHA's school district salary supplement success stories.

Pay Scales

Members have reported pay increases for:

Master's level SLPs paid on a doctoral level scale
Salary commensurate with that of psychologists
Higher starting salaries/pay scale for SLPs than for classroom teachers
Pay lane change for achieving advanced credential (e.g., Certificate of Clinical Competence [CCC]) or credits
Career ladder with different pay scales
Full credit for work experience in settings other than school settings

Bonuses

Members have reported receiving bonuses and/or stipends for:

Sign-on, $3,000; Year 1, $2,000; Year 2, $1,000
$1,500 for SLPs in schools having vacancies for 2+ years
$1,000 for bilingual assessments
Summertime work in the district (normal pay scale)
Before and after school speech-language programs in the district
High-need subject area candidates
Mentors and clinical fellowship (CF) supervisors
High student achievement
Reimbursement of licensure, registration, dues, and/or certification fees

Other Financial Incentives

Incentives for veteran/retiree SLPs
Tuition-free degrees or reimbursement costs for graduate work
Service scholarship programs for hard-to-serve areas
Incentives for national certification
Professional development allowance
Paid release time for professional development
Reimbursed costs of continuing education
Phone and supplies allowance
Tax credits
Pay for performance
Low-interest housing loans, housing assistance, closing expenses, relocation benefits, moving expenses

Additional Resource

School Funding Advocacy: The ASHA School Finance Committee has developed this page to help members find tools they can use for funding and to help explain the complex and multiple funding processes involved in public school-based services from federal, state, and local perspectives.