CHICAGO, IL — Under Governor JB Pritzker’s leadership, teacher salaries and the number of teachers in Illinois have increased. By investing in schools, Gov. Pritzker is improving the quality of education in the state and making Illinois the best place to raise a family.
Gov. Pritzker knows that teachers are the core of a successful education. Through his Teacher Vacancy Grant Pilot program, the Illinois State Board of Education helped school districts hire more than 12,000 teachers in the 2024-25 school year and retained more than 15,000 from 2023 to 2025, bringing teacher vacancies down by 24% from last year to this year. In 2019, he signed a bill to raise the minimum salary for all Illinois public school teachers, quadrupling the minimum starting salary.
Since then, Illinois has seen the highest high school graduation rate in 15 years and its highest-ever FAFSA completion rate. Gov. Pritzker’s investments also helped make Illinois 5th in the nation for scoring high on AP exams and lifted eighth-grade math and reading above the national average.
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CONTACT: press@jbpritzkercampaign.com