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twitterSCHOOLS:
Teacher pay cut might not sting recruitment
Clark County district will need to hire fewer educators this fall because of greater retention, slowed growth
Monday, Jan. 12, 2009 | 2 a.m.
Beyond the Sun
When Gov. Jim Gibbons unveils his proposed budget this week, the spending plan is expected to call for a 6 percent pay cut for teachers, along with state workers and university employees.
For the Clark County School District’s 18,000 teachers, that would effectively reset their salaries to 2006 levels.
In years past, talk of smaller salaries for teachers would be a worst-case scenario for recruiters competing to lure educators to the district. But the region’s slowing growth has alleviated some of the pressure to hire.
District enrollment rose 0.8 percent in September from the previous year. That’s far from the 4 percent to 6 percent annual increases that the district contended with for much of the past decade.
Slower enrollment growth means the district doesn’t need to recruit as many new teachers.
Also limiting the number of new hires needed next fall: Fewer teachers are leaving he district.
Voluntary separations were down more than 30 percent in November compared with the prior year.
District officials attribute it, in part, to Southern Nevada’s dismal housing market, which is making it difficult for people to sell their homes and leave. Another factor is that there are fewer job openings for teachers in other states.
Recruiting may not suffer, but an immediate effect of the proposed pay cut will be felt in teacher morale, said Bob McCord, an assistant professor at UNLV’s College of Education. Teachers are dealing with large classes that are only expected to grow as the School District confronts budget cuts brought on by the state fiscal shortfall. Add to that less money for classroom supplies and a likely rise in at-risk students because of the economy.
“Why are teachers singled out when it comes time for an economic downturn?” McCord said. “We turn to education to improve people’s skills and boost their chances of moving out of the downturn. We must invest in education. That is the road to recovery.”
As distressing as the potential pay cuts might be, teachers “have gotten to understand in this state that you don’t know what’s really going on until the Legislature meets and the ink dries,” said John Jasonek, executive director of the Clark County Education Association. “I think there’s a lot of game playing going on.”
District officials declined to comment Friday on the governor’s proposed pay cuts, which would require approval by the Legislature, saying “nothing official” had yet come from the governor’s office.
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Why oh why did I move here? What a huge mistake.
"Why are teachers singled out when it comes time for an economic downturn?" McCord said.
Not to say I necessarily agree with the cut but, if there is a cut, it is being applied to all state workers so teachers are hardly being singled out. Now, the teachers are the only state workers who don't get a cut, that would be singling them out.
Starrynite7, why don't you move out so somebody else can take your job. Thank you.
The long term resolution of our current crisis is going to rely on an educated work force. We will need literate workers competent in math with extensive computer skills and yet we are asking for an across the board cut in teacher's salaries? I think we need to take a look at our priorities and start cutting programs not essential to the country's long term growth like music (private lessons, anyone) and sports programs.
And how much is the governor's salary cut?
How is it that we as a nation a state a society, can devalue one of our most valuable commodities. Our children's teachers shape our childrens lives. So how can you expect quality from someone who is being held hostage. You can cut their pay because they can't sell their house so they can't leave the state to find a better paying job?
You have no idea what kind of stress our teachers are under. (I had to buy paper for my son's class so his teacher could send home homework and most teachers do spend their own money on things for their class.) All the budget cuts, parents who complain, administrators breathing down their necks for higher test scores, expecting more for less. It is not something I would want. How betrayed would you feel by all the parents by society?
PARENTS, these people who spend more time during the week with our kids than we do, deserve more from us. Please think.
Sunvisitor:
Teachers are indeed being singled out. Teachers are only considered state employees when it works for the state such as pay cuts. When state workers received raises, teachers weren't considered state employees and they didn't receive the same increases at the other state employees, but rather received less. Interesting how that works out, isn't it?
