Santa Cruz City Schools teacher salaries
Santa Cruz City Schools is a school district in Santa Cruz County. A teacher with a full credential starts at $64,884. The largest group (62%) is on the BA+75 column, which climbs to $120,399 by step 32.
Lowest
$58,133
BA before a full credential, step 1
Average salary on the teacher schedule1
$94,352
- $7,062 above Santa Cruz County average
- $9,200 below California average
Highest
$120,399
BA+75 before a full credential, step 32
Santa Cruz City Schools average
Santa Cruz County average$87,290
California average$103,552
- Full-time equivalents on the schedule
- 316
- Starting salary
- $64,884
- BA with a credential, step 1
- Median salary
- $96,695
- Half earn more, half earn less
- Average pay rank in California
- 416th of 828 reporting
- of 828 reporting
Does Santa Cruz City Schools pay teachers more than the median California district?
Line up all 828 reporting California districts from the lowest average salary to the highest. The one in the middle is the median district: half the districts pay a lower average, half pay a higher one. A median isn't pulled up or down by a few unusually high- or low-paying districts, so it shows what a typical district pays.
No
Santa Cruz City Schools's average of $94,352 is below the middle California district's $94,573.
All 828 reporting districts in California
Santa Cruz City Schools ranks 416th of 828.
Middle district: $94,573
The 11 reporting districts in Santa Cruz County
Santa Cruz City Schools ranks 1st of 11, above the middle district.
Middle district: $85,745
Each bar counts the districts whose average salary falls in a $5,000 band. The dashed line marks the median district.
What BA+98, steps and credentials mean
Teacher pay in California is set by a grid. Two things place you on it: how long you've taught and how much college you've done.
- Step
- Steps go up with years of service. Step 5 on Santa Cruz City Schools's BA column pays $69,905. Experienced teachers joining Santa Cruz City Schools can be placed as high as step 21.
- Column, such as BA+98
- Your bachelor's degree (BA) plus the college semester units you've completed since. BA+98 means a bachelor's plus 98 more units. Santa Cruz City Schools's columns run from BA to BA+75, 4 in all.
- Credentialed
- Holds a full California teaching credential, the state license to teach. Santa Cruz City Schools's credentialed columns start at $64,884.
- Without full credential
- Teachers who don't yet hold a full credential. Santa Cruz City Schools pays them on separate columns, starting at $58,133.
How fast does a teacher's salary grow at Santa Cruz City Schools?
Pick a column and a step to see the salary, and how far it is from the top.
$93,433
a year at step 10. This column tops out at $120,399 on step 32.
Santa Cruz City Schools's full salary schedule, 2024-252
Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 37% of Santa Cruz City Schools's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.
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Only BA+75 continues past step 12.
| Step | BA | BA+45 | BA+60 | BA+75 |
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Only BA+75 continues past step 12.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Tap any salary to see how many full-time equivalents are paid it and follow it on the chart above.
- 5+
- 19
Bonuses, health cover and work days at Santa Cruz City Schools
Bonuses are paid on top of the schedule, in the amounts the district reported.2 Teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.3 Extra pay for coaching, clubs and similar duties isn't part of this report.
- Health insurance, family planUp to $19,851paid by the district each year
- Master's degree bonus$1,388
- Doctorate bonus$1,543
- Bilingual teaching bonus$774
- National Board Certification bonusNot reported
- Special education bonusNot reported
- Summer school pay$40 an hour
- Work days a year187 days180 of them with students
- Schedule raise on last year1.27%
- Highest starting step for experienced hiresStep 21
Questions about teacher pay at Santa Cruz City Schools
How much do Santa Cruz City Schools teachers make?
The average salary on Santa Cruz City Schools's teacher schedule is $94,352 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $58,133 (BA before a full credential, step 1) to $120,399 (BA+75 before a full credential, step 32).
What does a new teacher earn at Santa Cruz City Schools?
A new teacher with a full credential starts at $64,884 (BA column, step 1). Teachers without a full credential start lower, at $58,133. Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 21.
How long does it take to reach the top of the Santa Cruz City Schools pay scale?
On the BA+75 column, where 62% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 32, where it reaches $120,399. Steps go up with years of service.
Does a master's degree raise pay at Santa Cruz City Schools?
Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and Santa Cruz City Schools reports a master's bonus of $1,388 on top. For a doctorate it reports $1,543.
Is Santa Cruz City Schools teacher pay high for California?
Santa Cruz City Schools's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 416th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 1st of 11 in Santa Cruz County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $87,290 in Santa Cruz County.
Keep exploring teacher pay in Santa Cruz County
Sources for the Santa Cruz City Schools figures
Salaries are the annual amounts on the district's certificated salary schedule. Following the state's definitions, they leave out extended-year pay, bonuses and extra-curricular pay such as coaching. Counts are full-time equivalents, so two half-time teachers count as one, and they can include counselors, nurses and librarians paid on the same schedule. County averages, ranks and percentages are our own arithmetic on these figures; our statewide average matches the state's published $103,552.
- California Department of Education, Selected Certificated Salaries and Related Statistics, 2024-25, Table I: average salary paid, raise on last year, highest starting step. The median salary is our own calculation from source 2.
- Santa Cruz City Schools's report to the California Department of Education, Form J-90 database, 2024-25: salary schedule, full-time equivalents per cell, bonuses, health contributions, work days.
- U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #17D: Exemption for Professional Employees Under the FLSA: teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.