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ERC Meets -- Teacher Pay Proposals Taking Shape
The Governor's Education Reform Commission (ERC) met on Tuesday, July 28 and heard reports from each of the five committees meeting under the ERC umbrella, including the: Funding Committee; Teacher Recruitment, Retention & Compensation Committee; The Early Childhood Education Committee; the Move on When Ready Committee; and the School Choice Committee.All eyes were on the Funding Committee's report, which contained reference to that committee's high-profile consideration of several teacher compensation proposals. The teacher Training & Experience (T & E) proposals were outlined as follows:Teacher compensation Proposal #1- State would continue to calculate and distribute T & E to districts
- Current teachers may remain in the current system
- IE2 and Charter Systems may develop their own models and submit for approval
- For teachers who begin service after the effective date, districts could use the money earned in a flexible manner
- State would develop compensation models from which districts may choose; and
- All new models would contain teacher effectiveness as one element
Proposal #2 - Calculate state average teacher salary (Currently $50,767)
- Current teachers may remain in T & E system or opt-in to new system;
- Districts would earn funding based on the state average salary times number of teachers;
- Some districts would earn more than current T & E earnings which would be used flexibly
- Some districts would earn less than current T & E earnings
- The districts earning less would be made whole though a Hold Harmless allocation estimated at $88 million using current average teacher salary;
- IE2 and Charter Systems may develop their own compensation systems and submit for approval;
- State would develop compensation models from which districts may choose; and
- All new models would contain teacher effectiveness as one element
The ERC did not vote on the proposals today, and the issue of teacher compensation, as well as other ERC recommendations, are expected to be finalized in December.
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PAGE Testifies Before the ERC
At the conclusion of the meeting, three speakers addressed the ERC during the Public Comment portion of the meeting. Two representatives from TRAGIC spoke in strong support of compensation for and recognition of the value of advanced degrees. The speakers also pointed out the inconsistencies in one ERC committee's recommendation that pre-k teachers receive pay increases based on T & E while other ERC committees move in the opposite direction. PAGE reiterated these points and requested that the ERC solicit and incorporate the expertise of educators. Read PAGE'S statement HERE.
Educators and other stakeholders are strongly encouraged to contact the ERC regarding compensation and related issues now. Since most ERC recommendations will also move through the state legislature, PAGE recommends that educators contact their House and Senate member now to discuss ERC proposals. Educators should always contact policymakers using non-school email addresses outside of instructional time.
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What Are the Differences between the Teacher Pay Proposals?
Both Proposal #1 and Proposal #2 seek to incorporate "teacher effectiveness" into pay-for-performance models for new teachers and would eliminate compensation based on T & E for this group of teachers. Existing educators could opt in to this compensation system. Charter and IE2 districts could (and already can, based on existing state law) redesign teacher pay for current and new educators.
Proposal #1 (referred to by many ERC watchers as House Appropriations Chair Terry England's plan) was developed initially as a response to Proposal #2 and would continue to fund T & E at the state level for existing educators using existing methodologies. After a later date, new teachers would move onto the new plan, and local school districts could use the T & E funding sent from the state in a flexible manner.
Proposal #2 (referred to commonly as the Governor's Office of Planning and Budget proposal), would discontinue state funding to local school districts based on the T & E of the educators employed there. This funding would be replaced by an "average teacher salary" ($50,767) multiplied by the number of teachers employed in the district. Districts earning more than they currently earn under Georgia's existing T & E system could use additional funding in a flexible manner. School districts which receive fewer dollars than they currently do under T & E would receive additional dollars from a state pool with $88 million earmarked for this purpose.
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Margaret Ciccarelli - Director of Legislative Affairs
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