Here’s another story of a teacher who is leaving. She can’t live on her salary.
“Local schools are facing their new spring rite of passage — waves of resignation notices from teachers leaving Oklahoma for higher-paying jobs out of state.
“Shelby Eagan was recruited here from Missouri four years ago, but she wasn’t a hard sell.
“Oklahoma is home. My mom was born here, my grandma lived in Bristow. When I was a kid, we came here once a month and sometimes from Bristow, we’d come to the ‘big’ city — Tulsa,” Eagan said. “I planned on staying.”
“She strengthened those ties with a master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma and by establishing herself at Tulsa’s Mitchell Elementary School, 733 N. 73rd East Ave.
“She volunteered her own time to provide 20 to 30 less-fortunate students with dance instruction — in acrobat, tap and ballet — and this year, her colleagues even voted her the site’s teacher of the year.
“What derailed her plans?
“The realities of living on an Oklahoma public school teacher’s take-home pay and ever-declining school budgets.
“I get $2,000 a month. I had a tire go out and a health scare this year that required me to get a procedure unexpectedly,” Eagan said. “I’m 28 years old, but I did the only thing I could do. I called my mom and dad. I shouldn’t have to call my mom and dad for money — I’m a professional with a master’s degree, and I’ve been working four years.”
“Eagan said when she traveled with a group of Tulsa teachers to visit with lawmakers at the Capitol just before spring break, she shared her decision to move to Kansas City to earn $10,000 more.
“One representative tried to tell me that the cost of living in Oklahoma was so drastically different than Missouri, that it wasn’t worth it. But it’s the exact same cost of living,” she said, shaking her head. “I guess that makes for a good story to tell themselves so they don’t have to do anything differently.”
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Last weeks oped in the NY Times made it a bragging point that Teachers in Tulsa were paid so much less than teaches in Scarsdale NY.
I guess most teachers in Tulsa have wealthier parents. (Sarcasm noted)
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Oh, Diane, stop throwing money at “the problem”
I always wonder what “the problem” is when politicians recite that. Are students “the problem”? Teachers. Teachers are probably “the problem” right?
You’ll notice none of them are ever “the problem”
If they think schools are a problem they need to “solve” maybe they should start over and see if that approach makes any sense. I’m starting to suspect they’re the problem.
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A lot of money is being thrown at testing.
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Which reminds me. Weren’t public school parents told there would be “support” for the Common Core?
What happened to that? As far as I can tell all public schools got was a very expensive test and more budget cuts.
Next time get the funding up front, huh? It never appears after the “reform” is in place.
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lawmakers — state and federal –, many of whom have chosen careers by means of which they have secured terrific wealth, act as though they are entitled to decide what kinds of work have value and, by extension, what constitutes a livable wage for teachers. stories, like shelby eagan’s, make my blood boil.
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Yes!
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Current salary of a US Senator is $174,000.
Mitch McConnell once stated that it was not a livable wage and he needed a raise.
But yet they expect teachers to live for $25-50,000 a year…makes perfect sense.
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Here’s Ohio politicians and ed reformers pretending money doesn’t matter:
“The state Board of Education recently convened a committee to review Ohio’s new and more rigorous graduation requirements amid concerns from school people about lower graduation rates. The committee’s recommendations are now out, and they’re deeply disquieting. Put into practice, they’d break the repeated promise of policymakers to raise expectations for Ohio’s 1.7 million students.
Currently, students in the class of 2018 and beyond have three paths to a diploma. They may achieve a passing score on seven end-of-course exams, achieve a “remediation-free” ACT or SAT score, or complete career and technical education requirements.”
They’ve cut Ohio public school funding in one way or another every year ed reform has been dominant in this state. Many of the cuts are back door so the public has no clue the public schools have less funding. We have to set up elaborate presentations just to explain to the public why we are constantly begging local people for more money.
In addition and at the same time, they have piled on requirement after requirement-
basically whatever catches their fancy from the ed reform grab bag.
They have dumped the entire pile of demands on public schools while cutting funding every chance they get. There is NO political accountability at the decision level. None. If gutting funding for public schools while increasing demands doesn’t work,they all turn around and blame public schools and pat themselves on the back for their high standards. This is a fool-proof political formula. Works every time.
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No teacher, should have to take a “vow of poverty”. All teachers, public/private/parochial should be paid a living wage.
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“The Lawmakers’ Lament”
“I want to volunteer”
Is what we want to hear
This talk of pay
Gets in the way
Of teaching job, I fear
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In the local newspaper, a few comments reflected the all too common perception that teachers were overpaid because they only work 9 months and only “spend 6 hours a day at work.” That same person elaborated on his idea that teachers are overpaid, pointing to extratime off for many holidays, tax deductions for supplies and presence of teacher aides. This person said that teachers should work “12 months and 40 hours a week… Then they would have a lot more money.” That comment ended with: “But the snowflake generation would rather just complain.”
These comments are familiar. I am reminded of Trump’s inaugural address. Trump said we have “an education system flush with cash, but which leaves our young and beautiful students deprived of knowledge.” Flush with cash…
These views are not limited to people who probably do work 8 hour days, with little or no time off during a year. They are shared by highly paid economists, especially at McKinsey & Co., who are eager to see teachers work longer hours, with far more students, and job security entirely dependent on the test scores they are able to extract from students.
Speaking of Oklahoma salaries, from a brief Internet search I learn that Oklahoma legislators work four months, 80 days in session. For this work they get a per diem of $156 a day, or $12, 480 on top of a base salary of $38, 400.
That is sums to $50,880, and an effective rate of $12,720 a month.
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“All cash and no knowledge”
Deprived of knowledge
That he is
Despite the college
And the biz
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Florida is hemorrhaging teachers for the same reason. I am resigning at the end of this year. Our legislature, in it’s infinite wisdom, has decided to make sure all AC teachers are officially fired at the end of the year. I am sure that will bring droves of young recruits!
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Isn’t Broad’s gal Deborah Gist still in charge of Tulsa schools?
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