The Albuquerque Journal reports that Gov. Susana Martinez, a Republican, will push to boost pay for new teachers in the state. And veterans who score well on a new teacher-evaluation would receive stipends.
As in Tennessee, where Gov. Bill Haslam has also promised to raise salaries, this could be much more difficult to implement than propose: New Mexico’s education department only recently got court approval to continue with a teacher-evaluation system the legislature has refused to approve. Lawmakers are questioning why only new hires should qualify for the salaries. And the price tag is $18.5 milllion, the newspaper says.
New teachers would see their pay increase from $30,000 to $33,000, and teachers making less than $33,000 also would get an increase.
In a news conference, Martinez said that starting teacher salaries, which are tied to a tiered-licensing system, haven’t been raised since 2004.
Other merit-pay proposals have failed to materalize in the Land of Enchantment, though lawmakers have started offering incentives to teachers who agree to work in low-performing schools.