Guest Commentary | Our students deserve great educators — and great educators deserve to be valued
Every public school student in Lee County deserves highly qualified educators in their schools and classrooms.
That is not just a talking point. It is central to the mission of the Teachers Association of Lee County and the educators we represent, who serve our schools, our students, and our community every day.
Providing students with the schools they deserve requires long-term investment and a real partnership among educators, parents, and the School District of Lee County.
After months of negotiations, TALC and the district recently reached an impasse on one significant issue: how to support the educators who were left out of this year’s state-funded salary increase.
Florida’s budget included funding specifically designated for salary increases for educators with 10 or more years of teaching experience in Florida. Through the Classroom Teacher and Other Instructional Personnel Salary Increase Allocation, or CTOIPSIA, TALC worked with the district to provide a $2,340 salary increase to educators who qualified.
That money is not what is holding up an agreement. The question still before us is what Lee County will do for the educators who did not qualify for that state funding.
The district’s final compensation proposal increased starting salary by $800, from $54,500 to $55,300, and provided $500 in performance pay for employees rated Effective or Highly Effective. That was the extent of the district’s final compensation proposal.
TALC proposed a broader approach. Our final proposal took into account the educators left behind by CTOIPSIA, the employees currently serving Lee County students, our recruitment and retention needs, and the budget available to the district.
TALC proposed increasing starting salary by $1,000, from $54,500 to $55,500; providing a $1,000 salary increase for every educator represented by TALC; and providing $2,320 in locally funded salary money for educators who did not qualify for CTOIPSIA.
We also proposed $300 in performance pay for employees rated Effective or Highly Effective, ClassWallet supply funding for educators who did not qualify for the August allocation, and an additional $300 ClassWallet replenishment in January. Too many educators still spend their own money to provide materials their students need.
These numbers reflect a basic reality: Lee County must be able to recruit qualified educators, retain experienced ones, and keep them serving this community.
Our educators are highly trained professionals with a wide range of experience and expertise. Lee County students deserve a school system that can attract great educators and keep them in our classrooms.
TALC’s goal remains reaching an agreement with the district. But an agreement cannot come at the cost of our students and the trusted educators who foster their learning environments.
In the midst of a nationwide affordability crisis, educators and families are already feeling the pressure of rising costs. At the same time, our schools are competing for qualified professionals who have choices about where they live and work.
Our teachers, students, and parents cannot keep waiting for meaningful investment in the people who serve our schools.
The district has told parents that it will “consider any reasonable proposal.”
TALC has put forward a proposal that addresses starting salaries, experienced educators, employees excluded from state funding, performance pay, and classroom supply costs. We believe that proposal deserves serious consideration.
TALC remains ready to work with the district toward an agreement that supports all of our educators and protects the quality of education our students receive.
Our students deserve great educators — and great educators deserve to be valued.
Kevin Daly is president of the Teachers Association of Lee County (TALC) and previously spent 21 years working as an Exceptional Student Education (ESE) teacher.