10% for everyone is what I think - That way noone feels singled out!
simply_put I must disagree that music and sports are not essential. While I agree we need to focus on pertinent skills for the future, I believe that having those extracurricular activities is vital to a well rounded individual, which is what I want for my society. I don't think we need single-minded churn and burn test taking machines, which is where I feel the education system has been heading.
As a ten year veteran of the Clark County School District, I have spent my entire career listening to tales, threats, and rumors of my salary being cut. I can live with that. What I can no longer live with is the ignorance of the people who say that we deserve a pay cut because we only work 8 hours and have summers off. In most jobs I had before teaching, I got overtime for working more than 8 hours a day. I also was not required to invest my own money for office supplies. Furthermore, I was not required to go to school and pay for it out of my own pocket, just to keep my license. Since I have started teaching, I have spent ten of thousands of dollars to continue my schooling, all in order to make me better at my job. I have done this on my "vacation" time. I have spent every summer involved in programs for students, and have not been paid for that. I do not get paid for the two hours a day I spend, past my contracted time, tutoring students and grading papers. I also do not get paid for the time I invest on evenings and weekends in support of my students and their activities. I do this without complaint...it's part of the job. But to say that we don't deserve what we make based on the amount of hours we work is absurd, and to say that we should have our pay cut for the same reason, is unjust. Please research your comments before you post them. You make very broad generalizations about a profession you seem to know nothing about.
Nevada hates educated people. Trust me on this. If I were a teacher and I was tired of being treated like a second class citizen, I'd leave.
Nevada just wants its young people to earn minimum wage in the casinos of rich white guys, many hailing from Israel. Go figure.
"Why are teachers singled out when it comes time for an economic downturn"
This is about everybody sharing the pain.
This not about the Teacher's Union.
It is about the State of Nevada recovering from our depression when nobody really needs our hospitality services.
We do not have a service industry that people must come here to buy
The hospitality services unions are seeing thousand of layoffs.
renomuse; so THAT'S what it is! I knew Nevada was anti-education. Heck, the Governor is the WORST thing POSSIBLE for education, and he claims to be the EDUCATION GOVERNOR! He even ran on a platform claiming that he would put "Education First"! Well, I guess we now know
that he surely has. First to be slashed & burned. GOOD JOB GIBBY! Ewe r so much fer edge you kation, it's almost palpable. Whatever that werd means.
engfan, I wish you the best and hope you come out of this well. I have always felt that teachers and the police have always been under paid and under appreciated. I salute the choice that you made to become a teacher. I also think that teachers take a lot of blame for the parents failure at home to see to it that students are engaged and are making sure that their school work is getting done.
Good luck.
Teachers and cops are overpaid in Las Vegas, compared to most hotel and casino workers. Cops start out at $50,000 a year and get much more with overtime, while teachers here start at $38,000 and are not especially good at their jobs, if you compare the scores of Nevada students to those of other states - aren't we 47th in test scores nationwide? 47th?? So we're beating Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas and that's it? If the school system was a private company, a lot of teachers here would have been fired already.
Mikeg: Teachers are educated. We have degrees and Masters in our fields. How many hotel and casino workers even have a high school degree? What a joke for you to compare teachers to casino workers. Cops put their lives on the line to keep us all safe, what do casino workers do to help mankind? I am not trying to belittle casino workers or hotel staff, but I am trying to make a point about salaries.
All of the teachers I work with are excellent teachers, we are not responsible for test scores. There are many factors involved in test scores. Some of the factors are the high transient rate in Nevada. We have students that are in school and then two months later they leave town. Students can not learn the basic skills if they are constantly moving around.
Another factor in test scores is how much education these students have when they enroll in our schools. Many are struggling with English and have parents at home that do not speak English. This is not the fault of a teacher who is trying to teach at grade level.
Many students come to Nevada with very low reading levels. Many of the 6th grade students are reading at 1st and 2nd grade reading levels. There is no way they can get caught up in a few weeks or even years.
Don't blame teachers on low test scores because we work very hard to educate the students given their circumstances when they come to school.
