Many Washington school districts are short both teachers, and support staff.
Washington’s Superintendent of Public Instruction, Chris Reykdal, has asked lawmakers to approve a pay boost, and bonuses in hopes of keeping the staff the state already has and incentivizing more young people to become educators.
He said both retirement and turnover have increased during the pandemic, often stretching already lean staffing at public schools. He’s asking the Legislature to approve $10,000 hiring bonuses for staff that work with students who have disabilities, as well as bonuses for staff in high-poverty areas. Both areas have high turnover.
“When you think of a really passionate young person who has skill in math, or science, or wants to work with students with disabilities, or is a specialist in anyway, these educators have choices, and these young people have choices,” he said. “If we want them to be teachers, and put their talents in the most fundamental thing that underwrites all of our economy, we're going to have to compete with some folks who can pay pretty impressive salaries at this time.”
He said Washington also needs to retain experienced teachers, and it needs staff who specialize in disability and speak more than one language.
One initiative he’s hoping to start with the funds is a mentorship program for student teachers entering the workforce that would include a stipend if they’re focusing on high-need jobs.
“We do have a proposal to move our state forward into a true residency concept,” he said, “where we will treat our professional educators the way we would dentists, doctors and so many other professions in this state and in this country.”
He said many current teachers are also struggling with inflation and pay increases are needed to address the rapidly increasing cost of living most are facing. The proposed base pay increase is about 6 percent. Reykdal noted that teacher pay however is negotiated at the local level, and the pay boost individual teachers see could vary depending on where they teach.
The entire request is a little over $3 billion over two years. The state’s normal education budget is about $60 billion over two years.
State lawmakers will consider Reykdal’s budget request next legislative session starting in January.