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As we've talked with public school employees about Take
the lead and the school-funding crisis, we've found that
many not only have a personal story that conveys the reality behind
the numbers, but a personal "number" as well.
Whether it's the number of kids in their crowded classroom, the
number of hours they must spend on the weekend catching up on
classwork, or the amount of money they spend out of pocket to
buy basic supplies for their students, these personal numbers
have become a compelling way to explain how individual passion
and commitment can only go so far when the funding crisis compromises
the mission public education every day.
Click below to read how public school employees admirably struggle
to "make do" through resourcefulness, creativity and
self-sacrifice.
Stories about 46th in class size
Stories about 42nd in education spending
Stories about $2 billion less for schools
Stories about $548 less per student
Stories about Dead last in compensation
Washington ranks 46th in the nation
in class size.
I am a sixth-grade teacher and I love what I do! I eat,
breathe and sleep sixth-grade curriculum, and at times that
means long hours in my classroom and even visiting colleagues'
classrooms for fresh ideas. Last summer I was helping a
friend set up her brand new classroom. Unfortunately it
was new to her, but in actuality it was a 20-year-old portable.
Our challenge for the day? Trying to fit 34 desks into this
very small space. It was an almost impossible task. We spent
an entire day looking for a combination that would allow
for a small group discussion area, and make sure that students
weren't so far from the front that they couldn't see the
board. In the end we were able to jam the necessary desks
into her classroom. Do the students receive the one-on-one
attention that they deserve and need? Probably not. Please
help me and other teachers do our job. Please help Washington
state to Take the lead!
Heather Danielson
Snoqualmie
What is my number? My number is 19. I am fortunate enough
to have a class size of 19 second-graders. What does this
mean for my students and me? First of all, there are plenty
of opportunities to meet one-on-one with my students several
times during the week, which in turn allows me the honor
of getting to know my students' learning needs and styles.
These meetings allow for me to differentiate my instruction
to meet the variety of individual needs I have in my classroom.
Secondly, there is enough physical space in my classroom,
which allows for circle group discussions and conversations.
Finally, each student has enough books and supplies to use
throughout the school year. After several years with 25-27
students, battling physical space and supply shortages,
I am savoring this year and hoping for many more years like
this. Can I do more with a smaller class size? You bet!
Do my students benefit from more quality time with me? Absolutely!
Stacey Reed
Mukilteo
I teach 29 fifth-graders who deserve educational support
at their instructional level. Fifth-grade students span
the spectrum from emergent readers to college level comprehension
and vocabulary levels. Here are my numbers: 29 students,
for seven subject areas. Ten are below grade level in reading;
six are served by an out-dated pull-out model for fluency
practice. Twelve students below grade level in math get
as much of my time as I can physically and mentally give.
Five ELL students get 25 minutes of isolated pull-out with
paraprofessionals. No recess for me; the only time for remediation
is my "duty-free" lunch and 15-minute recess.
To keep students engaged, curious, challenged and joyful
with learning, I MUST design lessons that are centered on
THEIR NEEDS and involve relevant and stimulating content.
District-mandated materials are NOT integrated, and are
not differentiated to enable students to reach their potential
consistently. There's only one me -- with no magic wand.
The state believes I should get it all done in 7.5 hours.
Why are my work days 12 hours long? Because my students
deserve all I can give them!
Julianna Dauble
Renton
As a Title I teacher for the Franklin Pierce School District,
I work with students below grade level. In my fourth-grade
math class I have 23 students. All of these students are
below grade level! I don't even have enough desks for all
my kids!
Jennifer Siegrist
Franklin Pierce
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Washington ranks 42nd in the
nation in education spending.
I work with students in grades 3-5 that are struggling with grade
level expectations in math. Most of these students are lower income
and speak another language. With more support these students could
soar, but my position is only half-time and many of these students
have tested out of ELL services so they don't qualify for the
little tutoring we provide.
