The top 25 employees in the Madison County School System earned a collective $2.1 million in FY2011 according to recently released state data.
Overall, the system paid out $29.4 million in salaries in the year spread among 997 employees. Some of those employees were part-time and non-certified staff.
The system also paid out $85,989 in travel expense to staff in FY2011.
The highest paid employee in the system was Superintendent Allen McCannon, who earned $126,276 in FY2011. The only other employee in the system to earn over $100,000 was assistant superintendent Bonnie Knight.
MCSS top 25 earned $2.1 million last year
The highest paid teacher in the system for the year was ag instructor Jerry Taylor who earned $78,480.
All state employees’ salaries, including all school personnel, are public record and available for viewing at open.georgia.gov.
MainStreet Newspapers reviewed the top 25 salaries in each of the six school systems within the coverage area.
Madison County’s salaries ranked fourth out of those sixth systems.
Here’s a breakdown of the total dollars earned by the top 25 employees in each system: Jackson County, $2,506,308; Barrow County, $2,437,145; Banks County, $2,120,710; Madison County, $2,108,742; Jefferson, $2,056,258; and Commerce, $1,892,596.
To read or download a PDF file listing all MCSS salaries for FY2011, go to:
http://www.madisonjournaltoday.com/uploads/mainstreet_media/WebsiteAssets/MADISON_salary_Travel2011.pdf
Madison County School System FY2011
Salaries and Travel Top 25 Employees
MCCANNON,ALLEN L SUPERINTENDENT $126,276.32 $107.55
KNIGHT,BONNIE WHITE DEPUTY/ASSOC/ASSISTANT SUPT $107,381.00 $248.38
STONE,CHAD DARNELL PRINCIPAL $99,659.04 $873.00
REGISTER,CHRISTINE MARIE PRINCIPAL $96,386.16 $36.67
SCARBOROUGH,LARI B HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELOR $95,935.50 $0.00
BOGGS,MATTHEW P PRINCIPAL $92,612.04 $0.00
OWENS,RANDELL G ATHLETICS DIRECTOR $91,442.04 $109.00
GRUETTER,CATHERINE B PRINCIPAL $89,612.00 $0.00
HUNTER,VERONICA T ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $88,542.40 $0.00
BAIRD,JOAN C SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTOR $87,799.92 $743.05
FITZPATRICK,PAMELA J DIRECTOR OF CURR./INSTR $87,797.88 $736.93
AYERS,BRITTAN DIRECTOR OF CURR./INSTR $84,962.04 $2,404.76
GRIFFETH,CHARLES W ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $83,018.60 $0.00
WAGGONER,JANEESE A PRINCIPAL $83,004.96 $92.50
SCHULTE,JAMES ERNEST SPECIAL ED SPECIALIST $82,286.70 $739.92
MCGHEE,MITCHELL V SUPERINTENDENT $80,582.42 ($229.00)
HEATON,WILLIAM WILSON PRINCIPAL $80,580.30 $0.00
PAUL,BRIDGET I ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $80,557.08 $3,369.70
COBERLY,DAVID B ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $79,637.98 $0.00
OSBORNE,STEVEN M INSTRUCTIONAL SPECIALIST P-8 $79,057.22 $0.00
JEFFERS,LYNNE A PRINCIPAL $78,929.04 $1,236.52
TAYLOR,JERRY VOCATIONAL $78,480.00 $3,173.34
HULSEY,STEVEN A SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKER $77,166.94 $165.50
BUSH,ANGELA D ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $77,035.28 $0.00
Notes:
•Mitch McGhee resigned as school superintendent in July 2010. His pay for fiscal year 2010-11, which began in July 2010, reflects his pay for that July, his three months of severance pay and his remaining leave time, valued at $26,872.
•Allen McCannon’s salary for fiscal year 2010-11 is for his associate superintendent’s salary, plus $8,700 for the position of interim superintendent. McCannon’s annual salary is now set at $126,000.
•McCannon, Chad Stone, Christine Register and Veronica Hunter have all earned doctorates.
