NICOLE TAYLOR / Scroll
Teachers often are forced to pay for many of their classroom supplies out of their own pockets. The new budget allotment of $1 billion for education will help alleviate some of these personal costs.

$1 billion school budget awaits approval

Ashley Killpack KIL05005@BYUI.EDU Scroll Staff

In February, the Idaho Legislature Budget Committee approved its first ever billion dollar education plan.

This plan, if officially approved by the governor and complete House and Senate will effect Idaho’s education system in several ways.

First of all, the budget allows for the first state-funded pay raise teachers have received in five years, increasing all teachers’ salaries by 3 percent.

The plan would also raise the minimum wage for Idaho teachers by $2,500, changing the beginning wage from approximately $27,000 to $30,000 a year. This brings Idaho closer to the national average minimum teaching salary of $32,000.

The legislature also allocated money to increase the salaries of administrators, bus drivers and other employees by 3 percent.

So what has influenced the legislature to consider such a monumental plan?

Perhaps it is because the people of Idaho want more money to go to the education system. This can be seen in various polls, including the BSU public policy survey which ranks educational funding as a top priority for Idaho voters.

Another influential factor may be the recent dissent among teachers in Idaho. Teachers in district 25, which includes the cities of Chubbuck and Pocatello, have refused to accept and sign their contracts for nearly a year in an attempt to increase their salaries and improve chances for early retirement.

This education plan may also have been devised to battle the teacher shortages, which are expected to crop up throughout Idaho within the next ten years.

According to a year long study by the Idaho Board of Education, the state of Idaho will have to hire at least 16,000 new teachers to keep up with Idaho’s expansion and retirement of current staff. The study found that one-third of Idaho teachers are between 50 and 60 years old and one-fourth of teachers plan to leave teaching if a better deal comes along.

Another reason the legislature has arranged a billion-dollar increase for the education system is that this year the state has a billion dollars to give. Gov. Dirk Kempthorne proposed a similar education budget in 2001, but the Idaho economy was in a slump and the state simply did not have enough money to support his plan. Last year, however, the economy did much better.

But whatever has led to the legislatures added support of the education system it could have a profound affect on the future of many BYU-Idaho students. Last semester the Teacher Education Department was the school’s third largest department, with more than 1,000 students.

Teacher Education Department Chair Van Christman said the department existed even before Ricks College became BYU-I. Even though Christman has only been department chair for a month, he said it didn’t take long to notice the dedication of the faculty.

Even the students have taken notice of the dedication of the faculty.

“We are always going to need teachers,” said Zoe Alexander, a sophomore from Casper, Wyo., who is majoring in Music Education. “They are invaluable to us.”