If the school system was a private company, then teachers would not have to worry about having money taken away from them when we are underpaid already. If it were a private company then we would all have so much overtime that our take home pay would double, or even triple.
We grade papers on the weekends and spend summers organizing the lessons for the school year. There is a lot of work that teachers do that don't result in extra pay. We knew that going into teaching, but what we did not plan on was having our reduced because people can't manage the budget. Don't punish teachers for the mistakes of other people! Take money away from the people that can't budget!
"teachers and cops are overpaid in Las Vegas, compared to most hotel & casino workers."
Mikeg... How profound.
Did you know doctors & dentists make more than circus workers, too? WOW, MAN!
"Teachers and cops are overpaid in Las Vegas, compared to most hotel and casino workers."
So, you want front desk attendants to start making traffic stops? Or how about your kids learning history and english from a blackjack dealer?
Stunningly ignorant view there mikey. Teachers and civil servers are historically underpaid everywhere, but in my opinion especially in Las Vegas. You couldn't pay me enough to be a LV metro cop. And did it ever occur to you that the reason NV is 47th is because of the prevailing attitude of people like you, but who actually make budgetary decisions? I think you may have the cause and effect backwards there.
I agree that law enforcement and education around the valley here are a joke, but it's hardly the fault of the men and women who serve this area every day in these two capacities. The problem is the state and local infrastructure. Sorely inadequate and mis-prioritized in major ways. Until people that make financial decisions for the rest of us realize what's really important to life around here, it will always be this way.
The other problem harske is that, with attitudes like that, who wants to be a cop or a teacher?
I asked myself that question (teacher) and said no. I wasn't going to be overworked, underpaid, and constantly belittled and criticized by the administrators, students, and parents. And on top of that have to deal with incredibly hostile public opinions with little grounding in fact.
Here's one for all you teacher haters, why don't you try being a teacher. I have. It's tough. It's rewarding. But I guarantee you will NEVER work as hard and as stressfully as a teacher will.
In my opinion, Americans need to value these civil servants more. Yes there's waste and it should be cut/minimized, but to throw the baby out with the bathwater...
"Teachers and civil servers are historically underpaid everywhere, but in my opinion especially in Las Vegas."
Teachers pay is ranked 25th in the national on a state level.
A few years ago, Clark County was ranked 12th in the national on a school district level.
Some CCSD police officers were pulling in over $130k over a 10 month period.
A few years ago, over 70% of Clark county firefighters were taking home over $100k.
And if you read those articles, jfnance32, you would have read that pesky fact that if you increase the number of employees, the amount of their benefits+salary would be more than the overtime paid to that staff.
If you're angry about how much people are paid in state or local government, don't argue for MORE of them. That's assinine.
You know, maybe if health insurance or treatment was cheaper... the benefits wouldn't cost as much, and they could hire more people.
Teachers MUST be paid more than any other profession. Think of this, how can you guys have great lawyers, good doctors and well-educated persons if we teachers are not here?
Did I really just read that hotel and casino workers should be paid as much as teachers? Perhaps it's attitudes like that that make the educational system here a "joke." In what other city would someone have the nerve to say that workers who have no college education should make as much, or more, as those who do? This may be why it is hard to get the children to understand the value of the education they are receiving. Why go to college and advance your education when you can go to Las Vegas Blvd and make more money than those trying to teach you? Let's keep in mind, at times like this, there are many in this town with no education who will suffer for it; who's going to foot that bill?
Teachers start out making $35,000 if they take the required classes. If they don't then they start at $31,000.
I have called the governor's office asking what his pay cut would be. The woman who answered the phone said she didn't know and she would call me back. She hasn't yet. I encourage all people to call and then post the answer(775-684-5670). I have also called Superintendent Ruffles and asked about the cuts to his $350,000 salary, district provided car, and $6000 yearly expense account. They haven't called me back yet either. His office number is 702 799-5307.