•Lari Scarborough’s salary for fiscal year 2010-11 was $83,112 — not $95,935. She changed from a 190-day to a 230-day employee on July 1, 2010. A 10-month employee’s salary is paid over 12 months time. So, she received pay for her 2010 contract (for the 10-month job) for two months after she took the 12-month position.
•Randell Owens’ supplements for athletic director and head football coach, along with extended year pay, added $32,174 to his base salary.
•Charlie Griffeth receives a supplement for head baseball coach.
•James Schulte receives supplements as special ed chair and in school special ed coordinator.
•Mike Osborne is a teacher and bus driver — $10,698 of his salary is for bus driving.
•All the salaries in the top 25, except for Lari Scarborough and Mike Osborne, who were both paid for more than one position during the year, are extended-year contracts, meaning they are paid for and work more days in the year than a regular teacher.
AREA SUPERINTENDENT SALARIES FY2011
NAME SALARY TRAVEL SYSTEM
WILBANKS, J ALVIN $410,573.75 $4,998.82 GWINNETT
EVANS, LORELLE C $210,643.00 $4,427.85 FORSYTH
HAMBY, GEYE S $209,037.02 $1,991.27 CITY OF BUFORD
PULLIAM DAVIS, BARBARA A $184,225.51 $5,785.09 GREENE
HOBBS, HOMER GARY $184,180.49 $6,126.30 WALTON
SCHOFIELD, WILLIAM $177,832.23 $3,203.87 HALL
LANOUE, PHILIP D $176,944.32 $3,424.56 CLARKE
RAY, BETTYE J $176,108.94 $3,035.09 CITY OF SOCIAL CIRCLE
MATHEWS, GARY S $169,399.96 $13,728.45 NEWTON
ADAMS, V S $163,218.29 $1,598.83 JACKSON
JACKSON, JOHN A $157,814.40 $328.45 OCONEE COUNTY
MCCOY, JAMES E $157,233.96 $2,293.65 CITY OF COMMERCE
ERWIN, CHRISTOPHER B $153,413.76 $2,264.06 BANKS
CREEL, WANDA $146,501.16 $6,262.92 BARROW
ODELL, RUTH B $139,948.11 $1,509.90 FRANKLIN
JACKSON, JOHN $137,114.40 $512.08 CITY OF JEFFERSON
McCANNON, ALLEN $126,276.32 $107.55 MADISON CO.
— Allen McCannon’s salary for the fiscal year 2010-2011 included his associate superintendent’s salary and $8,700 for the position of interim superintendent. His annual salary as Madison County school superintendent is now set at $126,000.
All state employees’ salaries, including all school personnel, are public record and available for viewing at open.georgia.gov.
MainStreet Newspapers reviewed the top 25 salaries in each of the six school systems within the coverage area.
Madison County’s salaries ranked fourth out of those sixth systems.
Here’s a breakdown of the total dollars earned by the top 25 employees in each system: Jackson County, $2,506,308; Barrow County, $2,437,145; Banks County, $2,120,710; Madison County, $2,108,742; Jefferson, $2,056,258; and Commerce, $1,892,596.
