Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $73K, rent takes 35.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,616/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,400/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary schools typically earn — is $44K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,610/month.

Local pay is 13% above the national median — $73K here vs. $65K nationally.

Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area pays $73K median vs. the U.S. average of $65K — that’s +13%.

The median is $73,380 a year. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $43,500, and experienced special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary schools can clear $85,430. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,509/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,616/month, which eats 35.8% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary school salary is worth about $73,380 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.