The following letter was sent to Harford County Executive David Craig. A copy was provided to The Dagger for publication:
Dear Executive Craig,
I am sending you this email to ask you to fully fund the 2013-14 budget for HCPS. HCPS is currently one of the lowest funded school systems in Maryland. I find that disheartening since Harford County is one of the highest counties when looking at per capita income. Your constituents expect and deserve high quality schools, and every year that is what they get. Harford County schools continue to perform extremely well when compared to other counties in the state, even those counties with less money available to fund their schools. But, every year the message to teachers is that they are not valued and their contract is meaningless. If a teacher were to break the contract, there are serious consequences. Yet every year, for four years now, the contract has been broken by the county. I understand that times are tough, yet two things ring true, 1) teachers need and deserve their contract to be respected and honored and 2) HCPS needs funding to continue to provide top notch education. New initiatives, technology, and materials cost a lot of money and the cost of everything goes up each year. Unfortunately, the schools budget and teacher pay remains stagnant. The students and our community suffer in this situation. If the schools can’t provide for student needs, teachers often spend their own money. Now teachers don’t have the money either. Not only is it difficult to provide for their students, it is obvious to say that it is also difficult to provide for themselves and their families.
Teachers are in the classrooms working for children every day. They are ensuring that Harford County schools perform well every day. Please show them that they are respected and valued every day by fully funding the budget.
Thank you,
Joy John
+1
-1
Fully fund the budget? HCPS has a budget and then the county needs to determine how much they can afford to share (over 50%) of county funds go to the school system already and the county now has to fully fund too. All these increases while student population has been dropping for the past few years. HCPS needs to fully account for every $$ spent before asking the county for more $$$ to fund their pet projects. The county funds the buildings and when the state refunds HCPS for the state portion, that money doesn’t come back to HCG, but HCPS gets to keep it too so they get the double the $$$ funded for school construction. If the teachers want a raise, they should abide to a merit system in which good teachers get rewarded and bad teachers get fired!!!
Great Job Joy!
The Marxist speaks!
I don’t understand, why there is a funding issue when it comes to Maryland’s educational system. Where is all the millions of dollars going that is being generated by the gambling casino’s? I thought a large percent of that revenue was to be designated for the educational programs in Maryland.
You bought that line?
You thought wrong.
Harford County likes to think of itself as a shining star among counties. Yet, when it comes to funding education, they are a backwoods community. Seriously, little backward Cecil County does a better job of funding education than Harford. Really? Sad.
By that reasoning, systems receiving the most money per student should always perform at the highest levels. I think that we see time and again that is not the case.
Check O’Malley’s pockets.
Hard to pass more money with today’s society how children are brought up, socially engineered not educated. enrollment om.a decline and “everyone gets a trophy” means nowadays the goal is just to get kids to keep going through until they get their state diploma.
There seems to be a large population of teachers that live in Harford County, but work in Baltimore County. I can count 5 or 6 in my wife’s school, which is all the way down in Parkville. Harford is not competitive with the neighboring counties, and does not attract experienced teachers from other counties because of their lower pay scale.
When someone can define what makes a “bad teacher” vs. what makes a “good teacher”, then I’ll happily support merit pay. That’s assuming you can figure out all of the intangibles, like student motivation, ability level, and parental support…
Merit Pay works under the assumption that it’s a level playing field – all teachers have the same exact job, under the same exact conditions, with the same exact students. This is false. You certainly don’t evaluate a high school teacher under the same guidelines as an elementary school teacher, because it’s not the same job. Teaching gym and science aren’t the same jobs, either. Teaching AP classes vs. teaching CC classes – these aren’t the same jobs. How then can you create a blanket system to evaluate teachers when the intangibles make one teacher’s job radically different from the next? I welcome your response.
So, so true! Bravo!
It can be set up like the rest of us. You get a review from your boss and a raise based on your performance. Just like private school teachers and college professors.
If merit pay is good enough for all of the rest of us it is good enough for you. The people who object to merit pay are those that have no merit to be paid for.
I know one thing, if I had a masters degree and got paid less than 40,000 a year I would be out the door faster than no other. I just heard on the radio this morning, 2 year post college graduate making close to 90,000 a year as an it tech, 4 year degree.
@Benjamin,
It’s all about supply & demand. There are far fewer people to fill IT roles, so they demand a higher salary. People who get into teaching know what kind of salary to expect. None of them do it for the salary.
It’s actually too bad for them. If enough of them left the teaching profession in search of a higher salary, there would be less teachers and teachers would command more money as a result. Again – supply & demand. Lower the supply, raise the demand.
That said, while I can tell you my daughter’s teacher is a total gem and really deserves more money than she makes, I don’t feel bad for her. Why? Because like I said above, she knew exactly what to kind of salary to expect when she started her first day in college.