To read or download a PDF file listing all MCSS salaries for FY2011, go to:
http://www.madisonjournaltoday.com/uploads/mainstreet_media/WebsiteAssets/MADISON_salary_Travel2011.pdf
Madison County School System FY2011
Salaries and Travel Top 25 Employees
MCCANNON,ALLEN L SUPERINTENDENT $126,276.32 $107.55
KNIGHT,BONNIE WHITE DEPUTY/ASSOC/ASSISTANT SUPT $107,381.00 $248.38
STONE,CHAD DARNELL PRINCIPAL $99,659.04 $873.00
REGISTER,CHRISTINE MARIE PRINCIPAL $96,386.16 $36.67
SCARBOROUGH,LARI B HIGH SCHOOL COUNSELOR $95,935.50 $0.00
BOGGS,MATTHEW P PRINCIPAL $92,612.04 $0.00
OWENS,RANDELL G ATHLETICS DIRECTOR $91,442.04 $109.00
GRUETTER,CATHERINE B PRINCIPAL $89,612.00 $0.00
HUNTER,VERONICA T ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $88,542.40 $0.00
BAIRD,JOAN C SPECIAL EDUCATION DIRECTOR $87,799.92 $743.05
FITZPATRICK,PAMELA J DIRECTOR OF CURR./INSTR $87,797.88 $736.93
AYERS,BRITTAN DIRECTOR OF CURR./INSTR $84,962.04 $2,404.76
GRIFFETH,CHARLES W ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $83,018.60 $0.00
WAGGONER,JANEESE A PRINCIPAL $83,004.96 $92.50
SCHULTE,JAMES ERNEST SPECIAL ED SPECIALIST $82,286.70 $739.92
MCGHEE,MITCHELL V SUPERINTENDENT $80,582.42 ($229.00)
HEATON,WILLIAM WILSON PRINCIPAL $80,580.30 $0.00
PAUL,BRIDGET I ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $80,557.08 $3,369.70
COBERLY,DAVID B ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $79,637.98 $0.00
OSBORNE,STEVEN M INSTRUCTIONAL SPECIALIST P-8 $79,057.22 $0.00
JEFFERS,LYNNE A PRINCIPAL $78,929.04 $1,236.52
TAYLOR,JERRY VOCATIONAL $78,480.00 $3,173.34
HULSEY,STEVEN A SCHOOL SOCIAL WORKER $77,166.94 $165.50
BUSH,ANGELA D ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL $77,035.28 $0.00
Notes:
•Mitch McGhee resigned as school superintendent in July 2010. His pay for fiscal year 2010-11, which began in July 2010, reflects his pay for that July, his three months of severance pay and his remaining leave time, valued at $26,872.
•Allen McCannon’s salary for fiscal year 2010-11 is for his associate superintendent’s salary, plus $8,700 for the position of interim superintendent. McCannon’s annual salary is now set at $126,000.
•McCannon, Chad Stone, Christine Register and Veronica Hunter have all earned doctorates.
•Lari Scarborough’s salary for fiscal year 2010-11 was $83,112 — not $95,935. She changed from a 190-day to a 230-day employee on July 1, 2010. A 10-month employee’s salary is paid over 12 months time. So, she received pay for her 2010 contract (for the 10-month job) for two months after she took the 12-month position.
•Randell Owens’ supplements for athletic director and head football coach, along with extended year pay, added $32,174 to his base salary.
•Charlie Griffeth receives a supplement for head baseball coach.
•James Schulte receives supplements as special ed chair and in school special ed coordinator.
•Mike Osborne is a teacher and bus driver — $10,698 of his salary is for bus driving.
•All the salaries in the top 25, except for Lari Scarborough and Mike Osborne, who were both paid for more than one position during the year, are extended-year contracts, meaning they are paid for and work more days in the year than a regular teacher.
AREA SUPERINTENDENT SALARIES FY2011
NAME SALARY TRAVEL SYSTEM
WILBANKS, J ALVIN $410,573.75 $4,998.82 GWINNETT
EVANS, LORELLE C $210,643.00 $4,427.85 FORSYTH
HAMBY, GEYE S $209,037.02 $1,991.27 CITY OF BUFORD
PULLIAM DAVIS, BARBARA A $184,225.51 $5,785.09 GREENE
HOBBS, HOMER GARY $184,180.49 $6,126.30 WALTON
SCHOFIELD, WILLIAM $177,832.23 $3,203.87 HALL
LANOUE, PHILIP D $176,944.32 $3,424.56 CLARKE
RAY, BETTYE J $176,108.94 $3,035.09 CITY OF SOCIAL CIRCLE
MATHEWS, GARY S $169,399.96 $13,728.45 NEWTON
ADAMS, V S $163,218.29 $1,598.83 JACKSON
JACKSON, JOHN A $157,814.40 $328.45 OCONEE COUNTY
MCCOY, JAMES E $157,233.96 $2,293.65 CITY OF COMMERCE
ERWIN, CHRISTOPHER B $153,413.76 $2,264.06 BANKS
CREEL, WANDA $146,501.16 $6,262.92 BARROW
ODELL, RUTH B $139,948.11 $1,509.90 FRANKLIN
JACKSON, JOHN $137,114.40 $512.08 CITY OF JEFFERSON
McCANNON, ALLEN $126,276.32 $107.55 MADISON CO.
