Teacher Compensation Teacher Pay

If passed into law, State Senator John Thrasher’s bill would base half a teacher’s salary on student performance. The state’s largest teachers union ripped into a proposed overhaul of teacher contracts Monday, saying the bill represented an effort to score political points instead of serious education reform. “It attacks the very people who work in our school system each and every day as opposed to giving them the resources that are needed to succeed,” said Andy Ford, president of the Florida Education Association, at a news conference called to slam the proposal from Sen. Thrasher, R-St. Augustine.

March 4, 2010 – New York Times
Race to the Top Finalists Announced

The Department of Education today announced the sixteen finalists in the Race to the Top – Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Tennessee. First round winners will be announced April 1.

February 23, 2010 – Deseret News
Utah Teacher Performance Pay Plans

Rep. Marie Poulson, D-Cottonwood Heights, is proposing a resolution that recommends guidelines for teacher performance pay plans. HJR3 passed unanimously through the Senate Education Committee Monday and will head to the Senate for debate.

January 25, 2010 – Burlington Free Press
Vermont not Getting in The Race

Vermont has decided not to pursue grants under the first round of Race to the Top but will go after grants during the second round in June.

January 25, 2010 – Morning Sun
Pennsylvania not sure about The Race

A main reason for Pennsylvania’s reservations about the Race to the Top is the stipulation that encourages merit pay for teachers, a concept President Barack Obama has supported since he campaigned for his current job. Not everyone in the education field agrees. "Teachers don't like it, and administrators don't like it," said Pittsburg USD 250 Superintendent Destry Brown.