Reynolds proposes pay hike for teachers in annual State of the State address
Hunter
01/10/24
Governor Kim Reynolds gave her annual State of the State address Tuesday night, as the Iowa Legislature begins the first week of the 2024 session.
The Des Moines Register reports Reynolds proposed increasing starting teacher pay from $33,500 to $50,000, a bill that if passed would cost the state an estimated $47 million. Reynolds is also proposing setting a minimum teacher pay of $62,000 for teachers who have at least 12 years of experience. That comes with a $26 million price tag.
The governor touched on laws she’s signed in recent years to allow all Iowa families to access state-funded scholarships to pay private school costs and to make it easier to open charter schools in the state.
Reynolds also proposed an overhaul of the state’s Area Education Agencies. She said revamping them would give school districts more control over how students receive special education services.
AEAs would also be prohibited from offering services other than special education services for students. Reynolds accused the agencies of over-reaching and amassing large administrative expenses. In her speech, she said Iowa is paying more than the national average per pupil on special education services, while students with disabilities are performing below the national average.
The governor is also proposing a new literacy program for elementary school students, and pointed out that over a third of Iowa third-graders can’t read at grade level. The program would require teachers to be trained in instruction on what she called the “science of reading.”
State Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart released a statement Tuesday accusing Reynolds of trying to defund public schools. State Auditor Rob Sand said the speech, which he said called for more tax cuts for the wealthy without addressing the ensuing deficit such a plan would create, shows that “well-connected insiders continue to get prioritized over the interests of Iowans.”
A link to her prepared marks:
https://governor.iowa.gov/press-release/2023-01-10/gov-reynolds-delivers-2023-condition-state