Benjamin,
The different traits between a good IT person and a good teacher are quite significant, their schooling is very different and the personality traits each attracts are almost polar opposites. Instead of looking at high-paying STEM jobs, look at the soft sciences like psychology, sociology, history, etc, and the salaries of those graduates at comparable education levels. I bet you will find they make almost the same pay as a teacher.
An IT grad can demand a high starting salary based on their aptitude, while every public school teacher is stuck on the same fixed pay scale and only able to increase their pay by completing additional degrees or gaining seniority. IT grads can also make a name for themselves by performing better than their peers and hop between companies, receiving raises with each move, an option unavailable to the pay-scale-bound teachers.
The teachers aren’t asking for a raise, they are asking for their contracts to be honored. The contract designates a salary increase for each year of service. A contractual agreement is not a raise. Teachers haven’t had a raise in 4 years. 4th year teachers make the same pay as a new teacher. How is that going to keep quality teachers in Harford Co. or attract new teachers looking for a lasting career. The public believes that teachers got a 1% raise last year, but in actuality, they didn’t because the county raised the employee’s contribution to their insurance so now they make less than last year. Since the SS tax has gone back up, the pay is even less.
As for merit pay, it doesn’t work. However, the county IS revamping the evaluation system which will increase the workload of teachers and administrators. Administrators will be in classrooms more than ever before, but teachers will be pulled out of the classroom to have post observation conferences as well. Quality teachers will be needed to fill in the classrooms when teachers are pulled out. That costs money and time for everyone, but I agree it is necessary to make sure that all teachers are giving their students the best education possible.
That being said, the county is also working hard to change to the Common Core which will ensure that all the states in the US will have a set standard for students in any given grade. Again, this costs money. Curriculum and materials will need to change or be enhanced.
The student population may be dropping, but the price of everything is going up and Harford County already spends less per pupil than most of the other counties in MD. Bottom line, the budget is necessary and needs to be funded.
I teach’em,
Every other worker in the US is feeling the bite of the now-expired Social Security tax holiday (which was always billed as a temporary measure to reinvigorate the economy by lessening the burden on tax payers, so its demise is not unexpected) and increased insurance costs as a result of Obamacare. Teachers received a step and 1% over the summer, that sounds like a raise to me, unfortunately elections have consequences and Obama has chosen to have workers bear a greater tax burden instead of reducing spending while also increasing costs for insurance companies by mandating increased coverage (which cannot be absorbed by the companies while still remaining profitable). Complain to the NEA for backing Obama’s reelection instead of whining to other people who are feeling the pain of smaller paychecks as well.
I teach ’em
You’re just another get more tax money teacher who wants more money for teachers.
You have a great gig with excellent pay, retirement, healthcare and time-off and yet you complain.
Spiro
Spiro,
I am a certified techer in HCPS and it is certainly not a gig I am doing. Teachers in HCPS work hard for their certification, pay healthcare, etc. Do you have a Master’s Degree? We teach because we want to make the world a better place not for the gig! Get educated!!!!!!
Here we go again! Hurry, hurry hurry! Step right up and see the annual debate between the teacher haters and the teacher supporters!
“The teachers deserve more money”.
“No they don’t”.
“Yes they do”.
“No they don’t”.
“Yes they do”.
“They already get too much”
“No they don’t”.
“Yes they do”.
“No they don’t”.
“Yes they do”.
Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Don’t you all get tired of the same spew year after year? The same arguments pro and con, the same obvious agendas, the same people who are educational experts in spite of never having spent a day in an educational setting, the same tired arguments?
Of course, that’s the biggest part of the problem in education: none of the experts in the field (the ones who have no problem expressing their expert opinions in a public forum) are actually in education. What a shame.
Spiro,
I am not a teacher but take great exception with your comments. Teachers have a very difficult job. The good teachers are underpaid, and that is said by looking at comparisons with other counties and states. Lousy teachers are like lousy lawyers, doctors, APG employees and others- they are overpaid. I firmly believe that we have far more good teachers than bad ones. Why shouldn’t their contract be honored? My fight is with a union or association who protects bad teachers at the expense of good ones. Teachers also become pawns when the central office has projects that compete with salaries and compensation. But, please, let’s not smear the job that good teachers do in Harford County.
@Monster,
Well said! I’d like to see the people who think teaching is an easy gig actually do it. Yes, teachers know what they signed up for. So-so salary, long hours, etc., and they still love it, however, IT IS NOT EASY. Some people think of teachers as high-paid babysitters. They are very educated people who must take 20-25 children of varying abilities, interests, and backgrounds and make sure that they are all learning and moving in the same direction. Planning, implementing lessons, grading, evaluating data, self-reflection, sleepless nights worrying about low-performing kids or kids with bad homelives… It takes a lot of talent, skill, patience, and compassion to do the job. There are many college students who leave during internships or decide that it is not for them. There are many teachers with less than 5 years in that leave the profession. They thought it would be easy and it is not (plus they are not well-paid). So, I too, take exception to Spiro’s comments.
