Short answer
How do PVUSD teachers move to a higher column on the salary schedule?
PVUSD has no columns. Each approved college credit or equivalent credit adds a Professional Growth amount to salary, higher for teachers holding a master's, with no maximum accumulation. Get approval before enrolling, and file grades by February 1; that work counts in the following year's contract, effective July 1.
Source: Certified Bargaining Agreement 2026-2027, Paradise Valley Unified School District and PVEA. Checked .
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How is the PVUSD teacher salary schedule organized?
The governing document is the Certified Bargaining Agreement between the Paradise Valley Education Association (PVEA) and the Governing Board for 2026-2027. The Board approved changes to it at its April 23, 2026 regular meeting, "as presented, including amendments as noted", on a 4-1 vote. The copy in that meeting's packet is dated April 6, 2026 and carries a draft watermark, so check with Human Resources if a figure you rely on was among the amendments.
Section III of the agreement builds a teacher's pay from five components, each effective July 1:
- Entry Salary, the starting point for a new teacher with a bachelor's degree, no experience and no credits beyond the degree.
- Salary Adjustment, a permanent increase to existing salaries that changes from year to year and is set in a memorandum of agreement.
- Professional Growth, the coursework component this guide covers.
- Priority Service Credit, formerly longevity, which begins after the greater part of three years of district service.
- Performance Based Pay, funded through the Classroom Site Fund.
Human Resources keeps the Certified Salary Structure that lists the current amounts. The district's average teacher salary page, posted under A.R.S. 15-903, is a district-wide figure and will not tell you where your own pay stands. If you are used to lane names from another district, salary lane names explains why a components system like this one has none.
Which units count toward a PVUSD column change?
Professional Growth pays for "approved coursework and in-service". A teacher with a bachelor's earns one per-credit amount; once the teacher holds a master's, each credit earns a higher amount. The first master's degree adds a one-time increase on completion (later master's degrees do not), a new doctorate adds 4.5 percent of the next year's entry salary, and earning or keeping National Board Certification adds 5 percent of it. Amounts carry forward each year, and the agreement sets no maximum.
Academic credit, under Section III.D.5, covers courses toward an advanced degree at an accredited or recognized institution, college courses related to your teaching field, and methods and materials courses tied to your assignment. Courses in psychology, sociology, the humanities, curriculum, supervision and counseling also qualify. The exclusions:
- audited courses earn nothing;
- courses needed to qualify for certification when hired, such as Arizona Constitution, U.S. Government or student teaching, are not paid;
- undergraduate credit may not exceed 6 of every 18 credits, unless the Professional Growth Committee approves a specialized area in advance by a three-fourths vote;
- religion courses count within an accredited degree, or afterward only when relevant to the teaching area;
- activities already paid through professional leave or other remuneration do not count.
Section III.D.6 adds equivalent credit, which is unusual. Up to 6 semester hours a school year can come from in-service courses run by PVEA, the district, colleges or industry, from research projects (one unit per 35 clock hours, with concept approval first) and from committee work. Published authors can earn 3 credits for a professional book and 1 for a qualifying article. Workshops under 24 clock hours in a 12-month period do not qualify, and equivalent credit must be earned outside regular working hours. See units that count for how other districts treat similar work.
Does PVUSD require approval before you take a course?
For coursework outside a degree program, yes. The agreement says non-degree credits "should have approval prior to enrollment" on the Certified Professional Growth request form, and teachers who skip that step accept the risk of denial after the course is over.
Degree programs work differently. A university program filed with Human Resources is approved automatically, and its courses are acknowledged with a passing grade, though the agreement still asks for a Certified Professional Growth Form for each course, and any substitution must be requested in writing on that form. When you start an advanced degree, tell Human Resources the institution, the major and the approved program.
Academic courses and degrees go to the Human Resources Department; equivalent credit goes to Human Resources through the Professional Growth Committee, which the Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources co-chairs with an Association representative and which also seats three principals and six Association representatives. Appeals go to that committee. Pre-approval forms covers how to write a request that is easy to approve.
When are transcripts due, and when does the new column take effect?
February 1 is the date that matters. Materials for salary advancement in the following contract year must be in by then, and a grade slip or transcript should be filed as soon as you receive it, no later than February 1. Credits filed on time show up in the next contract, which takes effect July 1. Missing the date pushes the credit back a full year.
