Early Childhood Education Jobs in Missouri

Missouri’s early childhood education system is getting the attention it deserves, and the early childhood educators who lend their talents to teaching and caring for the state’s earliest learners are benefitting from this renewed focus.

While Missouri continues to consider options for instituting a universal pre-k system, the state’s existing early childhood education programs got a much-needed boost in 2019 from a $6.5 million grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This money will be used, in part, toward gathering important information in order to identity areas of need in the state’s early learning programs with the goal of improving those programs.

With more and varied opportunities on the horizon adding to the state’s already-robust preschool system, there may be no better time than now to begin exploring a career in early childhood education.

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Missouri Salary Rankings

#36

in the US for Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education

#27

in the US for Childcare Workers

#42

in the US for Special Education Teachers, Preschool

#34

in the US for Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education

#18

in the US for Education Administrators, Preschool and Childcare

#32

in the US for Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School

Early Childhood Jobs in Missouri

Missouri is home to large metro areas with the kind of population density that can make the wide open rural swaths of the state dotted by small communities feel like an entirely different world by comparison. This dichotomy can lead to real variations in the salaries that early childhood education workers here earn.

One thing that is constant regardless of location, though, is the increasing demand for childcare professionals of all stripes almost everywhere in the state. On the whole, the number of jobs opening up for Missouri’s preschool teachers can be expected to go up between five and ten percent throughout the state over the coming decade.

Occupation	Total Employed	Median Annual Salary	% of US Median
Childcare Workers	12,930	$23,490	95%
Child, Family, and School Social Workers	8,620	$37,680	86%
Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education	5,510	$30,440	88%
Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School	1,680	$54,190	86%
Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education	1,710	$51,630	88%
Education Administrators, Preschool and Childcare	640	$51,940	85%
Special Education Teachers, Preschool	350	$37,510	61%
= Salary below nat’l. avg. = Salary above nat’l. avg.

Education administrators throughout Missouri do pretty well for themselves, making just about the national average. Although other roles may be lower in general, there is a bright spot in every category: oncoming job growth that will ensure plenty of positions for everybody. In childcare alone, the number of jobs is expected to more than double over the next seven years.

Childcare Workers – There are 12,930 childcare workers in the state, making an average salary of $23,490, which is right around the national average. By 2026, the number of workers is expected to skyrocket to 28,110.

Child, Family, and School Social Workers – The 8,620 social workers specializing in child, family, and school services make an average of $37,680. A 13 percent bump is expected in the number of available positions over the next seven years, however.

Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education – There are only 1,710 kindergarten teachers working in Missouri outside of special education, but they make a relatively robust $51,630 annually, on average. There will also be about 5 percent more job openings in this field by 2026.

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City-Level Job Stats

With such a large urban/rural divide, it’s easy to predict fairly wide differences in salaries for different areas of the state. In general, the big cities have more openings at higher salary rates. But there are definitely hot spots for different jobs, such as Joplin for preschool teachers and the Fayeteville area for special education teachers at both the kindergarten and preschool levels.

Preschool Teachers

Columbia, MO – 180 teachers with a median annual salary of $20,150
Joplin, MO – Median annual salary of $28,330
Kansas City, MO-KS – 1,740 teachers with a median annual salary of $25,640
Springfield, MO – 290 teachers with a median annual salary of $24,470
Louis, MO-IL – 3,880 teachers with a median annual salary of $26,800
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO – 930 teachers with a median annual salary of $25,440

Kindergarten Teachers

Cape Girardeau, MO-IL – 40 teachers with a median annual salary of $44,210
Joplin, MO – 160 teachers with a median annual salary of $46,660
Kansas City, MO-KS – 770 teachers with a median annual salary of $50,890
Springfield, MO – 300 teachers with a median annual salary of $47,320
Louis, MO-IL – 540 teachers with a median annual salary of $50,240
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO – 240 teachers with a median annual salary of $48,090

Special Education Teachers – Preschool

Kansas City, MO-KS – 150 teachers with a median annual salary of $53,120
Springfield, MO – 40 teachers with a median annual salary of $41,390
Louis, MO-IL – Median annual salary of $25,550
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO – 90 teachers with a median annual salary of $57,440

Special Education Teachers – Kindergarten and Elementary School

Jefferson City, MO – Median annual salary of $63,430
Joplin, MO – 60 teachers with a median annual salary of $41,780
Kansas City, MO-KS – 730 teachers with a median annual salary of $57,110
Springfield, MO – 180 teachers with a median annual salary of $47,450
Louis, MO-IL – 990 teachers with a median annual salary of $51,110
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO – 190 teachers with a median annual salary of $57,040

Education Administrators – Preschool and Childcare

Columbia, MO – 40 administrators with a median annual salary of $31,210
Kansas City, MO-KS – 350 administrators with a median annual salary of $47,520
Springfield, MO – 50 administrators with a median annual salary of $42,680
Louis, MO-IL – 400 administrators with a median annual salary of $39,890
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO – 90 administrators with a median annual salary of $33,860

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