Senate Bill 201, from Sen. Adam Pugh, R-Edmond, — also a candidate for state superintendent — would raise the floor of the minimum salary schedule by $2,000, beginning next school year. For teachers with a Bachelor’s degree only, that would mean an increase from $39,601 to $41,601.
Oklahoma’s average starting teacher salary is ranked forty-fifth in the nation.
The bill was originally filed for last year’s session. When it was filed, it set the salary minimum at $50,000.
This year’s version stalled in the House for a month. It was amended to include a provision that tied its passage to the passage of a bill that raises the cap on the Parental Choice Tax Credit.
The Oklahoma Voice reported some districts that already pay above the minimum are bracing to shoulder some of the cost of the raise themselves, despite an extra $100 million appropriated from the legislature. For large districts such as Mid-Del, that could be more than $200,000.
The bill passed the Senate unanimously. The sole nay vote for the final version of the bill in either chamber was Rep. Michelle McCane, D-Tulsa, a former teacher and librarian.
During debate, McCane said the raise was not enough. She said it is not an amount that will bring back teachers from retirement or who have left the field.
“This is hush money for all that we’ve done to education this year and in previous years,” McCane said. “So that next year, when teachers are complaining about their working conditions — which are students’ learning conditions — the people in this body will say, ‘Well, we just gave you more money. We just gave you more money, and you just keep asking for more.’”
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