While significant progress has been made in recent years to increase teacher salaries or incentivize other school staff benefits, the lack of affordable housing – particularly in high-cost urban/suburban and scarce rural areas – often means that even with a sizeable raise, educators and staff cannot afford to live near their district. State leaders can look to Arkansas, where the Bentonville School District in Northwest Arkansas – home to Walmart – partnered with philanthropic groups and developers to create a plan for affordable housing to attract much-needed teachers. With the support of Senate and House lawmakers, the question was sent to the State Attorney General’s Office to confirm its legality before beginning construction. In September 2023, the State Attorney General approved the school district’s innovative public-private-philanthropic partnership to develop affordable housing for the district’s educators and workforce. Participants will visit these school district housing projects and attend briefings regarding the partnerships necessary for this process.

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