Tucker, Thomas share thoughts on education bill
The Arkansas Senate approved Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ education overhaul, dubbed the LEARNS Act, on Thursday. The approval came just three days after the bill was filed by Sen. Breanne Davis, R-Russellville.
The state House of Representatives is expected to take up the bill this week. Rep. Brian Evans, R-Cabot, said the House Education Committee would likely consider the bill at its meeting tomorrow.
El Dorado School District Superintendent Jim Tucker was critical of how quickly the bill passed through the state Senate. While he said there are several measures in the bill that he supports, he said he doesn’t think enough time has gone in to its consideration.
“It seems a little fast and reckless,” he said last Thursday. “I’ve read the bill three times so far, made a lot of notes. I think some questions got answered in the Senate Education Committee (public hearing last Wednesday); legislators asked good questions, Sen. Davis did a good job answering questions. I just think we need more of that, and more time. It’s a big deal, a big bill.”
The 144-page omnibus bill filed by Davis would increase the minimum starting salary for teachers to $50,000; provide $2,000 raises for teachers already making the minimum or more; create a voucher program providing students with funds to attend private or home school; repeal the Teacher Fair Dismissal Act; expand maternity leave for teachers; and provide support to struggling district with funds for literacy coaches and mental health training.
Tucker said that while the bill has several provisions he supports, the private use of public funds is a non-starter for him.
“One thing I do have a problem with is public money being used in private schools that can be part of a for-profit business. Public money used for private (purposes) doesn’t have the same oversight, accountability. That is a concern I have,” he said.
Kimberly Thomas, superintendent of the Strong-Huttig School District, agreed.
“The long-term ramifications of public funds for private use – we’re not real sure of how that would affect us in the long term,” she said on Friday, adding in an emailed statement, “Portions (of the bill) such as vouchers, public funds for private use and redesigning a fiscally sustainable salary schedule, I have strong personal feelings about.”
It was still unclear on Friday whether the state would provide funds to school districts to help them raise teacher salaries to the $50,000 minimum.
According to the SHSD salary schedule, a first year-teacher with a bachelor’s degree starts out making $36,000, while a teacher who’s been with the district for 16 years and holds a master’s degree makes $49,650.
In the ESD, a teacher starts out making $40,000; by their 21st year with the district, a teacher holding a master’s degree would make $54,175.
“I believe every teacher deserves a salary increase; exactly how it’s going to provide those is not entirely clear. I think there’s still questions,” Tucker said. “They did say (Wednesday) that there is funding available for school districts in the salary increase, I just don’t know how much help is going to be provided.”
Thomas said she, too, is waiting for rules and regulations related to the bill to be considered; before that, it’s difficult to tell how the district will be impacted financially by the bill.
“One the rules and regulations are released with more specific time lines, that would give us a better indication as to how our district would be impacted,” she said. “That’s unknown right now. There may be some unintended consequences.”
The bill would cost $297.5 million in its first year, including $150 million in new funds, and the cost would increase to $343.3 million in its second year, including $250 million in new funding, according to an estimate from the Arkansas Department of Education.
Tucker said robust pre-K programs for every child, another provision of the bill, would be beneficial for the state.
“That’s a vital time in the development of a child. I can definitely get behind that,” he said.
And Thomas said she thinks assistance the state will provide ensure students are reading at grade level by the third-grade will be a positive for Strong-Huttig.
“I think there are some very positive things in the bill, things that would all have positive impacts for our district in areas we have historically struggled in. Any support, especially an initiative from the state that’s going to provide funding, we feel good about,” she said.
But the lack of input from teachers and superintendents, who are on the ground working in schools with students every day, was another concern for Tucker.
“Questions have been asked whether educators were involved in writing the bill. I personally do not know a single superintendent that was involved in the process, and I know a lot of superintendents,” he said. “I do wish educators could have had a seat at the table when this bill was written, and if they were, it would be nice to know who they were and in what capacity (they helped with the bill).”
Thomas also noted that as far as she was aware, no teachers or administrators at Strong-Huttig were consulted about the bill.
The ESD and SHSD are very different, and the bill will impact them differently if passed. El Dorado has an enrollment of more than 4,000 and the El Dorado Promise, Tucker said, serves as a huge draw for both students and parents looking for the right school.
Strong-Huttig, meanwhile, serves 312 students from both Strong and Huttig and due to its small size is constrained by funding limits.
“I really feel strongly about students having an opportunity, in their local community, to attend school. Any way you can preserve small schools, or just make sure that they still exist, is always helpful,” she said. “Any time you have to leave your local community to attend school, there’s some things that get lost – your community identity, pride and support. Once the school districts are no longer there, it’s hard for a community to remain viable.”
Last Wednesday, bill sponsor Davis promised Sen. Kim Hammer, R-Benton, that the bill would be amended when it moves to the House this week. Hammer, who voted for the bill, suggested some amendments, including labor protections for teachers and a fiscal analysis of how the bill
will impact teacher pensions, among other changes.
Sanders, in a statement, said the LEARNS Act, if passed, will be a boon for the state.
“It will empower parents to choose the best school for their kid, improve childhood literacy, increase teacher pay to one of the highest in the nation and prepare kids to graduate into high-paying jobs with the skills and training they need to be successful,” she said.
Sen. Linda Chesterfield, D-Little Rock, who voted no on the bill, said on Thursday that while she supports some measures in the bill, there were some proposals she could not support.
“When we give public dollars to private schools, there’s a problem,” she said.