Climate Change Needed
Teachers need pay raises. But we also have to help them love their job again.
Teachers need raises. Period. They need to be compensated and they need a payrate that reflects BOTH the changing times AND the valuable work they do. But they also deserve to not be miserable.
Last night at the KW BOS meeting, the passionate teachers of King William shared they felt undervalued, unsupported, and they questioned why the School Board and Board of Supervisors couldn’t sharpen their pencils and figure out how to provide the Governor’s 5% proposed pay raise to give them some relief.
Under Virginia law, School Boards and the Board of Supervisors have cooperative roles to play when deciding how our local division is funded. The Supervisors set tax rates and decide what percentage will go to schools. But they have no authority to tell the school division how to spend the money they are given.
On the other hand, the School Board has the sole authority to create their budget and spend the money any way they like. The amount they receive is up to the Supervisors and General Assembly, but if they don’t it spend wisely, they won’t be able to pay their bills.
It’s a complex system to be sure, but as one speaker commented , schools need to run the way a successful business does – EFFICIENTLY.
And as I stated last night, I do not believe efficiency has been a priority for our School Board OR our Board of Supervisors, and it’s at budget time that we see the evidence.
After last night, I have even more questions than answers. There was so much conflicting information and many fingers being pointed in different directions.
But as I said in my remarks, it doesn’t take a finance degree to see that the School Board has in many ways been careless and short-sighted in their spending, as well as ignoring areas where the budget could be tightened. So it shouldn’t be a surprise when our School Board isn’t able to pay up when an opportunity like the 5% raise from the state comes around.
When I recently asked the School Board chair to explain the reason for the request for over one million dollars over budget, she explained that most of the money was to keep paying for positions and equipment they acquired with Covid money. In fact, it comprised the majority - $ $833,682.89 and the remaining money was for the HVAC capital project which as I learned from last night’s presentation we already have a savings account for just that reason.
I warned the Board months ago that they would be cash strapped if they used the Covid windfall of millions from the federal government - and it happened.
But, to my main point –the School Board and BOS MUST figure out a solution to come up with the money, but A TEACHER PAY RAISE ALSO HAS TO BE ACCOMPANIED BY A SCHOOL “CLIMATE CHANGE,” OR THE MONEY WILL BE NOTHING BUT A PARTING GIFT.
Time and time again, when teachers are polled they say STRESS is the number one reason they leave teaching; in fact it’s 2-1 over pay and before Covid. King William teachers do not feel respected. They are overworked and not supported or listened to. They deserve to be paid well, but unless we give teachers fundamental changes along with the money they deserve, the same problems will persist.
Raises will help get some teachers in the door and keep a few from leaving, but at the end of the day, our School Board HAS to do the hard and meaningful work of changing the policies that will make our teachers love their profession again.
So far, our Board has not done this work. I’m running for School Board so that I can get to work on the critical task of developing solutions that will help teachers. Once that happens, our students will learn, good teachers will stay, and new teachers will want to come to King William over any other county. Money helps, but it is only one side of the coin. The long-term solution is found in simultaneously improving the working environment, i.e. “climate change,” and that’s going to take time and dedication, something I’m 100% committed to give.
Here are the latest 2022 Average Teacher Salaries in our nearby counties from the VDOE:
New Kent -$56,499
Caroline -$50,427
King William -$52,153
Essex - $44,443
Hanover - $55,817
Henrico - $56,190
Chesterfield -$52,307
King & Queen -$51,693
Northumberland - $52,881
And here are the latest 2022 Starting Teacher Salaries from VDOE:
New Kent -$45,914
Caroline -$43,311
King William -$46,822
Essex -$42,970
Hanover -$46,982
Henrico -$48,033
Chesterfield -$46,000
King & Queen - $42,889
Northumberland - $44,500
We have a long way to go in improving our schools and the education of our children in King William, but restoring the confidence of our teachers is the most important first step.