As part of Take Your Legislator to School Month, members of the Hot Springs World Class High School Student Council hosted local legislators and city officials on Friday as the question was broached about raising teacher pay in Arkansas.
Student council members Tiffany Lopez, Renee Nduku and Isaac Booth spoke about "what it means to be a Trojan" within the school district, as well as various activities and programs the high school offers and how the school prepares its students for college and career.
Booth, a senior who serves as executive president of the council, asked about teacher pay and retention during a post-presentation question and answer session with the group, which included state Rep. Richard McGrew, R-District 22, Greater Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Gary Troutman, and Hot Springs City Manager Bill Burrough.
He questioned why Arkansas ranks as one of the lowest states in the nation for teacher pay, considering so much is spent on education.
"I understand that Arkansas has, for many years -- for many decades, actually -- put education at the forefront of our priorities, and so I do see that coming back," he said.
"I mean, look at this very nice facility we're sitting in right now.
"We're seeing the fruits from that are being beared. But with that, the average teacher salary in Arkansas sits at just over $30K a year. Considering that teachers are expected to put more time into their lesson planning and to different trainings, how are teachers expected to meet their monthly or yearly bills if so much of their time is being spent on this and yet so little is being put back into their pockets?"
Booth said he has met with legislators in the past regarding the priority of raising teachers' salaries but that delays have hindered substantial change from occurring.
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The issue, McGrew noted, is a predominant focus of the Legislature but there is a lot of misinformation out there. He said if more people got involved in their school district and looked at how the budget is being spent, they would realize there really has been no delay.
"Since 2016, the Legislature has given raises to the school every year since then," he said. "We are fully intending to do that again this year. What came out with the governor's statement, as you may or may not be aware of, most teachers got a $5,000 bonus. Let me also say this: I think teachers are extremely important. I think that the job they do. ... You (the students) are our future."
Noting the significance of teachers in society and the all-encompassing role they play in the future of the nation, he said it is still a struggle to pay educators what they deserve. Education, he noted, takes 56% of the entire state's budget.
"It's a constant thing moving forward. If you'll look at Arkansas teacher pay, it's real, real close to the states around us. Higher than some, lower than most," he said. "There is an emphasis on that. The Legislature gives the money to the school districts and the school districts -- the school board and the superintendents and administration -- decide how that money is spent.
"And we don't set teacher salaries; the school boards do. And so we give recommendations at how much that is there. ... And I can tell you, I can go talk to every superintendent and every one of them needs more money. There's never enough money," he said.
The issue of enough money in the state spills over into other segments of the government as well, he said, such as law enforcement.
McGrew stressed the importance of community support and involvement in their local school districts.
"Sometimes the money to the school ... we've had two schools in Garland County that went for millage increases that both failed because the people are not supporting the school. I've been to Mountain Pine School District, earlier this week, and you look at that school (compared) to this school -- y'all are blessed with the environment that you're in. Or, it can be looked at the other way -- Mountain Pine's not. They need more money, but yet the community turned them down," he said.
McGrew, now in his second term representing District 22 after first being elected in March 2020, noted his amazement at how much work went into districts' reaction to COVID-19 when it hit and how the general public does not always see the amount of work teachers put in.
"Dr. (Michael) Murphy out at Fountain Lake invited me in to see what they had to do to get prepared for COVID and, man, I never realized. I remember saying the statement, 'People drive out of this school every day and don't realize what y'all are doing in here.' And they don't also understand the impact that the teachers in education make to the future," he said.
"So it's extremely important and it is a fight up at Little Rock. There's a hundred of us representatives in the House and we all have different opinions but I believe that the Legislature has done a good job and will continue to do a good job. It's one of the highest things we're talking about up there right now and I can assure you that many of us are planning on making increases come this January the start of session," McGrew said.
Renee Nduku, a sophomore member of the Hot Springs World Class High School student council, talks about the wide range of clubs and student organizations at the school on Friday. - Photo by Lance Porter of The Sentinel-Record
Hot Springs World Class High School junior student council member, Tiffany Lopez, speaks about what it means to be a Trojan during Friday's presentation. - Photo by Lance Porter of The Sentinel-Record