Kevin Stitt claimed it could cause some teachers to be paid $100,000 or more, though this would fall on the extreme end of the bills capacity. Support Nurias work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today at subscribe.oklahoman.com. The state board requested a total budget of $3.57 billion for Fiscal Year 2024. StateImpact Oklahoma isa collaboration of KGOU, KOSU, KWGS and KCCU. She can be reached at nmartinez-keel@oklahoman.com or on Twitter at @NuriaMKeel. With the appropriation of $58,858,503 and an additional $74,790,265 in funds for operations through the funding formula, the OSDE believes districts will have sufficient funds to follow through with the intent of the Governor and Legislature. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. Charter schools are not required to follow the minimum salary schedule. The underpaid teacher report for FY 20 will be based on the existing Minimum Salary Schedule in 70 OS 18-114.14. The state last increased minimum teacher pay in 2019 with a As stated above, the expectation is for certified personnel, as defined in 70 O.S. Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee, filed a bill for the That means ensuring weve got the people and that investment in the (teacher) workforce.. Reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel covers K-12 and higher education throughout the state of Oklahoma. The proposed budget appropriates Effects on the number of teachers employed soon reflected the decline in teaching degrees awarded. The aforementioned legislation makes clear that certified personnel, as defined in 70 O.S. Oklahoma Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. The state Minimum Salary Schedule remains the same as the one passed in the 2018 Legislative Session. Gov. When the salaries are adjusted for inflation, teachers are earning on average $2,179 less per year than they did a decade ago. No later than February 1, 2020, the State Department of Education shall make this data available on its website for public viewing and shall submit a report to the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The Oklahoma State Board of Education approved a proposal from State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters to base teacher pay raises on merit. In addition, all charter schools receive state-appropriated dollars through the funding formula. The Senate committee unanimously passed another of Pughs bills that would grant 12 weeks of paid maternity leave to full-time public-school employees. OKLAHOMA CITY The Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday passed a teacher pay raise bill and other measures designed to keep educators in the classroom. The measure would move the starting teacher pay to $39,601 from $36,601. 26-103, to receive the salary increase, regardless of whether employed by an off-the-formula district, a charter school, or otherwise. The budget proposal includes $11 million to annualize the teacher pay raises appropriated this year. Can a district include retirement payments for employees as part of the raise calculation? The request also includes a $66 million increase to the education funding formula, the chief source of public school funds. A high estimate of the cost to the state would be $25 million, he said. Some House lawmakers were angry when Walters presented Hofmeister's budget request, not his own, in a hearing at the Capitol on Tuesday. Pemberton's bill is assigned to the Senate Education Committee. But Stitts budget guru hinted that offering retirees a 4% cost-of-living adjustment at a cost of $1 billion could be more generous than the state can afford next year. A Gallup poll released in June 2022 found that workers in K-12 schools reported the highest rates of burnout of any field in the country. Lawmakers are also introducing bills that would give teachers pay raises. How will OSDE calculate underpaid teachers in FY 20? Despite recent legislative efforts to bolster salaries, a 2020-2021 pay analysis found that Oklahoma now ranks in the bottom half of states in teacher compensation, fourth in the region, 45th nationally in per-pupil expenditures, and dead last in what it pays support professionals. Additionally, one-quarter to one-third of districts had increased pay or benefits for bus drivers, relaxed hiring requirements for substitute teachers, and assigned staff to cafeteria duties. More: Oklahoman finalist for Oklahoma The budget proposal does not include any funding for the governors proposed Medicaid expansion plan, SoonerCare 2.0. However, the Governor and legislative leaders stated publicly that the amount appropriated Kevin Stitts State of the State speech Senate Bill 267 passed the Oklahoma Senate on a 36-11 vote. More than 42,500 teachers worked in Oklahoma public schools last year. Stitts budget proposes funding $25.3 million in gubernatorial The state has too many needs that have been unmet, Senate Minority Leader Kay Floyd said. No. Stitts budget also proposes squirreling away an additional $100 million into state reserve accounts. Teachers in the state earn an average of $54,096 a year. Senate Bill 28 would give teachers $6,000 over 9 years, divided into three $2,000 raises. How is the pay raise funded? Oklahoma legislator files bills for teacher, support staff pay The state Board of Education on Thursday approved an overall budget request of $3.51 billion for the state Education Department, lower than Hofmeister's ask of $3.57 billion. Read Oklahoma Gov. The Courts opinion, effectively striking Referendum Petition 25 The current fiscal year budget appropriated enough for average teacher pay raises of $1,220 and state employee pay raises up to $1,440. But this week members of the Oklahoma Senate effectively admitted that plan has failed. $10 million for the Digital Transformation Fund. The 2023 legislative session begins Feb. 6. There are 9,000 teachers that are currently eligible for retirement this year, said Sen. Carri Hicks, D-Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma Board of Education voted to give teachers a $5,000 pay raise as part of its proposed $3.5 billion education budget for 2024. I want to see the numbers, said Rep. Mark McBride, R-Moore, chairperson of the House budget committee on education. The $8.3 billion fiscal year 2020 budget is the largest in state history and includes about $500 million in new state spending. Walters' budget plan differs from the version his predecessor, Joy Hofmeister, put together. The Purdue Pharma settlement is still tied up in court, but Stitts budget does not allocate the funding from the Teva settlement, which has already been placed in state account to be used for opioid abatement. The Quality Counts report also showed that only six states have a lower share of 18-to-24-year-olds enrolled in postsecondary education than the 48.7 percent enrolled in Oklahoma. Have a story idea for Nuria? Kevin Stitt's 2020 State of the State speech, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. "We're running about the same number this year. Senate Bill 28 would give teachers $6,000 over 9 years, divided into three $2,000 raises. SB 1048 identifies certified personnel as defined by 70 O.S. An Oklahoma lawmaker is pushing for a teacher pay raise to combat the states teacher shortage. Are there different reporting deadlines for this pay raise outside of already established personnel reports? OKLAHOMA CITY The Oklahoma State Department of Education will include a $5,000 teacher pay raise in its annual budget request during the state board of education's upcoming meeting. The appropriation is intended for increases in base salary for certified personnel. Certified Personnel Pay Raise FAQs - Oklahoma State It is clear that the pay raise legislation is intended to give districts the maximum flexibility in implementing pay raises. Thats not my job. Teacher Pay We need to pay teachers more.. The measure, which the governor backed, would use excess lottery proceeds to pay for half of a teachers raise. We are hurting for people., Director, Center for Independent Journalism. While at The Oklahoman, he was the recipient of several awards, including first place in the editorial writing category of the Associated Press/Oklahoma News Executives Carl Rogan Memorial News Excellence Competition for an editorial on the history of racism in the Oklahoma legislature. The state passed a $10,000 salaryincrease that is estimated to reset its average teacher pay at $64,000. Oklahoma Addison Kliewer and Nathan J. "We had 3,338 emergency certifications last year," he said. The measure passed the Senate Appropriations Committee by a vote of 21-0. Eventually, I would like to see us at the national average in teacher pay, as well.. Both SB 1048 and HB 2765 have an effective date of July 1, 2019. Particularly hard-hit were Midwestern and Rust Belt states, as well as seeming outliers such as Alaska and Florida, whose Department of Education outlined critical shortages in no fewer than eight subject areas going into the 2019-2020 school year. But even then, Oklahomas again fallen behind neighboring states. Donateonline. February 18, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019. * Include the Oklahoma Watch logo (found here). Pemberton said he hopes measures passed last year like the Oklahoma Future Teacher Scholarship and Employment Initiative Program combined with more legislative efforts this year will start attracting new teachers and retaining current teachers. He said it would put money toward reading materials, tutoring in the science of reading, dyslexia intervention grants, and hiring high school and college students to assist in schools. Ryan Walters' $150 million teacher incentive pay plan advances to Six takeaways from Gov. Six takeaways from Gov. The teacher pay raise bill will take effect on Aug. 1, and will do so regardless of any referendum petition. Section 1 of HB 2765 and all of SB 1048 are effective July 1, 2019. The raise is However, the minimum salary schedule did not change, and the salary increase provided through HB 2765 and SB 1048 does not place them on the Minimum Salary Schedule. StateImpact Oklahoma is a partnership among Oklahomas public radio stations and relies on contributions from readers and listeners to fulfill its mission of public