Mineola ISD teachers will have the opportunity to earn additional pay in just over two years.
The Teacher Incentive Allotment came from new state funding legislation in 2019, and MISD can begin the process to get onboard with the program in August 2023.
Assistant Superintendent David Sauer outlined the program for the school board Monday.
At the top level, the bonus structure would pay a teacher almost $17,000 per year.
Among the benefits, said Superintendent Cody Mize, is keeping the district at a competitive advantage with area school districts.
As Sauer noted, sometimes the district posts job openings and receives none or one application.
Mize said a boost in salary like that means a teacher could remain in the classroom and not have to seek an advanced degree or an administrative position to gain more pay.
It also helps with their retirement funds, he added.
It’s not an easy program, Sauer said. “You’ve got to really want to grow and be a quality teacher,” he said.
Once a teacher does qualify, the incentive is good for five years, even if the teacher moves to another district.
Mize noted the goal was to get top teachers close to a $100,000 annual salary, as outlined by Gov. Greg Abbott.
Teachers can opt in or out, Sauer said.
Once in, they have to meet certain minimum requirements.
Then the incentive will be based on two areas: twice yearly classroom observations and student growth data.
The MISD committee of administrators and teachers that developed the plan opted to count observations as 40% and data as 60%.
Teachers can earn one of three levels: recognized, distinguished and masters.
The bonus levels vary slightly from campus to campus, based on student demographics. At the elementary, the levels are $4,496, $8,992 and $16,987.
The funding comes from the state.
The district’s application for the program is due April 15, and Texas Tech University has contracted to review them. Notification that a district qualifies comes in August, and the following school year will serve as the base line for the data collection.
That data will be submitted in July 2022, and awards will be announced for the first time in April 2023, to be allotted in August 2023.
The staff will be phased into the program over a three-year period.
The first year will include all state-tested teachers and K-2 math and reading teachers.
As Mize explained, it gets more challenging the third year when standards must be developed for all teachers, for example, how to evaluate a physical education teacher based on student progress.
“The bar is pretty high,” Sauer said. There might be a handful the first year.
“It will take some work,” he said. “We’ve got some rock star teachers in this district.”