Higher lifetime teacher pay analyzed

Lawmakers are trying to figure out how to improve teacher quality in Utah — and increasing educator pay may be the best solution.

Legislators in an Education Interim Committee meeting Thursday listened to an incentive-pay plan that would boost teacher lifetime earnings from 17 percent in high-paying districts to 250 percent in low-paying districts.

The plan would also increase starting teacher pay 4 percent to 6 percent.

It would result in higher student achievement, give power back to principals, reduce teacher shortages and improve local control over the education system, said presenter Derek Monson, a policy analyst with the Sutherland Institute, a conservative Utah-based public policy group.

The pay plan would demand higher standards from educators.

Teachers would have to get recertified every three to five years; demonstrate subject mastery by passing a knowledge test and complete a course on instruction strategies.

Rep. Ronda Menlove, R-Garland, said, "It's one thing to have knowledge. It's another to teach what you know."

The plan calls for a new statewide salary schedule.

Teachers would make $35,000 to $75,000 with a $2,500 annual raise.

The current beginning teacher salary is approximately $33,500.

Principals would be paid $75,000 to $145,000 for elementary school; $80,000 to $150,000 for middle school, and $85,000 to $155,000 for high school. Potential raises would be $3,500. The average principal currently makes more than $68,000.

Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, said he would like a better system. Too often educators who have to move due to their spouse's career, then teach in a new district, experience pay cuts. Further, it would prevent "the dance of the lemons," he said, which is when a bad teacher is shifted from school to school, receiving pay increases until they retire.

The plan recommends an additional $5,000 annually for educators at "hard-to-staff schools" such as inner-city sites, or wealthy areas where the cost of living is a deterrent.

The plan also states raises would be determined by annual performance evaluations that are crafted to encourage collaboration between a parent, a teacher and a principal which, according to research, "has been found to be a hallmark of high-performing schools and quality schools," Monson said.

"Each group would have a say and have a voice," he said.

Principals would be given full authority to hire and fire, instead of splitting the decision with district officials. They would also be given leeway to recruit "all-star teachers" by luring them with a slightly higher salary than the statewide salary scale.

Legislators also heard a proposal to create pilot merit-pay plan for elementary teachers based on how well their students do on exams. The State Board of Education would try and get grants for school districts and charter schools to fund the program.

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E-mail: astewart@desnews.com