Oklahoma's newly elected Superintendent of Public Instruction is unveiling a new five-year plan to give Oklahoma teachers a $5,000 pay raise over the next five years, along with an additional five days of instruction to the school year, also added over five years.
Republican Joy Hofmeister announced the plan on Monday, saying increased teacher pay is critically important in addressing a significant teacher shortage in Oklahoma. The first year of the proposal would cost the state about $150 million.
But, in her first public meeting with lawmakers, Hofmeister also proposed a revised fiscal year 2016 budget increase of $205 million—a decrease of nearly $70 million from the previously approved budget by the State Board of Education under the leadership of former State Superintendent Janet Barresi.
“I’m asking for an additional $205 million. That’s how we’re going to fix it,” Hofmeister said of Oklahoma’s current education problems. “We need a plan so we do not continue to chase a problem. We have lingering challenges and immediate needs. Right here is a plan to address immediate needs and the problems we keep chasing for decades.”
Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin and other Republican leaders have expressed support for teacher pay raises, but finding the revenue could be difficult with early projections showing an estimated $300 million less to spend on this year's budget.
A starting teacher in Oklahoma makes $31,600. The average salary is about $44,000.
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