THE PUBLIC MIND: TEACHERS DISAGREE WITH HEADLINE, MAINTAINING SALARIES DON'T REFLECT A PAY `HIKE'

Dear Mr. Rust:

During newspaper-writing classes, my students were taught that the headline should be consistent with the information in the article. On Tuesday, May 12, in the Southeast Missourian, the headline read "School Board OKs Teacher Salary Hikes." Public opinion is often formed by newspaper headlines, and this headline is inconsistent with the facts and the article.

According to Webster, hike is "a raise in amount sharply or suddenly." In the case of teachers' salaries for the Cape Public School District for 1992-993, neither sharply nor suddenly is consistent with your article. According to your article, "Although teachers will receive $420 or $540 more in salaries, Peukert said teachers will actually take home $160 or $240 less because they will not receive the bonus." To demonstrate the point that a hike will not occur, take the average salary and work through the three-year process as follows:

$26,700 1990-91 average salary

+ 1,240 1991-92 4.6% increase

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$27,940 1991-92 average salary

-700 1992 budget cut

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$27,240 1992-93 average salary base

+ 540 pay scale increment

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$27,780 1992-93 average salary

The $27,780 total is $160 less than $27,940 in 1991-1992. Therefore, teachers will receive a reduction in salary of almost one percent (1%) in 1992-93, not an increase and definitely not a hike.

In addition to not receiving a pay hike, teachers will have more students in each class and more out-of-class supervision, due to not replacing retiring teachers. We have been cooperative with the process of cutting the budget and have been willing to accept the additions for next year due to the present financial climate; however, we are not willing to have the public form an opinion, based on your headline, that we are receiving a pay hike. While it is possible to take a hike or to hike a skirt and a football, it is not possible~ for teachers in the Cape Public School District to have a pay hike in 1~~~99~2-93.

Sincerely,

Nancy Haertling

Eighth-Grade English Teacher

and 28 other teachers