In case you haven't heard, we have a recession. For the fourth budget cycle in a row, Olympia is being forced to make cuts because sales tax revenues are down. Education has been giving up their proveribial pound of flesh for years, and this year it's more than trimming the fat, it's removing essential organs for the livelihood of the process.
The $70 million dollars of cuts being proposed by the "bi-partisan" senate would undermine accomplished teaching by slashing the National Board Certification stipend in half, on top of a 3% reduction in teacher pay, and reducing funding for absentee students.
At the same time, Met Life has released a survey showing that teacher morale is at an all time low. Is it any wonder? Is it any surprise? At the same time that we're working harder, under more pressure than I have seen in 18 years in education, our pay is being cut, our class sizes are going up, the state wants to take over and reduce our healthcare, and if you go above and beyond and earn your National Board Certification, you get nothing? Well ok, not nothing. You get reimbursed for the money you paid for the process, minus the taxes of course.
When Washington should be doubling down on education in an effort to repair and recover from the enormous loss of jobs, we are making moves to privatize education, stripping away benefits, and penalizing teachers.
Take a breath, WA and invest in your children. Contact your legislature and advocate for the WA constitution and appropriate funding for basic education.
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