St. Mary’s County outlines career ladder, $60,500 starting salary and national-board incentives under Blueprint plan

St. Mary’s County Public Schools officials outlined a district career ladder and new pay incentives tied to the state’s Blueprint for Maryland’s Future during a Thursday town hall at the Forest Center.

Sarah Penrod, president of the Education Association of Saint Mary’s County, said the negotiated agreement sets a base starting salary of $60,500 for fully certified teachers and creates three tiers on the career ladder. "If you have National Board, you're gonna get an extra $10,000 added to your base salary. And if you work at a blueprint school, you get an extra $7,000 on top of that," Penrod said, summarizing the Level 3 stipend and the additional blueprint-school increment.

Penrod described Level 2 as an incentive tier that pays $500 for each successfully completed component of National Board Certification (four components total, up to $2,000) and said the memorandum of understanding allows current or transferring staff assigned to a blueprint school to receive $7,000 to begin the National Board process. She told attendees the district’s negotiated agreement would put Saint Mary’s County a year ahead of the state’s legislative deadline for implementing a career-ladder salary scale.

District officials tied the career ladder to Pillar 2 of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future, which directs school systems and higher-education partners to expand and diversify teacher-preparation pathways, institute year-long internships and boost retention through pay and professional development. Dr. Jeff Marr, the district’s chief strategic officer, described changes in state licensure rules and said the district is working with college partners and apprenticeship programs to expand local pipelines.

Panelists pointed to high local retention as a strength: a panelist noted retention rates of "90 percent or higher" over recent years, and another speaker referenced a 92 percent retention figure for new teachers. Officials said the career ladder will be presented to the Board of Education at its March 20 meeting and that implementation depends on adoption of the negotiated agreement.

What it means locally: Penrod and other panelists framed the ladder as both a recruitment and retention tool, encouraging certified teachers to pursue National Board Certification or master’s degrees and offering staged pay increases. The district also identified three local "blueprint schools" (Great Mills High School, Spring Ridge Middle School and George Washington Carver Elementary School) that are eligible for the additional blueprint stipend.

Officials emphasized next steps: the negotiated agreement must be voted on by the Board of Education for the district to implement the ladder and associated stipends. The town hall then moved to table-based breakout discussions for attendees to give input.

Sources: Remarks and Q&A at the St. Mary’s County Public Schools Pillar 2 town hall, Forest Center, as delivered by Sarah Penrod (Education Association president), Dr. Jeff Marr (Chief Strategic Officer) and other panelists.