As Gov. Christine Gregoire sought to close a $5 billion shortfall in her budget, one of her decisions was to cut a program she once championed--bonuses to nationally board certified teachers.
At the time, Gregoire explained to us that she weighed every budget decision based on how much immediate impact each cut would have on people's health and well being. That framework put priority on saving health care and social programs for the most vulnerable residents. And it's easy to see how in that equation, teacher bonuses would fall in the drop zone.
But the decision to cut this teacher incentive illustrates just how complicated each budget choice is.
The origin of this incentive dates back to former Governor Gary Locke, who in 1999, became one of the first big promoters in the country of national board certification.
The public was looking for a way to reward and keep the best teachers in the classroom. But teachers unions have long been hesitant of any system that might subject their members to subjective evaluations. National board certification was a palatable alternative because it's voluntary, and there's evidence that it does separate the most effective and most motivated teachers in the classroom.
Teachers who choose to re-certify using national board certification, go through an intensive process for up to a year. They're tested on their "content knowledge" and must submit four portfolios which include student work samples, essays, documentation and videotapes of their class. All the materials are then evaluated by a panel. About 40 percent of Washington teachers do not pass on their first attempt.
With the backing of the teachers' union, Locke proposed an annual salary incentive to teachers who got certified. In 2007, Gregoire boosted it to $5,000 a year, with an additional $5,000 for certified teachers in schools with the most low-income students.
Was the incentive too attractive? In Washington state, 5,200 teachers are now board certified which is about 8.8 percent of all teachers statewide. And when Gregoire looked to cut the state budget, suspending the bonuses would save nearly $100 million over the next two years.
"That's my program. I put that in place. National Board Certification is the best indicator of a great teacher that we happen to have," Gregoire said.
The Washington Education Association says the problem with cutting the bonuses is that teachers invested time and money into the program with the understanding that they would be rewarded. The application process alone costs $2,500 and while some teachers got scholarships, others took out loans or paid for it out of their own pocket.
A broken promise?
"Hang on. We'll be back. Hang on. Don't give up," says Gregoire to teachers.
She holds out hope that in better times, the state will reinstate the incentive.
Here's what teachers told us. Getting nationally certified is a big a time commitment, and without some bonus, it's hard to justify the added expense. And if, sometime in the future, the state might reinstate the bonuses, teachers might still have a lingering hesitation about jumping back into the program--having seen that the state can take away the bonuses.
Dan Goldhaber, a University of Washington education researcher, adds this interesting perspective. He says there's little evidence to show that teachers improve their performance just by going through the certification process. But the intense application procedures do serve the function of identifying the most motivated teachers, he says.
Bottom line, this budget cut will likely cut teachers' enthusiasm for this method of rewarding motivated teachers--now and well into the future. And that may leave the state searching for yet another way to identify the best in the classroom.
We'll examine this issue in-depth this weekend on KING 5 News Up Front, 11 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 13 on KONG and 4:30 and 11:30 p.m. on KING.
To add a comment, please register or login.