— Allen McCannon’s salary for the fiscal year 2010-2011 included his associate superintendent’s salary and $8,700 for the position of interim superintendent. His annual salary as Madison County school superintendent is now set at $126,000.
All of the students need to pass math. Most of the students that take Ag will never operate a farm.
Ag students may not operate a farm, but they very well could work for someone who does. With the slow food and local production movement, there is opportunity for small growers to do well here, especially with organic offerings.
Having the opportunity to learn a bit about this field can help students figure out whether they want to pursue some part of this field or avoid it altogether. It also might help them to appreciate the farming their family, friends and/or neighbors have toiled with for generations.
Ag is fine, but, is it more important than Math? Hardly. Should he Ag teacher be the highest paid teacher in the county? I don't think so. Part time teachers for Math? Not a good idea. You must not have school age children, or they're not in Middle or High school yet.
I come from a farming family, 600 acres right here in the county to be exact. Most of the guys that work there probably didn't do so well in Math either.
We need a better way! I would like to see a voucher system that would allow private schools to cater to individual students in a customized fashion. There would be no public schools. Bright students could move onward and outward without being held back. Struggling students could move at their own pace instead of skipping over foundations they need for future learning as I did in math. Different learning styles could be accommodated. Different philosophical approaches could be offered, including religious. Difficult students could be served in military style schools or schools that offer ongoing counseling. The parents of children schooled at home would not be paying double to educate their children.
I could see all those people in the list starting their own schools. They would be judged just like any other business service by the parents; accountablility would be more direct. The devil, like always, would be in the details, but I would really love to see this before my future grandkids get to school age.
Next time the school system wants more money "for the children", maybe we really need to look at what it will go for instead of blindly voting yes 'for the children' and paying the swine feeding at the lower end of the trough. You can bet I and mine will be voting NO. BTW $68 + thousand is still a lot of money for some person to tell a class of little kids to run around and jump up and down for a while.
I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed but that does seem like an awful lot for just teaching basics.
I think most people are just generally upset with government in general .
I don't like the fact that none of us can ever own property again because of the property
tax we pay to support schools. Especially those of us who don't have children in school .
I know I probably have it all wrong but what's new.
Any who how about it ?
Feel free to research for yourself. All funding is public record, and trust me- property taxes alone couldn't provide enough financial support. Also there are salary schedules like any other job, yet in education it takes a lot more time and additional titles to earn top salary pay. With overtime pay, someone at a manufacturing plant can easily bring in $70,000 a year without A college degree. So why Is it appalling to so many that people actually Put forth the effort to further educate themselves and they recieve pay to reflect it? Obviously it has been far too long since you have actually stepped foot in a classroom if you think teachers teach just the basics.
No one thinks you are wrong tax payer; just that you have spoken too quickly without proper research. It's a great skill that teachers are emphasizing in classrooms.
Supporting your local schools doesn't mean just finacially- it means being part of the community and showing students you care.
I am done with commenting, my point wasn't to argue- but for people to educate themselves about a topic before they start bashing.
I admitted I wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed .I do show kids I care and support them as I did my own children and still do .
That's why I ask you to educate me on that point.
I find it some what troubling that you cant even educate me on the facts .
I wasn't bashing anyone just wanted to learn . Is that how teachers teach today by telling the students to research it themselves ?
Sounds to me like perhaps the students are teaching themselves.
I would strongly disagree that there are very many people if any that are making 70 k working on the assembly line at any manufacturing plant.
I know I have never made that kind of money working in our plant .Working 12 hours 7 days a week for six months at a time in some cases.
Yes I am to old for school but never to old to learn . However the world is my classroom and I have continued to educate myself for many years and will
continue to do so until I die.
