Yeah, that's right! Hold on just a minute if you thought that the HISD Salary for 08-09 was a done deal. Despite the fact that the budget recommendation submitted by the superintendent included the raise and step, several board members asked the administration to bring other "options" to the table.
The official report published in the Houston Chronicle was that some wanted to see more "creativity" in the salary budget.
I attended the board workshop where those options were presented. I saw proposals that left 2% in the salary schedule freeing approximately six million dollars to be used elsewhere. Melinda Garrett, Chief Financial Officer, stated that amount of money could be used to increase the maximum performance award to about 9k.
It could also be used to increase the PUA (per unit allocation) that determines how much funding a campus has available to fund everything other than salaries. That seemed like priority one for Diane Johnson, pos. 5 board member.
Larry Marshall, pos. 9 board member was the most supportive of passing the superintendent's proposed budget and therefore the 3% plus a step for the teacher schedule. Manny Rodriguez, pos. 3 board member was also very supportive of the recommended budget. He stated to other board members that the last two years they have concentrated on performance pay and now it was time to concentrate on the base pay for all teachers.
It was clear they both understood that keeping a competitive salary schedule was necessary to keeping qualified teachers in the district's classrooms.
My board member's contribution, Natasha Kamrani (pos. 1), was to ask when we would start a discussion about how salaries, in whatever form, impact student achievement. She stated to me in a clarification e-mail that she would be willing to support much higher salary schedules if it could be proved that they impact student achievement.
Well, we are on a mission to do just that. Research states that the teacher is the most important factor when considering student achievement. Further, research has proven that fully qualified, experienced teachers are most effective in the classroom and best able to impact student achievement. A study of teacher turnover rates for the past several years is under way. Be sure to look for that report on the HFT web page some time in the future. If the facts fall out where we think, then be ready to help us hold my board member to her word!
Here is another piece of anecdotal data that suburban districts have found out-- let HISD spend the money on training the new teaching force and let the new teachers cut their teeth in HISD schools. Put the money we saved into the base salary for teachers in the 6-8 year.
Hey, you can't blame them. Why wouldn't you let someone else absorb the learning curve and the price tag for training, especially if HISD isn't going to make the salary attractive enough to keep them once they actually learn how to teach!
The one thing that we know and HISD hasn't figured out is that they are going to have to pay a premium to keep the teachers at those step levels. They depend on the emotional commitment our teachers have to their schools to keep them in the classrooms. (Though a good principal is just as important a factor to keeping teachers in schools)
The "heartstrings factor" is being strained to the point of breaking by the grocery bill, gas bill, and their own child care bill. Let's see- more money to teach in an easier assignment that is closer to home and their own kids??? Hmm- I wonder what the exodus levels will be by August?
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