Teachers may get raises as soon as April

LOGAN - New Mexico's top education chief said many teachers in the state likely will see a pay raise as soon as April.

New Mexico Education Secretary Kurt Steinhaus provided details about forthcoming pay increases for teachers and school staff during a so-called "listening tour" Friday in the boardroom of Logan Municipal Schools. Steinhaus held similar sessions last week in Bloomfield, Taos and Roswell, and was scheduled to hold more this week in Truth or Consequences, Los Lunas and Rio Rancho.

About a dozen superintendents and school officials from eastern New Mexico on Friday peppered Steinhaus with questions about the state-mandated pay raises enacted by the New Mexico Legislature. Those attending included Logan superintendent Dennis Roch, Tucumcari superintendent Aaron McKinney and House superintendent Bonnie Lightfoot.

Steinhaus spent much of Friday explaining the intricacies of the raises. He said the Public Education Department received $424.9 million more, or 12%, than the previous fiscal year. Priorities for that additional money is for personnel pay, incentives for extended learning and teacher preparation and professional development.

Steinhaus said it was his understanding that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham would sign the education funding bill, and he was unaware of any line-item vetoes. He said he anticipates she would sign the bill this week, perhaps as early as Tuesday.

He said teachers and other education professionals are earmarked to receive a 3% raise during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022, or this spring. Steinhaus said he recommends that superintendents and district business managers distribute those raises during the quarter, which begins in April, though they can wait until August to do so.

Steinhaus said teachers would receive a 3% base salary increase during the 2022-2023 school year, plus a 4% raise for all staff that is compounded. He said districts will be given some control on how to distribute the raises, including more money for special-education teachers if they so desired.

He said the legislation also mandates teacher-pay minimum salaries of $50,000, $60,000 or $70,000 depending on their education level, or to $15 an hour for staff.

Steinhaus said some teachers or staff in the extended-learning or K-5 Plus programs would receive an additional 3% raise or pay of $15 an hour. Some teacher salary minimums in those programs also would be bumped up from $53,777 to nearly $80,000 depending on their education and programs.

"If you look at this, some teachers will get an 18% raise," Steinhaus said.

Steinhaus said districts should consider being in PED's forthcoming K-12 Plus program, which would require a few extra school days per year or more hours.

He also detailed the education bill's millions in additional funding for an early literacy initiative, at-risk student interventions, career and tech education and internet technology to improve student access. Money also was allocated for a teacher residency program that pays up to $30,000 for college seniors and a return-to-work program for retired teachers.

In short, Steinhaus said state lawmakers want better student achievement and is open to districts developing their own programs to facilitate that.

"The Legislature wrote us a big, fat check, and we're feeling a lot of pressure," he said, noting funding might be pulled back if results aren't seen in 10 months.

As for his agency, Steinhaus said his focus is on student and staff well-being, improvement student achievement and attendance, take advantage of extended learning opportunities and address the Martinez-Yazzie court ruling that mandates more uniform funding for low-income or disabled students.

Fort Sumner superintendent Matt Moyer expressed frustration about the Yazzie ruling, noting the additional funding is spread around instead of being focused on those students who need it most.

Other details from Steinhaus' meeting:

• He said one state lawmaker, irked by teachers' pushback against extra instruction time, initially yanked $60 million to $80 million from the education budget. Steinhaus said he persuaded other legislators to restore that funding.

• Attendees nearly broke out in spontaneous applause when Steinhaus pledged to reduce reporting requirements. He said he also is looking to reduce duplication in the PED, and he asked for attendees to give him suggestions for those efforts.

• One attendee suggested a tax credit be given to parents if their child attends school regularly. That would incentivize better attendance.

• Lightfoot during the session praised Steinhaus for "being one of us" in the PED. Steinhaus, a school superintendent before being tapped as the state's education chief, grew up in Portales and attended Eastern New Mexico University. Attendees also also expressed thanks for changes made to the recent update to social studies standards that included the addition of financial literacy.

• Steinhaus said the Legislature increased the PED's budget that included 15 more employees to handle licensing.

• Roch told Steinhaus about problems in securing a new bus for the district because the vendor is backordered. Roch said the New Mexico Department of Transportation turned down his request to extend the statutory life of the district's current bus. "That surprises and disappoints me because everyone knows about supply-chain problems," Steinhaus said.

• The New Mexico Foundation for Open Government criticized PED for closing listening tour stops to the public and reporters after it heard complaints from the Farmington Daily News and Quay County Sun. The foundation urged Steinhaus and the governor, who had pledged transparency in state government, to reconsider. A PED spokeswoman gave the Sun permission to cover the Logan session.