Which I might mention I get no recognition for because I didn't earn it in the traditional manner by paying for it through the college system and
spending thousands of dollars for what I got at the public Library for a free or a five dollar library card.
Kind of sounds like pay to play to me . I educated myself and never let school get in the way of my education . I wanted to learn just for sake of having and education
not just for the money. Its a sad day when that's the emphasis being placed on education ,its on how much money you can make.
Whatever happened to getting educated just for the sake of education .
Is it the money and benefits you all really care about or the kids that allot of people are forced by law to turn over and then intrust to teachers who really don't care and a system that keeps forcing us to push them thru?
Its this kind of thinking that's has created such a large salary or wage gap in this country today.
I think the assembly line worker the construction worker and the farm worker might feel the same way . How can anybody put that kind of price tag on another humans life?
We need the buildings to teach and work and manufacture goods built by the construction worker don't we . He didn't have to go to college to learn that trade so its not worth anything .
We need the food that the legal or Illegal alike harvest to put food on our table. Yet their life isn't worth paying them a descent living wage because they aren't educated.
The production line worker produces wealth and a product that somebody wants or needs but are any of these people paid to reflect their real worth? The answer is unequivocally no.
This is the great lie and propaganda spread by this Capitalists System where most business owners have it better than slave owners had it in their time. Allow me to explain .
In the time when we had slavery the slave owner cared more for his slave than do the business owners today in most but not all cases. My reasoning behind this thought is because the slave owner at least provided ,adequate food , clothing ,shelter and medical care for the slave . Today's business owner just gives you a check and says they don't owe you anything because they gave you a check . In allot of cases that check wont even provide descent shelter for them much less any of the other things they might need.
When in fact the business owner didn't give them anything he only took the greater portion of the wealth in which the labor created.
Using the wage cap they call minimum wage to pay them as little as possible .How would I define 'capitalism'? I think you have to focus on the concept of surplus value. "The directing motive, the end and aim of capitalist production is to extract the greatest possible amount of surplus value, and consequently to exploit labor power to the greatest possible extent.All forms of economic exploitation are, when you get right down to it, forms of slavery of one sort or another. Chattel slavery is total, open slavery. Feudalism is partial, but still open slavery. And capitalism is a hidden form of slavery, appropriately considered to be "wage slavery". Under chattel slavery, the slave is (usually) the property of a single slave owner. Under feudalism, the serf is tied to the land (he/she cannot leave), and is in effect the partial property of whichever individual owns that land. Under capitalism, the worker is not actually the property of any individual capitalist—because the worker can (usually) quit, and get a job elsewhere ... working for another capitalist. In other words, the best way to look at it is that workers are the collective property of the capitalist class as a whole. (It is an advantage to be able to choose your exploiter, but not as much of an advantage as it would be not to be exploited at all!)
So in close I have to ask what are we really teaching our children in school today ?
I have to say I find this statement just a bit elitist. First of all, you are speaking of the past where manufacturing is concerned; such is done overseas at slave-labor rates now.
Secondly, are you assuming that the blue-collar worker was sitting around being totally unproductive for those 4, 6, 8 years while the academic was going through school (incurring student loans)? For as many as 8 years, that worker helped produce a product that made the owner wealthy, the consumer happy, tax collectors pleased and supported a family. Is that worker's "efforts" less valuable than the "efforts" to get adanced degrees that, during that same time period, generated few taxes, no product or service, supported no other people and only accummulated interest?
The worker's value is clearly evaluated in the manufacturer's business; the boss knows exactly what he/she is worth. Not so with the academic who wraps his/her worth in their diplomas. It's not easy to clearly assess the administrator's or teacher's production value. Put any of them in the circumstances of a small private school where they are paid for directly by the consumer and they will be closely scrutenized by the parents who actively chose that school. I suspect that is a little uncomfortable for them so they want the protection not only of their diplomas, but also their present bureaucracy. The current system is not marketplace competitive. I believe it should be.
