In a new analysis from the University of Washington’s Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE), "Washington State High Schools Pay Less for Math and Science Teachers than for Teachers in Other Subjects", researchers demonstrate that the average pay for math and science teachers in Washington state lags behind other teachers. In the two subject areas the state seeks to prioritize, nineteen of the thirty largest districts in the state spend less per math or science teacher than for teachers in other subjects.

Washington state—home to Boeing, Microsoft, an internationally renowned medical and bio-tech community, and other businesses that require a workforce proficient in math and science—is falling far behind in these critically important subjects. In 2009, only 45 percent of Washington's high school students passed the tenth grade math skills exam and 39 percent passed the tenth grade science skills exam.

CRPE’s new analysis identifies existing salary schedules as part of the problem. By not allowing any differential compensation for math and science teachers, and instead basing compensation only on longevity and graduate credits, the wage system works to create the uneven salaries.