El Dorado School Board approves salary raises, signing bonuses

The El Dorado School Board held its regular monthly meeting on Monday, April 12, and school board members approved raises for El Dorado School District staff.

“Moving into the 2021/2022 school year, we have some initiatives that will require more staff,” ESD Superintendent Jim Tucker said. “We’re looking at plans to recover learning, plans for intervention and plans to move students forward.”

Tucker also talked about the difficulty in finding new and qualified teachers in the area, a sentiment that has been voiced in other school districts as well. The Smackover-Norphlet School District recently held a town hall meeting and a consistent concern voiced there was finding qualified teachers to come to the district.

“Right now it is difficult to find teachers,” Tucker said.

The new salary and stipend changes that were proposed and passed include a $2,000 signing bonus for new certified staff; a $4,000 signing bonus for certified staff in seventh through 12th grade math and science; a $20,000 stipend for teachers that teach the accelerated academy within the district; a $2,000 salary increase for all certified staff; and a 5.48% salary increase for classified staff, up to $2,000.

The accelerated academy requires more hours from teachers, Tucker said, and the stipend proposed for the academy he said he hopes will entice teachers to apply.

“Everything that I’m proposing is well within our budget,” Tucker said.

Last Monday, Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed legislation meant to equalize teacher pay across the state. According to reporting by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, the ESD has an average salary of $45,489, and will get close to $700,000 to raise teacher salaries thanks to the new law.

“We’re so happy to be able to provide this for you all and you all deserve everything you get,” school board President Renee Skinner said.

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