Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Teacher Raises Approved

Figuring out how to give raises gave Gurdon's School Board plenty to talk about Tuesday, Nov. 21.

Meeting in regular session, the board was told about the new salary schedule which will go into effect in 1997. Under the schedule, passed by the Arkansas General Assembly, those with Master's degrees must make a minimum of $30,000 per year.

Bobby Smithson, Gurdon superintendent, told the panel the district is fine on the bottom end of the schedule, but comes up short at the higher end.

He suggested giving across the board raises of $1,000 this and next year to all certified personnel.

However, he said there was another way the pay hikes could be given, but it had to be passed by a majority of the certified staff.

Smithson said the district has picked up 30 students so far this year, and if enrollment holds, this will mean $32,090 more in MFT for the district.

This, combined with about $74,000 more the district may receive, brings the total to $106,000. Of this, by law, 56 percent must go to salaries. This translated to $59,410 being put into salaries.

Smithson told the board it could give the certified workers a $1,000 across the board raise and a 3 percent hike to non-certified personnel with no problem, assuming the district stays on budget and the enrollment remains at 921.

Representatives with the school's personnel policy committee (PPC) disagreed with across the board raises, saying those certified people with Master's degrees should be paid more because of the extra education.

The PPC took a vote of the district's 64 certified people, and returned with a 32-21 margin in favor of staggered raises.

The voting showed teachers at Gurdon's primary and middle schools favored the staggered raises, while those at the high school preferred across the board pay hikes.

Smithson said the last three raises have been given across the board, but with automatic step increases, those at the lower end received $400 more than those at the higher end.

The PPC spokepeople said across the board raises does not give anyone any incentive to return to school and earn their Master's degrees. They said the raises don't pay for the time it takes to get the advanced degree.

Charles Faila, media director, spoke out in favor of across the board raises, saying these would bring the district within the salary ranges in two years just like staggered raises would.

He said the higher pay at the lower end of the spectrum helps to attract new teachers to the district and stay longer once they get here.

He reminded the PPC the law states there must be at least 14 steps in pay schedules, but there can be more if a district so chooses.

Smithson said based on what he knows everything looks good for raises, but he doesn't know what will happen should the voters of the state adopt a new constitution.

He said the vote was so close (32-31) he had no recommendation for the board to base its decision on.

Board member Miles McKenzie spoke out in favor of staggered raises, saying these will give those certified personnel who don't have Master's degrees the incentive to go back and get them.

He then moved to adopt the PPC's recommendation, along with a 3 percent raise for non-certified personnel. The board agreed, and the raises will be instituted accordingly.