Alabama teachers may have more money to spend on classroom supplies under Gov. Kay Ivey’s budget proposal, released Tuesday.

Ivey proposed to give state-funded teachers $1,000 next school year, up from the current stipend of $900.

When Eric Mackey became state superintendent in 2018, teachers received $422. He has told state board members he wants to hit the $1,000 mark to recognize the amount of money many teachers spend to stock classrooms and make them feel inviting.

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“That’s been a big deal to us for a while because,” Mackey told AL.com, “whereas there will always be teachers who pick stuff up for their classrooms on the side, we don’t want people to feel like they have to dig into their pockets to buy class supplies.”

National estimates of what teachers spend out-of-pocket on students vary from $500 to more than $800 per teacher.

In recent years, many teachers have raised money to purchase items for their classrooms through crowdfunding platforms like DonorsChoose, whose website currently lists 550 projects for Alabama teachers.

The chart below shows how funding for classroom supplies has changed since 2010, when no funding was provided for teachers to buy classroom supplies. Click here if you are unable to see the chart.