Short answer
How do Washoe teachers move to a higher column on the salary schedule?
Washoe teachers advance by Class: TC at BA+24 undergraduate or 16 graduate-level credits, TD at BA+48 or 32, TE with a master's, then TF and TG at MA+16 and MA+32. Credits filed with Human Resources by the first workday of a month move pay on the next available warrant, with no retroactive pay.
Source: Teacher Salary Schedule 2026-27 and WCSD–WEA Negotiated Agreement 2025-2027. Checked .
TeacherPayGuide is not affiliated with or endorsed by Washoe County School District. This guide summarizes the district's published documents as read on ; those documents and the district's human resources office decide your placement. It is general information, not legal or employment advice. Disclaimer Report an error
How is the Washoe teacher salary schedule organized?
The 2026-27 Teacher Salary Schedule is printed for a 185-day contract at balance-calendar schools and covers teachers, nurses, librarians and counselors. Its eight columns read left to right:
- TA, Class I: less than a degree (occupational endorsement holders)
- TB, Class II: bachelor's degree
- TC, Class III: BA plus 24 undergraduate credits, or 16 graduate-level credits
- TD, Class IV: BA plus 48 undergraduate credits, or 32 graduate-level credits
- TE, Class V: master's degree or equivalent, or BA plus 64 undergraduate credits
- TF, Class VI: MA plus 16 graduate-level or approved credits, or BA plus 80 undergraduate
- TG, Class VII: MA plus 32 graduate-level or approved credits, or BA plus 96 undergraduate
- TH, Class VIII: PhD or EdD, MA plus 48 graduate-level credits, or BA plus 112 undergraduate
An asterisk governs the undergraduate routes into TE through TH: those credits count only if they were earned after July 1, 2023. Undergraduate work from before that date still counts toward TC and TD.
Steps do not start at 1. The printed rows begin at step 06, and each Class tops out at a different point: TA and TB at step 14, TC at 15, TD at 16, TE at 19, TF at 22, TG and TH at 24. Longevity rows at steps 20, 21 and 25 then reappear across the columns. The notes add that non-educational degrees are not recognized and that a Class I teacher needs 90 units to pass Step 4. For a refresher on reading lane and step grids, see how to read a salary schedule.
Which units count toward a Washoe column change?
Three kinds of credit can move a Washoe teacher, and the agreement treats each differently.
Graduate-level credit is the fastest route: 16 credits reach TC, where an undergraduate-only path needs 24. Article 24.2.3 also helps teachers with long master's programs. When a program requires more than 35 credits, the extra credits count above TE. A 45-credit master's places a teacher in TE with 10 credits already applied toward TF.
Undergraduate and community college credit counts when it relates to your assignment, duties or retraining (Article 24.2.7). Using undergraduate credits for TF or TG requires the district's prior approval.
District in-service credit converts under Article 30.3: 15 workshop hours equal one salary credit and 7.5 hours equal half a credit. The schedule notes say in-service hours may count as undergraduate or graduate-level credits under Articles 24 and 30. Courses taken through the district's MyPGS system post to the employee record automatically. The Talent Development Inservice pages set a typical school-year ceiling of 6 credits per semester plus 3 over each two-week break, 18 in all, with no limit in summer; going beyond that requires contacting Talent Development. No credit is given when a stipend is paid for the activity. Our article on which units count explains how districts weigh these categories against each other.
Does Washoe require approval before you take a course?
For in-service credit and for undergraduate credits aimed at TF or TG, yes. Article 24.2.7 requires prior approval by the district, and the Inservice Guidelines set the mechanics:
- Apply 30 days before the course, on an application signed by you and your supervising administrator.
- The course must run at least 7.5 instructional hours per half credit, outside your contract day, and finish within 12 calendar months.
- If a course or conference offers graduate-level credit, even at extra cost, it will not be approved for Inservice Credit.
- Online courses are not approved unless WCSD sponsors or facilitates them, and correspondence and independent-study courses are excluded.
