Teacher pay compared
lunenburgbudgetproject.org — written by the Lunenburg Budget Project, an independent tool for residents. Not affiliated with the Town of Lunenburg, the School Committee or the school district. The data this page is computed from: /data/topics/teacher-pay-compared.json
Also under School spending
Of 5 FY2026 salary schedules compared, Lunenburg’s top step was lowest in the bachelor’s and master’s lanes.
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Monty Tech | $101,965 |
| North Middlesex | $97,128 |
| Harvard | $95,676 |
| Fitchburg | $92,636 |
| Lunenburg | $90,212 |
Each contract’s FY2026 salary schedule, master’s lane, highest step printed. Monty Tech’s lane also takes a bachelor’s plus credits.
| Lunenburg | Fitchburg | Harvard | Monty Tech | North Middlesex | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s, step 1 | $52,822 | $57,019 | $56,949 | $57,294 | $58,382 |
| Bachelor’s, top | $82,038 | $86,626 | $83,722 | $97,385 | $83,003 |
| Master’s, step 1 | $60,958 | $61,826 | $61,137 | $61,885 | $60,707 |
| Master’s, top | $90,212 | $92,636 | $95,676 | $101,965 | $97,128 |
FY2026 salary schedules, lanes aligned by us. Longevity, paid outside the grid, is not in these.
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Harvard | $99,136 |
| Lunenburg | $97,233 |
| Groton-Dunstable | $97,140 |
| North Middlesex | $88,781 |
| Ayer Shirley | $86,091 |
| Ashburnham-Westminster | $84,724 |
DESE’s comparison sheet, FY2025. The six are this project’s choice; an average reflects who is employed, not only the scale.
1 · The facts
$90,212
Lunenburg’s master’s top step, FY2026
contract
5 of 5
its place on that step, highest first
contract
$101,965
Monty Tech’s, the highest of them
contract
$82,038
Lunenburg’s bachelor’s top step, 5th of 5
contract
$52,822
its bachelor’s starting pay, 5th of 5
contract
$95,912
its master’s top plus longevity at 25 years, ours
our estimate
3 of 5
its place, each contract’s longevity added
our estimate
—
no current schedule read yet, 4 districts
not published
$97,233
Lunenburg’s average teacher salary, FY2025
2 of 6
its place among the project’s six
2 of 8
its place on all of DESE’s sheet, our cut
82.3%
teachers DESE counts experienced, FY2025
2 · What it shows
- 1
Lunenburg’s master’s top was $90,212, against Monty Tech’s $101,965; its bachelor’s start was lowest too.
- 2
With each contract’s longevity at 25 years, our arithmetic, its master’s top is $95,912, 3rd of 5.
- 3
On DESE’s average teacher salary Lunenburg was 2nd of the project’s six in FY2025.
- 4
DESE counted 82.3% of Lunenburg’s teachers experienced in FY2025, 4th of the six.
| Bachelor’s, step 1 | Bachelor’s, top | Master’s, step 1 | Master’s, top | Highest lane, top | Steps, BA / MA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monty Tech | $57,294 | $97,385 | $61,885 | $101,965 | $110,382 | 15 / 15 |
| North Middlesex | $58,382 | $83,003 | $60,707 | $97,128 | $105,650 | 10 / 13 |
| Harvard | $56,949 | $83,722 | $61,137 | $95,676 | $118,469 | 13 / 13 |
| Fitchburg | $57,019 | $86,626 | $61,826 | $92,636 | $103,141 | 10 / 10 |
| Lunenburg | $52,822 | $82,038 | $60,958 | $90,212 | $106,557 | 13 / 13 |
| Lunenburg’s place, highest first | 5th of 5 | 5th of 5 | 4th of 5 | 5th of 5 | 3rd of 5 | — |
Each contract’s base salary schedule, lanes aligned by us (see Lanes compared). Longevity and stipends are paid outside it.
Sources
- Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School teachers' agreement (Montachusett Regional Teachers' Association), 1 September 2023 to 31 August 2026, as filed with DESE — dese-teacher-contract-montachusett.pdf
- Teachers' agreement (Lunenburg Education Association), 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2027 — raises of 2.5%, 4.0% and 3.5%, as filed with DESE — dese-teacher-contract.pdf
- Fitchburg Unit A agreement (Fitchburg Education Association), 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2027, the union's posted copy — fitchburg-teachers-2024-2027.pdf
- Harvard teachers' agreement (Harvard Educators Association), 24 August 2023 to 23 August 2026, from the Town of Harvard's site — harvard-teachers-2023-2026.pdf
- North Middlesex teachers' agreement, 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2027, the North Middlesex Teachers Association's posted copy — north-middlesex-teachers-2024-2027.pdf
- Lunenburg Budget Project — teacher-salary-schedules.csv (every cell of the comparison districts’ salary schedules, with its page)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — teacher-salary-schedule-docs.csv (which contract each schedule came from, and what it covers)
- Massachusetts DESE, district comparison — radar-district-comparison.xlsx
- Lunenburg Budget Project — dese-radar.csv (DESE’s comparison sheet, by measure and year)
- Massachusetts DESE — dese-teacher-data.xlsx
- Lunenburg Budget Project — dese-teacher-subject.csv (teacher FTE and the share DESE counts experienced, by district and year)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — teacher-pay-distribution.csv (teacher gross pay as counts and distributions, by year; no names)
- Lunenburg Budget Project — peer-teacher-pay-distribution.csv (teacher gross pay in Harvard, Ashburnham-Westminster and Tyngsborough, on each one’s own scale where its schedule is held; no names)