Schoolteachers are immense assets to Missouri. When will we start paying them better?
Most families have a limited number of dollars to spend on their day-to-day lives. Likewise, states have a limited number of dollars to spend to provide public services. But how much longer can Missouri afford to be one of the lowest-paying states in the nation for its teachers?
It is well accepted by most families that safety, food and housing are primary needs for their household budget. However, where does that leave public education for our future generations? These are difficult times because we have so many expectations for our students, and yet state funding for our schools often appears to be at a standstill. It is more important than ever to focus our efforts on making sure public education provides our children with the necessary tools they will need to succeed in life — but that costs money.
Our teachers go above and beyond their contracts with their time, energy, personal money and personal resources to make needed sacrifices to help their students. So why do our legislators refuse to give them the crucial financial support that they deserve? We can’t expect a premier education for our children when our state contributes stagnant amounts resulting in teachers at the basement of pay compared to other states.
Often, we have heard that if you don’t feed our teachers, we will starve our children. Is this happening today in Missouri? I fear that lawmakers who tell us they do not have additional funds for public education are not speaking the truth. All states have enough money to do anything we want them to do — just not everything. It’s about legislative priorities. How do we make them responsible for making teacher pay in public education a priority?
Missouri’s neighboring states know the value and investment in a well-funded public education system, and they prove it in their funding. They are all rated much higher than Missouri. Isn’t it at least an embarrassment that our teachers’ salaries are ranked 47th in the nation, and dead last for starting pay? That should be more than alarming. Whatever happened to being the Show-Me State? We certainly can’t show any of the other 49 states that we have anything close to a model for funding our public education system.
Horace Mann once said that our public schools are “the greatest discovery ever made by man.” Why can’t Missouri legislators realize they are a vital investment in our country’s future? Fortunately, it is not too late to lift education higher up on our priority list. There is no catchy phrase to use in an election, and there are many voters whose children are grown and graduated. However, there is no better example of the common good that we all strive for in our society.
We need to make sure that voters understand what our Missouri educational deficit means for the future. Voters need to know the facts because only when we all know better can we do better — and Missouri needs to do better now. We have an opportunity in coming elections to make a real change on how priorities are established in Missouri’s budget — and to make sure that our elected officials truly understand that teachers are worth it.