Outside providers are handled through a published list of approved and non-approved inservice. A course qualifies only when it relates to your license, a current or upcoming assignment, or a general education area, is instructor-facilitated, and tracks time for online work. The page warns that "any non-degree course that is not approved prior to authorization will not be accepted." A June 4, 2024 Human Resources memo on external providers says the same in practice: check the list, and request approval before enrolling with any provider not on it. Undergraduate courses can be pre-approved through the Master's Plus/Inservice Online Application when no graduate-level course meets the need.
Before paying for anything, read our guide to pre-approval forms and check where the provider sits on the district list. The decision belongs to the district, not the provider.
When are transcripts due, and when does the new column take effect?
There is no annual cutoff. Article 24.2.4 says education credit "may be completed at any time." If it reaches the Office of Human Resources by the first workday of a month, the teacher moves to the new Class in the next available pay warrant. Credit is not retroactive, and Article 24.2.5 makes the employee solely responsible for getting transcripts verified.
Worked example: a teacher in TB with 13 graduate-level credits finishes a three-credit course in late January. The official transcript reaches Human Resources on the first workday of February, so the move to TC comes with the next available warrant. Had it landed one workday later, it would count toward the March cycle instead. In-service credits take one to three months to process, according to the Inservice general information page, so build that lag into your plans.
Steps work on a separate clock: Article 24.1.2 grants step increments on July 1 to staff hired before January 1. Our explainer on transcript deadlines covers how monthly windows compare with the once-a-year systems used elsewhere.
Do the same units count toward Nevada license renewal?
Largely, yes. The district's Inservice general information page says inservice hours can renew Nevada licenses, and the Inservice Guidelines say Inservice Credits satisfy recertification as well as salary movement. The state now asks for six semester credits or 90 clock hours per renewal cycle, a 15-to-1 conversion, so one three-credit course can do double duty. Term lengths and the Nevada renewal rules sit in the Nevada state guide for reference.
Where can Washoe teachers earn graduate-level units?
Every district, Washoe 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 Washoe's human resources office is the safest record to have before you pay.
Washoe's Talent Development office publishes a list of approved and non-approved inservice providers, and says courses from organizations on the non-approved list will not be accepted for salary advancement. Check that list before you choose any provider.
Because Washoe screens courses and providers under its own rules, this page does not point to any one provider. Check a course against those rules and get written approval before you pay for it. Published prices for 16 providers are on Compare; check each one against Washoe's rules.
Washoe salary questions teachers ask
What does it take to move from TB to TC in Washoe?
Either 24 undergraduate credits or 16 graduate-level credits beyond the bachelor's, according to the 2026-27 Teacher Salary Schedule.
When does a Washoe column change show up in my pay?
Credits submitted to the Office of Human Resources by the first workday of a month move you in the next available pay warrant. Article 24.2.4 rules out retroactive pay.
Do undergraduate credits count past the master's column in Washoe?
Yes, if earned after July 1, 2023. BA plus 64, 80, 96 and 112 undergraduate credits reach TE, TF, TG and TH. Undergraduate credits used for TF or TG need prior district approval.
How many in-service hours equal one Washoe salary credit?
Fifteen workshop hours equal one salary credit and 7.5 hours equal half a credit, under Article 30.3 of the WCSD–WEA agreement.
Sources
- Teacher Salary Schedule 2026-27, Washoe County School District (listed on its salary schedules page). Checked
- Negotiated Agreement between WCSD and the Washoe Education Association, July 1, 2025 – June 30, 2027, copy in the Nevada EMRB public agreement library. Checked
- List of Approved and Non-Approved Inservice, WCSD Talent Development. Checked
- Inservice Guidelines, WCSD Talent Development. Checked
- Inservice General Information and Inservice homepage, WCSD Talent Development. Checked
- Licensure Renewals, Nevada Department of Education. Checked
- Credit Eligibility for Salary Advancement – External Providers, June 4, 2024, WCSD Human Resources (Internet Archive copy). Checked
Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error