service to Oklahoma and beyond. Matt Pinnells efforts to create a cohesive brand for the state. Increased teacher salaries and greater school funding have also had little impact on educational outcomes. Oklahoma teachers have been given raises over the last four years totalling more than $7,000. Oklahoma legislator files bills for teacher, support staff pay What does it mean to give an average of $1,220? I think the market is telling us that were short of teachers, and the market is telling us the teaching profession overall is not an attractive profession to step into, he said during the committee hearing. Oklahoma teachers could get pay raise from $541 million More:Oklahoman finalist for National Teacher of the Year says cooperation is key to future. SB 1048 requires school districts to report the amount of increase in compensation each teacher received by December 31, 2019, and requires the OSDE to make this data available on its website and in a report to the Pro Tempore of the Senate and Speaker of the House by February 1, 2020. There was a problem saving your notification. As a result, the funding for increases will be distributed through the formula. More:Oklahoma Supreme Court rules school districts, not governor, should decide mask mandates. Yes. A reminder: This raise is permanent and recurring, and State Law prohibits a teachers salary from being reduced from one year to the next. We can ascertain from the final result of the appropriation that the Legislature intended for districts to have flexibility on how raises are distributed to staff. The incentives would range from $2,500 to $10,000 and would be in addition to the minimum salary schedule, according to the proposal. In fact, the measures plainly state that the increases in salary are in addition to (i.e., separate and apart from) what may be reflected in the Minimum Salary Schedule. She is term limited after eight years in office. For support staff and paraprofessionals, its a little more complicated: Senate Bill 25 would give districts $1,200 per support staff member. Flat wages, heavy workloads, and the politicization of schools have been cited as some of the biggest influences behind these decreases. Were trying everything we can to get young people back involved and keep older teachers in the system.. $5,000 pay raise proposal for Oklahoma teachers passes Sen. Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee, a retired educator, introduced a bill in December that would give teachers a $2,000 annual raise for the 2023-2024, 2026-2027 and 2029-2030 school years. Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Read the reports and hear the stories onNPR member stations. 4. Who is required to receive a salary increase? Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device. Were trying everything we can to get young people back involved and keep older teachers in the system.. The minimum for a first-year teacher with a The plan differs from one approved by the State Board of Education in September when it voted to asklawmakers for a $5,000 raise for state teachers. This probably isnt the year for an additional pay raise on top of what happened last year, Mazzei said. (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). How will districts be held accountable for giving the pay raise? Pemberton said he hopes measures passed last year like the Oklahoma Future Teacher Scholarship and Employment Initiative Program combined with more legislative efforts this year will start attracting new teachers and retaining current teachers. The compromise at the end of session was as follows: districts would receive funding for pay raises, and be expected, but not required, to give an average $1,220 raise, to be annualized in future years. Stitt unveiled Monday his executive budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. School districts seesawed between in-person, remote, and hybrid learning, forcing educators to adapt quickly to an environment often not conducive to learning, nor allowing them to provide the best educational model for students of all needs. The number of students completing teacher education programs fell by more than one-third between 2008 and 2019, according to a 2022 report by the AACTE. Fish, Oklahoman, Oklahoma Supreme Court rules school districts, not governor, should decide mask mandates, Superintendent election a 'battle' for future of Oklahoma public education, some teachers to be paid $100,000 or more, Epic Charter School changing how it takes attendance after state investigation, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. This work is essential to a better-informed community and a healthy democracy. There is hereby appropriated to the State Board of Education from any monies not otherwise appropriated from the General Revenue Fund of the State Treasury for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020, the sum of One Billion Four Hundred Seventy-eight Million One Hundred Five Thousand Seven Hundred Dollars ($1,478,105,700.00) or so much thereof as may be necessary for the financial support of public schools. Oklahoma schools don't have enough support staff to