I teach ’em
I lot of people have tough jobs with and without advanced degrees and don’t get the compensation, benefits and time-off you receive.
Not all teachers are competent or qualified to teach, yet we treat all of you the same. Teachers rarely get terminated.
Our educational system is way to expensive, delivers sub-standard results and you are part of the problem.
Well, Spiro, I believe people who are not in education shouldn’t judge that which they so obviously know little about.
I teach ’em
Using your logic or lack thereof if I’m a phrenologist all I can comment on is phrenology.
I remember checking your bumps and you suffer from a severe case of pitching and moaning.
Some teachers are not fit to teach and many of you have an unquenchable sense of entitlement.
And yes you do get two months off in the summer and every holiday.
Spiro,
Spend a week in the classroom and then we can talk!!!
@I Teach Em –
I agree with you 100%. But the problem here is the system. The system doesn’t allow a good teacher with 5 years of experience to make more than a teacher who has been in the system 20 years but no longer cares. The problem is the union.
Before people go off ranting, read the rest of this please. Then rant if you wish (it’s your right after all).
IF the union were dissolved (which will never happen), then we would have a free market for teachers (much like the IT field). This would accomplish the following:
1) A good teacher could make more than a bad teacher.
2) Bad teachers could be fired. This would free budget money to get better teachers.
3) Teachers could freely switch between counties without worrying about their retirement. Think about what free agency did for baseball.
4) Teachers that don’t like the money could switch fields because – again – they won’t worry about their retirements.
5) Teacher salaries would immediately increase because the retirement / benefit packages would decrease. This would put money in their pocket now v. later. Obviously, I’m assuming the total benefit package stays the same which is logical. But it allows them to do with their money as they wish. Remember – those in IT make more, but don’t get the benefits
6) No more concerns about strikes, or any other layoffs.
Now, there would obviously be the issue of how to deal with budgets to make sure teachers get raises, etc. But in theory – if Harford County doesn’t pay well enough – Baltimore, Cecil, or another county would raise salaries to woo the better teachers. Why am I certain this would happen? Politics. Every politician needs (not wants – but NEEDS) to boast about their school systems. It’s all about capitalism.
The result would be a win for everyone. Teachers, students, tax payers, and actually even politicians (who can concentrate on raising the budget as opposed to dealing with union heads). There will always be an activist group for teachers who will put their support behind a candidate so that wouldn’t change. But that’s not a bad thing anyway.
Ok – rant off :).
Let me see…those who can, leave and those who can’t teach? Its a free country and no one is forcing you to work for less than what you think you are worth. Go for it! Get a job in the real world and deal with adult problems and solutions and leave teaching kids to those who can’t do anything else. Teachers get paid what they are worth because they work for crummy wages and good benefits + a kick butt pension on the hook by all the taxpayers, while the rest of the country has to save towards an IRA or 401K? I don’t feel sorry for teachers, like i said, those who can will leave for more $$$.
There is no contract between HCG and the teachers union. It is up to HCPS to fully fund raises from the 50% of every $$ that the county takes from all the hard working taxpayers…yeah I know you guys “pay taxes too”, but it is easier to pay the darn taxes when you get a full year’s salary and get 2 months off!!!.
Wrong, those who can and love it will stay and those who can’t or don’t love it will not stay. How can you say something so hateful? “Leave teaching kids to those who can’t do anything else.” Do you have children who attend HCPS? Do you feel that their teachers are unfit to do anything else? Harford County teachers excel at what they do and they have state standings to back that up.
As for their pensions, they aren’t that much. Future retirees will probably not see any social security. So teachers must have to contribute to their pension, social security, and yes, a 403b (which is an investment that is not employer matched).
Teachers do not get a full year’s salary with 2 months off! That’s totally incorrect. Teachers are paid for 10 months of work. Do you really believe that any employer would pay for an employee to have off for two months?!
Yes, its called the Federal government
When I went in to the profession of teaching I had no idea what the pay was, it wasn’t a concern. I wanted to teach children how to read and how to be good citizens. At no time during my years in college did any of my instructors mention that after I became a teacher I would have to continue my education to maintain my certificate and that I would have to do this as long as I was a teacher. This means that I now have a student loan that sits at $70,000 for my A.A., B.A. and M.A. and have to continue to incur another round of student loans unless I decide to retire. I ASSUMED I would have a cost of living and step increase each year, this being a modest increase but one that would keep me on an even playing field. However, that has not happened in over 4 years. In the meantime, our medical co-pays went up, prescription co-pays went up, and our share of our retirement went up which means our paychecks went backwards…and as everybody knows, now our social security went up 2%. For those of you above who said we stayed at the same pay, we did not, we went backwards! I do not have two months off in the summer..I am unemployed for two months in the summer, it is not a paid vacation!
