Sen. Theis Says Bonuses For Teachers Who Switch To Low-Income Schools Could Be 'Problematic'

Michigan Advance

February 24, 2022

One of the biggest investments to improve teacher retention in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Fiscal Year 2023 budget proposal is the retention bonuses for teachers who stay in their schools or switch to a Title I school.

But during an Appropriations Subcommittee on K-12 and Michigan Department of Education meeting Thursday, state Sen. Lana Theis (R-Brighton) raised concerns that the distribution plan for the bonuses favored disadvantaged schools.

“While I appreciate the concept of retention bonuses, I think in practice they become problematic. Not that I don’t think our teachers who are working shouldn’t receive them, I just want to make sure that we have significant oversight as to how they’re being distributed,” Theis said.

Whitmer’s proposed $74.1 billion budget, which she announced earlier this month, includes $1.5 billion in retention bonuses for all pre-K-12 educators who stay in their school for three years or switch to a Title I school, which serves more low-income students. For the first and second years, educators will receive a $2,000 bonus, a $3,000 bonus for the third year and a $4,000 bonus for the fourth year.

A 2021 analysis by Chalkbeat Detroit found that schools with a teacher turnover rate of 30% or more, nearly three quarters of the students were from low-income families.

Other efforts in Whitmer’s budget to reduce the state’s teacher shortage include $150 million for student teacher stipends and $75 million for regional innovation grants.

“How is it helpful to the teacher shortage when they receive a bonus to shift schools? If they’re in a current school and they shift to a Title I school, doesn’t that create a larger problem for the non-Title I schools?” Theis asked.

State Superintendent Michael Rice told committee members that the bonuses will help with the state’s efforts to attract and retain educators across the board.

“It is important that our staff are retained, not simply within the profession, but within their given positions. To pinball across districts doesn’t necessarily help the stability of the profession, and by extension, the stability of young people’s education,” Rice said.

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