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3 ways HB 215 is good for teachers

February 1, 2023

The passage of HB 215 – Funding for Teacher Salaries and Optional Education Opportunities showcased a lot of debate over education choice in the state – where we’ve been, how Utahns feel today, how accountability will operate in the new program, and more.  

As a result, the impact of HB 215 on teachers got far less time in committee and floor time, even though teachers will get nearly $5 from HB 215 for every $1 the bill envisions going to Utah Fits All Scholarships. Teachers were explicitly one of the intended beneficiaries and are even mentioned in the title of the bill. HB 215 will create significant benefits for educators in the state. 

1. Compensation increase

Most obviously, HB 215 increased teacher compensation by $6,000, which ultimately amounts to an increase in pay of $4,200 and a boost in benefits of $1,800. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox publicly prioritized teacher compensation as one of his policy goals last year when he refused to sign an education choice bill until teachers were rewarded. Then in his December 2022 budget recommendations, he proposed a $6,000 compensation increase.  

This compensation increase will have a proportionately larger impact on new teachers – a group that the governor singled out for higher salaries when he aimed to make starting pay for educators at least $60,000 – than on veteran teachers. For example, for a newly licensed teacher with a bachelor’s degree in Davis School District, the $4,200 salary increase represents an 8% raise, compared to only 5% for a 25-year teacher with a master’s degree. This will help teachers most in the first years of their career, when they are most likely to drop out of the teaching profession in favor of another career.  

While the state has three different teacher incentive programs that offer support to teachers in high-need settings or with certain credentials, this bill created a compensation boost for all teachers regardless of any other categories or application process.  

2. New career opportunities 

HB 215 also created the Utah Fits All scholarship program, which gives parents $8,000 to spend on a variety of education materials and providers. While the legislative debate centered on the obvious benefits for students and parents, the program also has untapped potential to create and expand a new marketplace of education careers for Utah’s licensed teachers. The scholarship program offers families access to state-approved providers and vendors, a group where licensed teachers would easily fit. 

After the pandemic prompted families to look into education alternatives like learning pods and microschools, some teachers left the traditional education career to jump into that space and meet the demand. For instance, one teacher in Mississippi left the traditional classroom and opened a microschool, where she makes more money than she did in the public schools while also having the space for creativity and autonomy as a teacher.  

Other analysis compares how much a teacher could make teaching a certain number of students in an alternative opportunity using a state’s per-pupil spending versus staying in the classroom, and it shows that a teacher could make more than double the income. While it’s true that teachers could move toward these options without a scholarship program, the scholarship means more families can afford to pay for such an option, making such a career transition for an educator both more feasible and sustainable.  

Beyond the income, teachers have a wider range of ways to use their teaching skills and credentials. Some teachers earned a degree and have credentials but due to family or personal needs do not want to work full time at a district or charter school. From creating a niche microschool that specializes in nature, to becoming a one-on-one special education teacher in a student’s home, to becoming a part-time tutor, the opportunities are diverse and can use Utah’s talent force in unique ways. 

3. Improving the relationship between teachers and parents 

As families have more access to options in education, tensions can be relieved when a particular school is not a good fit. Good teachers want parents to be involved in their students’ learning, but some parents seem never to be satisfied, often to the distress of some educators and administrators. When that happens, a good outcome may be that those parents move to a new option in which they, their student and the student’s teacher can all be more satisfied.  

Furthermore, cultural clashes in the past few years have brought conflict to a boiling point between a segment of parents and their local public schools. As a result, trust between these particular parents and public schools, including teachers, has eroded.  

The same can be true when it comes to finding a good fit for improving academic performance. Legislative committee meetings on HB 215 revealed this sentiment: Some teachers understood certain students simply needed an environment different from the one in which they were teaching and believed those students deserved those opportunities. When a parent who feels marginalized has the opportunity to pursue a different path for their student, teachers may have fewer parent complaints. Certainly, there is room for improvement in trust between parents and teachers while remaining enrolled in public schools. But if parents feel empowered with choices, some unnecessary conflict between parents and teachers can be resolved. 

Though most of HB 215’s public debate was about giving parents and students more education choice, the bill has important impacts for Utah teachers – not only in pay and benefits, but in career opportunities and professional satisfaction. It’s worth the time for teachers to consider these changes and what the bill can mean for them individually.  

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