Heidi Smith
Federal Way
My husband and I are both middle school teachers in our second
and third years of experience. We are selling a handful of household
items ranging from old skates, to the wedding dress, to the home-office
desk just to make ends meet. We eat peanut butter and jelly for
lunch, don't watch television, and barely squeeze enough money
for gas. We don't travel to see our relatives. We don't buy Christmas
gifts. We refuse to dine out. We can't afford it. Our monthly
bills total $3601.36. My monthly paycheck of $1800 plus my husband's
paycheck of $1700 equals a total income of $3500 per month. This
leaves the two of us $101.36 for groceries, miscellaneous items,
gas, gifts and emergency items. No wonder so many of my young
teacher-colleagues still live with their parents.
Marnie Valdez
Kiona Benton
Being a librarian today means actually having two jobs: full-time
librarian and full-time retail book sales to support the library.
I spend 10 MONTHS EVERY YEAR managing classroom book sales, holding
book fairs and running carnivals to keep my library going. If
we spent the proper amount of money on our students, I could spend
the proper amount of time sharing my passion for reading and getting
books and resources into their hands.
Lisa Clayton
Seattle
Our gym doubles as a cafeteria, and for one of my nine Physical
Education classes a day we share space with the lunch crowd. Imagine
the noise of 30 bouncing basketballs in conjunction with 100 children
transitioning to lunch. Pretty crazy. After, I'm forced to use
half the gym while the custodians clean up. My little kinders
have to tiptoe around various spills yet to be cleaned up as they
enter the gym at 12 O'CLOCK.
Erik Nosler
Ridgefield
Supply budgets are so tight we are forced to limit each teacher
to $100. Even then we cut off spending by FEBRUARY 1 to squeeze
more out of less. For 16 years I've seen teachers' anxiety level
rise as we cut back everywhere. We do everything we can -- fund-raisers,
asking parents and businesses to donate -- but we need all community
members to understand the energy, effort and love behind running
a school with such limited resources.
Suzanne Gottgetreu
Tacoma
My number is 9. I am currently in the middle of a Master of Arts
program at Seattle Pacific University. Nine is the number of years
I'll have to work as a teacher with a Masters before I will make
the $43,264. I love teaching, but I'm getting married later this
year and I can't see how I can support my family at it, and neither
do any of the other teachers I have talked to. This is not factoring
in expenses ($30k+ for masters and certification, several thousand
more for Pro Cert, and the several hundred per year teachers spend
equipping their classrooms.) I love teaching and would like to
teach, but I don't see how I can afford it. Everyone wants excellent
teachers, so why won't the state pay for teachers who can devote
themselves to education?
Scott Quinn
Kent
I was a substitute teacher for three years and had the opportunity
this past year to be in a class full time. I love my job and I
can't wait to return this fall. However, I sometimes look back
at subbing with longing, I now do triple the amount of work that
I did then. I only worked at most 12 days a month, I now work
every day and I definitely don't leave when I used to and I only
make $400 more a month. I'm a new, young teacher who put off paying
my loans because I thought it would be easier to pay them off
when I got a full-time job as a teacher; it's not. I remind myself
I love my job, even when a friend gets a job as a manager of a
fast food restaurant and makes twice as much as I do.
Liz Warren
Lake Washington
Our ultimate objective is to relocate to the Northeast. Education
there is a supreme priority with salaries that parallel cost-of-living
increases and compensate educators fairly. It is clear, here in
the PNW, that education does not carry the esteem and imperative
that the public so believes that it should. The Puget Sound community
must have ample resources to contribute to the state to compensate
educators generously. This has not been the case.
Mitch Smoller
Bellevue
$59,000 is how much money my husband and I made combined last
year on two teachers' salaries . We are not "poor enough"
to qualify for low income housing, but cannot afford to live anywhere
close to where we teach in Redmond. Once our rent is raised again,
we will be forced to move as we will no longer be able to afford
to even rent in this area. It's time that Washington Take
the lead and properly compensate teachers for the long
hard hours we work.
Molly Rothlisberger
Lake Washington
For more information, send an e-mail to WEA@WashingtonEA.org.
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