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'We are truly here for all children'

My grandfather, a father of four, was a teacher at Mount Vernon High School. Grandpa was able to buy a house and provide for his family on a teacher’s salary not so many years ago.

Simply put: teachers today deserve to make a better wage.

When my grandfather started teaching, public education wasn’t really for “all kids.” Students with disabilities could be excluded. High school students who struggled could drop out and find a low-skills/high wage job. Students who happened to have a skin color other than white were sent to separate schools.

Our world in public education has changed dramatically in the past few decades, for good reason. We are truly here for all children. And, as the job has become harder, the salary and benefits have not kept up with inflation.

Can you imagine a teacher today with four children buying a house and sending all kids to college? It is certainly possible, but the amount of debt the individual is likely to assume is significant.

Yet somehow, we continue to get the best, brightest, and most caring individuals into the teaching profession. They work long hours. They help kids in a thousand ways. They carry the stories of some of the toughest childhood experiences you can imagine. They face public criticism and anger over things like test scores and taxes.

And still they come to their classrooms. And still they pour their hearts into their work every day.

You may have heard about the national “teacher strike” movement. You may have heard about the vast amounts of money being poured into education due to the McCleary lawsuit. Before judging on either count, I urge you to gather your facts.

Teachers who strike will often do so because they have no voice. I’ve been a part of two teacher strikes – one as a teacher and one as an administrator. In both cases they were emotional, exhausting and challenging, but they were effective in allowing the teacher voice and experience to be heard.

As for McCleary, after 10 years, we’ve come back to square one. The state Supreme Court determined that the “Paramount Duty” of the legislature, as outlined in the constitution, is to define Basic Education as whatever the legislature can pay for. This ruling missed the mark and will leave many districts, particularly small districts, scrambling once again to keep up with their wealthier neighbors. At the same time, it raised taxes statewide, so property owners, again, are left with a financial bill and little voice.

As we approach Teacher Appreciation Week, May 7-11, I ask only that we take the opportunity to show gratitude for the miraculous work happening every day. We are blessed in La Conner to have an incredibly caring, gifted and hard-working teaching staff. Let’s remember to look at these professionals through all they are doing well, and let’s honor this noble profession by seeing and celebrating the best of what they do.

Whitney Meissner has 26 years in public education in Washington. She taught math and English in Federal Way, has been a building administrator in Snohomish and Chimacum, and is now the superintendent of the La Conner School district.

 

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