LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION DESERVES FAIR RATE OF PAY

To the Editor:

As a member of the State Board of Education I am responsible to clear up some misunderstandings which were evident in Wednesday's article in your paper. The article centered around a requested increase in salaries for certain employees of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and quoted some local legislators who seemed opposed to the request.

First, no money for the Department of Education comes out of the new Outstanding Schools Act for these salaries. All of the money which was allocated for SB 380 (the Outstanding Schools Act) is going to local districts for local needs. The main objection of these legislators was based on their assumption that the money for this was coming out of the funds set aside for local districts. Not so. Most of the money for this is coming from the federal government.

Second, the Department of Education salaries have not kept pace in the last 12 years with the other branches of Missouri's government, or with salaries in local school districts. We researched this last year and got the facts. Our department clerical employees are paid an average 17 percent less than other state employees of similar expertise and experience. For the last four years our employees who have left for other jobs in Missouri's local school districts have received 31 percent average pay hikes. What we have witnessed is a "brain drain" and we are having to replace these people with inexperienced, less qualified personnel who will work for less money. Even though I agree it would be great for our department people to get back to the classroom for a "reality check" the fact is that once they are gone, they won't come back to 30 percent less money.

I agree with Representative Thomason that "all state employees should be treated the same way". Right now, our people are not and this request only begins to right the wrong.

Third, the Department of Education is funded primarily by the federal government. For an additional $633,000 from the State of Missouri the department will receive an additional $912,000 from the Feds, which will really improve the ability of the department to "deliver".

Fourth, our department has declined in size in recent years. We actually have fewer employees than we had 10 years ago. The total number of employees in the department is 1,974 people, not the 3,000 reported in Wednesday's article. Of that number, 1,012 are employed as teachers and staff at our School for the Blind and School for the Deaf. That number has had to increase due to mandates, leaving us with less people in the department to fulfill the statutory requirements of regulation. Of the remaining 962 employees, most of them are vocational rehabilitation and disability determinations people, leaving less than 400 who do the business of K-12 education for this state. Now Senate Bill 380 makes the Department of Education responsible to implement the reforms in schools across the state, adding greatly to the work load. However, no more money has been budgeted this year to get this done. We are now doing much more work with fewer people and no more money. Morale is not good and people see no future in the department.

The department is criticized for being too regulatory and not offering enough help to districts. But superintendents tell me they understand. The department must first follow the statutes to regulate, then find time and people to help. We have six people who are curriculum specialists for this state. They are to help 530 plus districts in all of education. The Department of Conservation has 17 curriculum specialists who provide nothing else but conservation curriculum in our schools -- and they get a car and a clothing allowance! Yes, I agree all state employees should be treated the same way and our department is behind.

The owner of your paper stated in a meeting last year that the Department of Education used to be a high quality group. I submit that declining salaries in this department versus other departments in the state and local districts have caused this problem. Our people are either very inexperienced or readying for retirement. Local superintendents who met with me right after my appointment in 1990 stated the biggest problem in the department was low salaries. They said as soon as a new hire got to know the job they would leave for local districts at much higher pay. Thus, the districts weren't getting the help from the state they need. That problem has only worsened as time has gone on.

The State Board feels the Outstanding Schools Act is an excellent chance to assure that Missouri's kids are really learning what they need to know to be productive citizens. The reforms in 380 are there to achieve the goals of providing a good education to every child in the entire state. The local districts are eager to accomplish this, but they don't have experts in small districts like Oran or Nell Holcomb, or even Cape Girardeau, to make these changes. They want help from the state to improve kids' learning. And the state department is the only entity in place which can provide this help economically.

Believe it or not, the State Board and the Department of Education really do want to help districts to get kids learning at much higher performance levels. But we won't be nearly as effective in getting this done if we are trying to do it with an overworked, underpaid staff. All we are asking is a fair rate of pay to obtain and retain people that will eventually be commensurate with the same type of employees in other state government and local districts.

BEKKI COOK

Cape Girardeau