Its not like the certificate’s continuing education requirements were hidden from you, it sounds like you failed to investigate them (one phone call to the state department of education) or do a cost/benefit analysis before selecting your college major. That isnt the taxpayers’s fault.
Kharn,
You appear on every posting about teachers. As teachers, we know that we have to get advance degrees but do you not think that we should get compensated for that. I am not sure what your occupation is but I do think if you had an advanced degree you would want to be credited for it. Teaching is not a job it is a career that individuals do because they love to give to others!!!!!
@hcpsmom
No one is paid for their degree.
The degree may be a prerequisite for a
teaching position, but people are paid
for the job they perform.
P.S. Remember Bill Gates is a college
dropout.
Gates was no ordinary student. Rich parents and exclusive private schooling provided him with many advantages. Too many people use the college dropout claim as some suggestion that he couldn’t cut it but the reality is that he got into Harvard because of his brains not his parents money. He decided to dropout (with his parents blessing) to start his own company in part because there was no college program that supported his particular field of interest in computer programing. Using Gates is a poor example.
@observation
No one is paid for their degree.
The degree may be a prerequisite for a
teaching position, but people are paid
for the job they perform.
P.S. Feel better, now?
I’m sure a few of these teachers don’t represent the entire hen house, but you never know. I just think its funny they come on internet social media sites and argue with trolls. I guess working with kids who rather be playing with heir hand held media devices rubs off on them.
Please show the taxpayers that they are respected and valued every day but cutting their tax bill.
Kharn – teachers are what you call “pay scale bound” because they and their union demands it.
Could a group of teachers quit teaching for the county and start their own private school? They then can pay themselves what they want and make the tuition to their “private” school corresponding. I’m sure they will have no problem filling the rooms. Seem to be plenty of applicants headed for the Catholic schools. 16 years ago I left a company I was working for and started my own gig. Now I make what I think I’m worth.
It drives me nuts that every time we talk about funding the budget many of you assume that the issue is all about salaries. Fully funding the budget means providing Harford’s children with everything they need to be successful. It means putting technology in classrooms. It means providing enough books for all students so that they do not have to share. It means providing children with safe playground equiptment. It means providing healthy, clean schools that have working air conditioning and heat. It means providing students with enough teachers so that there are not 32 children in a class. Research shows that students in small classes are more successful. Fully funding the budget means soooo much more than salaries!!
16 yr teacher,
So if you are unemployed for 2 months out of the year, does that mean you collect unemployment? Also, I believe that HCPS offers tenure, meaning that you can not lose your job. What other type of employment offers that? Even colleges have done away with it.
I stand behind my comment. Harford County has many very good teachers. In the business world if a contract is not honored, someone would be sued. Yet, the contract is not being honored in Harford County. The entire budget negotiating process is suspect in fair play. The Board of Education comes up with a budget, which then gets submitted to the County Executive and Council. Since neither the Council or the Executive participated in the extensive negotiations, they do not support it. That is a waste of time. Why doesn’t the BOE and elected government leaders, the once who will have to foot the bill, do the contract negotiations. Once again, teachers are pawns in this game. Again, I am not a teacher, but al of you who make light of what they do ought to follow your own advice. Give up your job and take a posh job of being a teacher.
Spiro, give up your job,if you have one, and get a teaching job. That way you can have 2 months off every year, and a very easy and posh job. Put your money where your mouth is. Your fight should be with the Board of Education who doesn’t understand that teachers are what makes good schools. They would rather try gimmicks to make the educational system look good.
Good teachers should be honored, not abused.
Interesting that you should use phrenology as your example. That was used back in a time when people knew so little about the human body and the mind. Hmmm… Again, you show your lack of knowledge for the teacher profession.
We do have off for the summer and holidays, but we are not paid for that. And yes, we are “entitled” to have our contract honored. If you had a contract and the other party did not deliver, you would also be complaining.
Spiro, interesting that you should use phrenology as your example. That was used back in a time when people knew so little about the human body and the mind. Hmmm… Again, you show your lack of knowledge for the teacher profession.
We do have off for the summer and holidays, but we are not paid for that. And yes, we are “entitled” to have our contract honored. If you had a contract and the other party did not deliver, you would also be complaining.
Can I just say what a relief to find someone that actually
knows what they’re discussing on the internet. You definitely realize how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More and more people must read this and understand this side of your story. It’s surprising you’re not more popular given that you surely possess the gift.