By Corinne Murdock |
Teachers who tutor can earn up to $8,000 in stipends as supplemental income, according to Arizona Department of Education (ADE) Superintendent Tom Horne.
The superintendent offered this estimate during the Arizona State Board of Education meeting on Monday. Horne called the supplemental income a “stipend for success,” since only teachers who bring students to proficiency through tutoring may achieve that $8,000 maximum.
“This [tutoring program] will have a secondary benefit, which is that it’ll improve the income of teachers, which we also place a very high priority on,” said Horne. “Teachers who take maximum advantage of [this program] can add as much as $8,000 to their income.”
The funds were made possible by the ADE’s reappropriation of $40 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) federal funding earlier this month. The millions will cover an estimated 1.3 million hours of tutoring.
Horne’s predecessor, Kathy Hoffman, had issued that funding out of a total of $130 million to various vendors promising to counter the learning loss caused by the COVID-19 school shutdowns and remote learning. Those organizations were either unable to provide evidence of the academic impact of their work or show reasonable impact for the money received, according to Horne.
Horne noted that the $40 million for the tutoring program was on the low end. He disclosed during Monday’s meeting that vendors representing another $35 million hadn’t responded satisfactorily to his department’s request for proof of impact on learning loss.
Horne said those vendors representing an additional $35 million have been under further review. As a result of this ongoing review, Horne revealed that another $10 million in ESSER funds have been reappropriated as well.
“In our first go-around we had about $75 million that we were going to take back to use more directly for learning loss, but I only promised in my discussion with the press $40 million because we expected that some would come in and talk to us,” said Horne. “We’re in the $50 millions now.”
The tutoring program is open to students from grades 1-8 who didn’t test proficient in reading, writing, and/or math, at no cost to parents, beginning Oct. 2. Parents may choose between public school teachers or private tutoring companies to tutor their children.
In the ADE announcement of the tutoring program earlier this month, Horne explained that public school teachers would be paid $30 an hour and a $200 stipend for every student that shows a half-year learning gain from tutoring.
Horne also said that he was supportive of teacher pay raise legislation, citing a $10,000 proposed raise that Democratic leaders opposed.
“I believe teachers deserve more pay, which is why I supported Rep. Matt Gress’s recent bill for a $10,000 raise. I was shocked to see that the Governor and teachers’ union opposed it,” said Horne. “If they won’t help teachers get more money, I will.”
Corinne Murdock is a reporter for AZ Free News. Follow her latest on Twitter, or email tips to corinne@azfreenews.com.
