Hourly Update

Governor's task force recommends pay hike for new teachers

PHOENIX - Arizona schools should pay starting teachers at least $35,000 a year, with more cash made available for those with more experience, a gubernatorial task force is proposing. John Haeger, chairman of the Governor's Committee on Teacher Quality and Support, said that is the bare minimum necessary to attract and retain the best people. Reuben Gonzalez, vice chair of the panel and owner of an insurance agency, said that figure was not picked out of thin air but is close to state's average wage. How much that would mean to new teachers varies, as each district determines its own starting salaries. But Haeger, president of Northern Arizona University, said the statewide average now is $28,000 or less. At a meeting Monday, committee members also told Gov. Janet Napolitano experienced teachers also should be paid more. That would include providing "substantial" opportunities to earn more based on performance. The proposed package also contains one controversial suggestion: Pay teachers based on market conditions - what it takes to attract people from different disciplines. That would mean higher salaries for those who teach science and math than counterparts who have classes in English, music and social studies. But the committee has yet to decide whether the state should pick up the tab for any of these proposals or if the Legislature would simply mandate that individual districts find the extra dollars within their own budgets. The governor was noncommittal about adopting them into the proposals she will present to lawmakers next month. Ronald Marx, dean of the University of Arizona College of Education, said schools have to compete with private companies for the best graduates. For example, he said, Raytheon Corp. hires new engineers at $65,000 a year. But Andrew Morrill, vice president of the Arizona Education Association, said salaries can't be based solely on market. He said teachers also must be compensated on other factors, including student achievement. Marx agreed. But he said there must be some "creative thinking" to deal with the situation. "The country is not recruiting enough people in some of these fields to teach in the schools," he said. "And Arizona is a microcosm of the entire country." The idea of market-based compensation of teachers is not untested: That's the way universities pay their own faculty. "While the faculty sometimes don't like it and they complain, the fact of the matter is everybody understands how that market works," Haeger said. "The fact of the matter is we hire accounting professors at substantially more money than we hire a history professor." Panel members are suggesting other financial incentives, like paying higher salaries to teach in "hard to staff" districts, including both inner-city and rural schools. That proposal is based on the idea that all students should have access to the same quality of teachers, no matter where they live. Napolitano said there also may need to be special financial consideration for some rural areas like Flagstaff where "housing is disproportionately expensive." Gubernatorial press aide Jeanine L'Ecuyer said Napolitano is sympathetic to higher pay. But she said it's not that simple. "As much as I think most of us would like to be able to write a check to every teacher and give them more money, there are complex nuances that come into play," said gubernatorial press aide Jeanine L'Ecuyer, including who pays.