meet needs, and their salaries are far too low averaging just $21,583 a year. This document is not intended to serve as legal advice, but is general in nature and reflects the questions OSDE has received as of June 24, 2019. Are charter schools required to give a pay raise? The intent is clear and the OSDE supports this expectation. Tax hikes, pay raises, fail to stem Oklahoma teacher shortage The poor educational quality of Oklahomas K-12 education has ripple effects that extend into other areas. New legislation enacted this year offers matching funds to raise the salaries of certain teachers who earn specific credentials and mentor other educators. The earliest SoonerCare 2.0 could take effect would be in fiscal year 2022 because it will take time for the state to apply for the federal waiver and prepare for the expansion, he said. Ateachersminimum starting salary would, for the first time, exceed $40,000 in the state. "Our students deserve educators who are compensated and respected as the professionals they are. You can cancel at any time. Some state lawmakers have suggested pay raises for all teachers. The measure also passed the committee by a vote of 21-0. In order to meet these deadlines in a timely fashion, OSDE will calculate the amount of raise for each teacher based on the October 1 personnel reporting period and subsequently provide this information as required. And he said the dramatic increase in teacher pay since 2018 has done little or nothing to attract new people to the teaching profession. The states share of Medicaid expansion, which would be between $100 million and $150 million does not need to be appropriated next year, Mazzei said. Kevin Stitt's 2020 State of the State speech. In Oklahoma, only 28.5 percent of 4th grade students read at grade level, according to NAEP. The state Board of Education has approved 3,593emergency teaching certifications this year, including a record number issued in a single month this summer, indicating traditionally qualified teacher candidates are still hard to come by. Reporter Nuria Martinez-Keel covers K-12 and higher education throughout the state of Oklahoma. Of those funds appropriated, the State Board of Education shall designate Fifty-eight Million Eight Hundred Fifty-eight Thousand Five Hundred Three Dollars ($58,858,503.00) for increased compensation for certified personnel as defined by Section 26-103 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes. Because teacher retirement benefits are tied to the last three years of income, one impact of the teacher pay raises was to temporarily slow the pace of retirements while educators racked up credit for newly increased salaries. Click or tap a column heading to re-order the table. Every day we strive to produce journalism that matters stories that strengthen accountability and transparency, provide value and resonate with readers like you. For support staff and paraprofessionals, its a little more complicated: would give districts $1,200 per support staff member. The plan could cost $150 million. Of further concern is the fact that there have simply not been enough new teachers to take their places. As a result, the amount appropriated provides enough funding to give a raise of $1,220 rather than $1,200 over twelve months. Pemberton said its up to the legislature to catch Oklahoma up. The teacher pay boost would be Oklahomas first in three years, if lawmakers approve it. The expectation is for all LEAs, including those not receiving state appropriated dollars through the funding formula (commonly referred to as off the formula districts). $4.9 million for the Oklahoma State University Medical Authority for physician recruitment and equipment needs. The raises would cost the state $310 billion and were supported by the Oklahoma Education Association. Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic, Stanley Hupfeld at Western Village (Charter), Tulsa School of Arts and Sciences (Charter. 6. As such, the expectation for charter schools with certified personnel remains the same as for all districts. The governor hopes to spark a discussion with legislators about how to spend those funds. The sharpest drops came in specialty subjects such as bilingual education, math, science, and special education. When SB 267 was discussed and debated on the Senate floor, Pemberton, a former school administrator, warned, Theres any number of jobs that we have a real issue hiring right now.. Oklahoma Budget FY 2020 Highlights SAVINGS $200 million in Oklahomas savings account, putting Oklahoma on the path to storing two months of expenses, more All opponents were Republicans while those in favor consisted of the remaining Republicans and all Democrats. Ray Carter is the director of OCPAs Center for Independent Journalism. Part of the increase, should lawmakers give the OK, would include a $100 million investment in kindergarten through third-grade literacy. Click here to donate online to support our journalism. He previously served as senior Capitol reporter for The Journal Record, media director for the Oklahoma House of Representatives, and chief editorial writer at The Oklahoman.