With restored funding of Career Ladder, Missouri can reach new heights.
The Missouri Legislature this year restored state funding for the Career Ladder program, which offers stipends of up to $5,000 for teachers who complete a certain number of hours of work outside of their contract time.
Restoration of the funding was long overdue. The state had not funded the program since 2010.
The Career Ladder's work is too important to be unfunded. That work can include things like sponsoring an after-school club, tutoring, professional development or hosting parental engagement events.
The program works because it is a cost-share agreement between the state and the school districts. Participating districts can receive 60 percent of the cost of these teacher stipends from the state; the local school district pays the other 40 percent.
Heather Beaulieu, deputy superintendent for JC Schools, said of Career Ladder: "I feel like it's made teachers be a little bit more excited about going to (professional development) and staying after school. ... I know as a teacher, it gets old, putting in time, putting in time, putting in time and not feeling like you were always compensated for it."
Career Ladder accomplishes multiple goals. You don't have to look further than the Jefferson City School District to see the benefits of this restored funding.
Through Career Ladder, JC Schools hopes to better recruit and retain teachers, increase student achievement, and encourage growth in its teachers.
A survey was sent to JC Schools staff to gauge initial interest in the program; 500 staff members are now involved, which is about 65 percent of the district's certified staff.
Teachers have already turned in a plan for their predicted activities.
Some of the top activities are tutoring, parental involvement activities, professional development after school, book studies, collaborative planning, mentoring younger teachers, and working on further education, such as a master's degree.
Several clubs and activities are likely to come out of Career Ladder. The Cybersecurity Clubs at Capital City and Jefferson City high schools, a piece of a new partnership between Lincoln University and JC Schools to boost cybersecurity skills and academic programs, will be covered under the program.
Increased interest in Career Ladder by JC Schools is representative of the state.
The Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education received around 140 school district applications for the program, resulting in a state payout of about $30 million and a local contribution of about $20 million.
About 12,000 teachers will be participating. That can have a huge impact on teachers and students, as well as the state overall.
The state's funding of Career Ladder is a wise investment in its teachers, as well as future generations of leaders.
-- News Tribune