Teachers in Broward won't be making $100,000 a year just yet 鈥� but debate over the idea isn't over.
The Broward County School Board voted down Board Member Allen Zeman鈥檚 to boost teachers鈥� compensation into the six figures, due to concerns over the budget cuts he proposed to fund the raises long-term.
Instead, the district鈥檚 new superintendent will be in charge of drafting a plan to find the funds.
鈥淭here is a risk of doing this,鈥� Zeman said of his plan. 鈥淏ut there's a far greater risk in not doing this.鈥�
In a 5 to 4 vote Tuesday night, board members rejected the proposal to increase teachers鈥� total compensation to an average of $100,000 by 2025 鈥� compared to about $83,000 today, according to district staff.
READ MORE: Some Broward school board members raise concerns about six-figure compensation for teachers
Supporters say the pay hike is ambitious and sorely needed. With scores of public school educators continuing to question whether to stay in the classroom, one teacher told the meeting she was forced to take a second job to cover her bills.
But critics said Zeman鈥檚 funding plan was hasty and haphazard.
鈥淭his is too aggressive, too fast, too broad,鈥� said Board Chair Lori Alhadeff. "I will not be supporting this."
Board directs superintendent to draft plan to boost pay
After voting down Zeman鈥檚 proposal, the board voted 7 to 1 to direct Superintendent Peter Licata to develop his own plan by January 2024 to increase compensation for employees.
That way Licata, who鈥檚 been on the job for two weeks, will have more time to assess the district鈥檚 finances after the start of the upcoming school year, when staff will have a better idea of total enrollment and per pupil funding.
鈥淚'm not sure if we're looking in all the right places,鈥� Licata said of Zeman鈥檚 initial proposal. 鈥淏ut our intent and the fact that we're talking about this is the right conversation.鈥�
鈥淭his is doable,鈥� he said of the raises. 鈥淚鈥檓 confident we can get here.鈥�
READ MORE: Who is Peter Licata? The backstory on Broward's new superintendent
To fund the pay hikes, Zeman had proposed a 20% reduction in the district鈥檚 IT contracts, cutting 30% of the district鈥檚 budget for conferences and professional development, as well as trimming 15% of 鈥渃ontracted services" 鈥� which funds services for students with special needs, such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy and nursing care, according to district staff.
Funding for Zeman鈥檚 plan would also have come from the voters approved in 2022 鈥� which is slated to expire in 2027, unless county residents vote to renew the tax increase.
Zeman鈥檚 proposal also called for scaling back custodial staff by about 200 positions, and 鈥渞epurposing鈥� dozens of schools that he says due to declining enrollments. Ultimately, the board voted 7 to 1 to direct Licata by July 2024 to explore 鈥渞epurposing鈥� 鈥� or closing 鈥� five school sites.
Broward teacher says she works two jobs to cover bills
For teachers, while pay isn鈥檛 everything, it鈥檚 a big part of the equation. Renee Okenka, a Language Arts teacher at Western High School in Davie, said she simply can鈥檛 cover the cost of living in South Florida on her teaching salary alone.
Okenka told the board she was able to earn extra pay working as a on campus, but was still forced to take a second job.
鈥淥ur teachers need this money in order to survive. To take care of their families. Because unfortunately, some of our best are leaving the profession."Student representative Landyn Spellberg.
鈥淓ven with all of these extra paid supplements, I was living paycheck to paycheck and was forced to pick up an extra job waiting tables in order to make ends meet,鈥� Okenka said. 鈥淭eachers should not have to rely on picking up extra work outside of their base salary in order to afford to live.鈥�
Teachers and student representatives urged the school board to move forward with a plan to boost teachers鈥� total compensation into the six figures 鈥� an amount that includes base salary as well as healthcare and benefits.
鈥淥ur teachers are telling you that they need this money,鈥� said student representative Landyn Spellberg. 鈥淥ur teachers need this money in order to survive. To take care of their families. Because unfortunately, some of our best are leaving the profession. And they won't be able to make the impact on us.鈥�
The district is bracing for belt tightening and the possibility of steeper , after state lawmakers made every Florida student eligible for school vouchers beginning with the upcoming school year.
Still, Zeman argues that investing in staff compensation will reap dividends 鈥� keeping more teachers on the job.
鈥淲e say we value teachers. We say we want to pay teachers. We know what they contribute to our kids and to our schools and to our classrooms and to our community,鈥� said Zeman. 鈥淣ow it's time 鈥� because we can 鈥� to do something about it.鈥�
