Teach ‘em up

How about that for starters?

TELL US again how Sarah Sanders doesn’t have a statewide agenda. Here we had our mouths all set to comment on her response to President Biden’s State of the Union address yesterday. Before the news cycle could, well, cycle, she came out with her education plan for Arkansas.

We’re still reading it. Forgive us, Gentle Reader, if we jump the gun, jump to conclusions, and generally jump with joy. Surely we’ll have more to say on this plan later, as details come out in the paper. But until then, we’re happy to note:

■ The best way to get teachers on board any reform is to boost their pay. Which this plan does. A lot.

Governor Sanders tells it with the bark off: “Like most other states, we’re dealing with a teacher shortage. It doesn’t help that Arkansas offers some of the lowest teacher pay in the country. That changes today.”

With $50,000. Each teacher.

The state’s minimum teacher salary would go from $36K to $50K if this plan passes. That’s going to be enough to make national headlines. And with only a third of young elementary kids reading on grade level, it’s been a while since Arkansas has made national news on education—with news that’s good.

We’re looking over the first reports from the Capitol, and the price tag isn’t among the details. But in a state that keeps cutting taxes year after year, surely the state will be able to afford this.

Imagine a teacher, or many teachers, in Oklahoma, Missouri, Louisiana and Mississippi seeing this crawl across the TV cable news today. They might pick up the phone and call their principal/superintendent/state lawmaker demanding the same money. Or they might make plans to reconsider moving to that house Meemaw has offered them in Arkansas. And the teachers who are already here might reconsider moving to Texas to take that job in Tyler.

A lawmaker—Republican, Democrat, in-between or neither—is going to have to think twice before voting against a package that has this kind of pay increase in it. We know a few teachers who might be excited about Wednesday’s announcement.

Speaking of pay, does this help make the case that teachers, like any other human, are motivated by money? At least partially? Can we talk more about merit pay and bonuses for the best teachers now?

We ought to.

■ First reports also say the governor’s package includes a voucher program for students to attend private or home schools. Doubtless this will also make national news. And will (also doubtless) be the thing attacked most by her critics.

The guy with the red socks and pointy tail hides in the details. So many of us will be interested to see how the operation works. The Arkansas General Assembly has voted down voucher bills in the past. We remember one not many years ago that would have funded them with tax credits. And it limited the number of vouchers to a few hundred.

In years past, other voucher plans around the country were done in by loose rules. (Any voucher money should go to accredited schools.) We’re curious to see Governor Sanders’ plan. Very, very curious.

But—generally, principally, substantially—the idea is a good one. Which is why so many education reformers like voucher plans.

A voucher system, like charter schools, should make the traditional public schools better, as competition has a habit of doing elsewhere. Vouchers would give parents more control of their child’s education. Why should only welloff families—with the ability to pay private school tuition, or the ability to move to better school districts—have these options? For the record, surveys show that a majority of parents like the idea of vouchers. And a super-majority of Black parents like the idea of vouchers.

The news side of this outfit will surely have more on Governor Sanders’ education plan. And we’re looking forward to it.

We might even read it before the Sports page today.