Ryan Walters explained at the April 27 board meeting that he wants current teachers to get access to pay increases, as well.
WARNER — Citing the ongoing teacher shortage, State Superintendent Ryan Walters announced a pilot program Wednesday afternoon to provide one-time signing bonuses for specific instructional areas.
Paid for with federal funds provided through the American Rescue Plan Act and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the one-time program will allocate $16 million in the Oklahoma State Department of Education’s discretionary funding for signing bonuses starting at $15,000 to educators who commit to teaching special education, pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, first, second or third grade in an Oklahoma public school for at least five years, with additional amounts awarded to teachers who agree to teach in a rural district or one where at least half of the students are eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.
As announced Wednesday, the program calls for sign-on bonuses of up to $50,000 for teachers with more than five years of classroom experience.
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To qualify, a teacher would have to either have received certification within the last three years, have previously left the profession or currently hold certification from another state. Any recipient who voluntarily leaves their school district during that five-year window would be required to repay the bonus.
However, with applications subject to review by the Oklahoma State Department of Education, the plan includes a cap on the total amount of signing bonuses awarded per district at $150,000.
“We want to make sure everyone has an opportunity to get these funds,” Walters said. “We have some large districts that, with a program like this (without the cap), they have the potential to go in and get all these funds.”
Including the 58 emergency teaching certificate requests on the consent agenda for Thursday’s Oklahoma State Board of Education meeting, more than 4,000 educators across Oklahoma have received an emergency certificate since the start of the fiscal year on July 1, including 1,086 for elementary education and 599 for early childhood education.
The sign-on bonus application went live on the State Department of Education’s website Wednesday afternoon.
Additionally, the Oklahoma State Department of Education will be launching a privately funded nationwide advertising campaign featuring the signing bonus in an effort to bring in more teachers, Walters said. He declined to provide specifics about the campaign, including its funders.
Despite repeated reassurances from Walters that the one-time bonuses will be enough to encourage new teachers to stay around long enough to get acclimated to the classroom, the plan was met with public skepticism from at least one administrator.
“What is it going to look like if they leave after those five years?” Warner Elementary School Principal Alan Gordon asked. “Are we going to be back at square one, where we’re looking for another person to come here? I may have a person here who’s been teaching for 25 years who’ll lose the chance to get this, and we could lose someone who is really loyal.
“We’ve got to take care of those teachers who’ve been here, giving us their all all the time. What does this look like for those teachers? I was in the classroom for 12 years and know what it’s like to only get paid once a month and then be broke after paying the bills.
“For a person to come in here, do this for five years, say, ‘I’m gonna get my 50Gs and I’m outta here,’ that’s a slap in the face of the teachers who’ve been working their behinds off daily.”
Another plan from Walters calls on the Legislature to provide an additional $150 million to go toward merit-based pay raises. According to a meeting notice released Wednesday afternoon, the House of Representatives’ Appropriations and Budget Committee is slated to hold a hearing Monday afternoon on the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
During Wednesday’s session, Walters told attendees that his department is committed to working with the Legislature to increase education funding. However, he has previously declined to appear before legislators to answer their questions about the agency he leads.
On top of the sign-on bonuses and proposed merit raises, Walters announced Wednesday that the State Department of Education will create additional certification levels that will provide incentive pay raises of up to $40,000 under the terms of House Bill 4388.
Approved in 2022, HB 4388 directs that lottery proceeds above $65 million go to the Teacher Empowerment Fund to pay for raises for teachers who meet certain criteria.
However, the number of teachers who would be eligible for such a raise would be capped at 10% per district, and the teachers would have to be renominated each year to receive the pay increase.
Additionally, that plan is contingent upon school districts' providing matching money, which is problematic for Warner Superintendent David Vinson.
“My issue as a superintendent is that we haven’t done anything to address the inflation we’ve had since 2019,” he said. “That’s going to catch up with us, and those matching dollars aren’t there. The only way I’d be able to start matching what these teachers are applying for is to take away from other areas in my district, because I don’t have new money to work with.
“I love the idea — I can name teacher after teacher right now in Warner Public Schools who deserves more money, … and I’d be more than happy to pay for it. I’m just telling you right now that as a school district … I would not be able to come up with that money.”
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