A finished master's or doctorate follows a separate path: documentation can be submitted at any time during the contract year for immediate salary advancement. If Human Resources makes an error evaluating your file, the correction, up or down, is retroactive to the first payroll of the current fiscal year; the agreement puts the burden on the teacher to raise errors and to bring supporting evidence. Equivalent credit beyond the yearly limit is recorded within five years of when it was earned. For registrar timing, see transcript deadlines.
Do the same units count toward Arizona license renewal?
College courses usually can. Arizona's standard certificate runs 12 years and renews with 180 clock hours, and ADE counts each semester hour as 15 clock hours. PVUSD's equivalent credit is a district pay rule, though, so a research project or committee credit approved for salary is not automatically a renewal hour. Our Arizona guide covers the renewal rules in full.
Where can PVUSD teachers earn graduate-level units?
Every district, PVUSD included, decides for itself whether a course counts for the purpose a teacher needs it for: a column move, a stipend, license renewal or an added endorsement. No provider, university or website can make that decision, so the rules above come first, and written approval from PVUSD's human resources office is the safest record to have before you pay.
| Question | What PVUSD says | What to look for on the provider's site |
|---|---|---|
| Type of unit | PVUSD: Approved college and equivalent credit; undergraduate 6 of every 18 | Semester or quarter units, graduate-level or not, and the university named on the transcript and its accreditor |
| Grade | See units that count | Letter grade or pass/fail on the transcript |
| Deadline | PVUSD: February 1 | Published grading and transcript-posting time, and any rush option |
| Approval | PVUSD: Certified Professional Growth request form; before enrolling, non-degree work | Course descriptions or syllabi you can attach to an approval form |
| Price | Not set by the district | All-in price per credit, including any university or first-course fee (compare) |
Graduate-level credit providers, listed with the same facts
With those rules in hand, compare providers on the same points. Providers listed on this site, each with the same facts:
- Teacher Friendly: self-paced online, units through University of the Pacific; $336 first course for 3 credits (price notes)
- Credits for Educators: self-paced online, units through University of the Pacific; $297 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Graduate Credit Courses: self-paced, units through Cal Poly Humboldt; $570 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Model Teaching: self-paced, 1 year, units through a choice of six universities, including University of the Pacific; $359 for 3 credits (price notes)
- PD Courses (University of La Verne): online or pdf, semester-based, units through University of La Verne; $420 for 3 credits (price notes)
- Teaching Channel: self-paced, units through a choice of eight universities; $489 for 3 credits (price notes)
The provider directory lists 28 providers and programs by what teachers need them for, and Compare sets published prices for 16 of them side by side, with transcripts from 11 universities. A listing on this site does not mean PVUSD has approved a provider or course; only the district can do that. TeacherPayGuide has commercial relationships with some providers it lists; how listings work.
PVUSD salary questions teachers ask
When is the Paradise Valley professional growth deadline?
February 1. Materials filed by then count toward salary advancement in the following contract year, which begins July 1.
Is there a cap on PVUSD Professional Growth credit?
No. The 2026-2027 agreement says amounts added to salary continue from year to year with no maximum accumulation. Equivalent credit is limited to 6 semester hours per school year.
Does Paradise Valley count undergraduate courses?
Yes, within limits: undergraduate credit may not exceed 6 of every 18 credits unless the Professional Growth Committee approves a specialized area in advance by a three-fourths vote.
When does a new master's degree raise PVUSD pay?
Teachers who finish a master's or doctorate can submit documentation at any time during the contract year for immediate salary advancement.
Where can PVUSD teachers take graduate-level courses for salary credit or renewal?
PVUSD decides which courses count, under the rules on this page, so check with human resources before you enroll. Providers that teachers compare include Teacher Friendly, Credits for Educators, Graduate Credit Courses, Model Teaching, PD Courses (University of La Verne) and Teaching Channel. They differ in format, transcript university, grading time and price; the provider directory and the Compare page list 16 providers with the same facts for each.
Sources
- Certified Bargaining Agreement between the Paradise Valley Education Association and the Governing Board, 2026-2027 (packet copy dated April 6, 2026), Paradise Valley Unified School District. Checked
- Minutes of the April 23, 2026 Regular Meeting, Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board. Checked
- Average Teacher Salary, Paradise Valley Unified School District. Checked
- Educator Certification: Renew Your Certification, Arizona Department of Education. Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error