West Virginia Education Association teachers’ union president Dale Lee says there is a crisis in public education in the state.
Frankly, the term “crisis” is thrown around so much that it has lost a lot of its punch. However, Lee and others in public education are right to raise legitimate concerns about the current state of our schools.
The WVEA recently released a scientific survey of 700 teachers showing that three out of four are either “very dissatisfied” or “somewhat dissatisfied” with working conditions.
The teachers say they are stressed out and burned out. They are frustrated with the lack of respect for their work and concerned about the pay. Seventy-one percent of those questioned said student behavior is a significant issue for them.
And this is particularly troublesome; thirty-five percent say they are not at all confident they will continue working in education. Factor that into the growing number of teacher shortages in the state—about 1,500 this year—and maybe we really do have a crisis.
Governor Justice has proposed an average five percent pay raise for teachers, staff and state employees. If approved, that would be the fifth raise in the last seven years, so that is progress. However, is it enough?
PEIA costs are also rising, so the pay raises help teachers keep up, but they’re not getting ahead. House Education Committee Chairman Joe Ellington proposes a pay raise that he believes would make a difference. The bill, which has passed out of committee, would raise the starting pay for teachers to $44,000. That is about $4,000 to $5,000 more than the current starting salary.
“We have to be competitive with our surrounding states,” Ellington said. “That’s one of the arguments we’ve had—that we’re losing good people to other states. People are going to travel to where they can get paid more.”
It is not fiscally possible for West Virginia to compete dollar-for-dollar with most surrounding states, but it can raise salaries to a level where current teachers are less likely to cross state lines and aspiring students are more likely to enter the profession.
The pay raises in the state Division of Corrections are a good example.
Entry level correctional officers, who were woefully underpaid for years, now start at $40,000 after a month of training, with an increase to $42,500 after six months, $45,000 after one year, and a $50,000 salary after just a couple of years. Officers who go to work at any of the nine “critical vacancy” facilities can start at $45,000 and be at $50,000 after one year.
Corrections Commissioner Billy Marshall told me the substantial pay raises have contributed significantly to a decline in the chronically high vacancy rate.
Ellington’s pay raise plan for teachers and service workers is expensive. He estimates it would add as much as $220 million to the base budget, nearly twice as much as Justice’s five percent proposal.
West Virginia cannot continue down the path of water-treading pay raises for teachers. The job is getting more difficult all the time, and fewer college students are interested in the profession. If nothing is done, the result will be an undereducated populace at a time when, more than ever, young people need critical thinking skills to compete.
The state’s economy is expanding. Global companies are moving here and a tech boomlet is emerging. Education is a key component to future economic growth, and that starts with our teachers.
The state must pay teachers as education professionals, empower them to run their classrooms and then, in return, expect better outcomes.