I'm also not the most qualified person to comment on how sharp of a tool you may or may not be, but I do understand where your concerns are coming from in the way of salaries. That said, I'd be very careful about casting aspersions about what these people actually do. "Just teaching the basics" is more than just teaching the basics. It's about laying the foundation that a child's entire life will be built upon. If you can't see the value in that, then I guess this is where the conversation probably needs to end. Assessing a dollar value on the worth of a child's education aside, please understand that the bulk of these salaries are dictated by the state.
I would agree that most people are upset with government in general, but teachers are state employees, not lawmakers. If you have issues with salaries, taxes, etc., take it up with your local representatives, not a group of people who are just doing their jobs for the amount that they were offered to do them.
In regards to property taxes...get over it. Seriously. Taxes are a part of life, and they are needed. You may not have children in the schools now, but when you were receiving a free, public education as a child, you probably weren't voicing any outrage when others paid taxes to provide your education. And yes, many of those tax payers were similar to you in that they didn't have children in the schools. That's part of living in a society.
This was way more than I planned on typing. Then I complain that I never have enough time to do anything. =)
""Just teaching the basics" is more than just teaching the basics. It's about laying the foundation that a child's entire life will be built upon."
I agree very much with the above statement. The problem is that it is so priceless that few citizens can afford it's real value, so we do the best we can as a society. Also, people without children benefit greatly from what they pay to have an educated society. Should a science teacher be paid more than a social studies teacher? Should a math teacher be paid more than an art teacher? A more educated or experienced teacher does not necessarily make a better teacher; they've just managed to pass some academic tests and to hang around. True teachers with passion and innate skills and desires will always be the best teachers, with or without fancy education or experience. Those individuals, however, are few and rare.
Hey, Me. Are you a teacher? I agree with your post except for your resistance to a voucher system. Teachers have a tough and draining job; lots of time off is essential to that stressful career. Part of that stress is all the requirements and paperwork heaped on teachers by multiple governments; another is discipline problems. Wouldn't private schools be able to eliminate a lot of that and allow teachers to teach? Real teachers understand that student-customized learning is the ideal, but can't be done in public schools. Parents who want a better (more expensive) education for their children can contribute their own money together with the vouchers toward that goal instead of paying for both public and private education for their kids. Does this not make sense? Or do you want all kids to be educated to the lowest level attainable by the least "endowed" kids?
Might I add that Public school teachers should be paid based on Merit, not the number of degrees they have. If they can't teach or control the students in their classroom, maybe they should explore other opportunities with their Masters in Phys ed or English degree.
This teacher (me on) is like so many others that have never held a private sector job. His/her comparison to working a manufacturing job that, "can easily bring in $70,000 a year without A college degree" shows a complete disconnect from the reality of the world outside the classroom. Hope they aren't teaching economics.
I could not have said it any better I agree .
In regards to vouchers, you all as tax payers would still be footing the bill for a child to receive a private education. Instead of ignoring the issue of problems in our schools, it needs to be addressed.
The real world is a great place to learn, but why do you feel the need to look down upon someone who goes to college? I agree, college is not for everyone, and our schools need to do a better job of providing outlets for these students rather than constantly pushing a college route.
It really is kind of pointless to comment on here because others easily manipulate comments or assume.
Living on a limited or fixed income ( if you are referring to one as social security) is no ones fault but your own. Maybe better finacial planning throughout life would have helped. Everyone knows they have to pay taxes and bills, so do your best to plan for it.
A quick lesson for all of you- "Me on" isn't the author... It's "me" then on is to let you know when I published the comment.
As I explained, private schools could very well deal with all those problems better than public schools are and have been doing for a long time. Of course tax-payers would pay for the vouchers; that is what a voucher is. Rather than school boards spending money, individual parents would spend the money and watch it much more closely.
"It really is kind of pointless to comment on here because others easily manipulate comments or assume."
Such is the nature of internet commenting sites. Either ignore the poor comments or reply to ones you feel a need to correct or clarify. Try to be clear the first time and always be brief or people won't read the whole thing or will read too fast to get your meaning. You're contributions here have been something to consider.
I was addressing why you felt the need to look down on blue-collar workers; I found it rather elitist. I do feel that many high-level academics fail to interface with the real world enough to adapt what they have learned in the orderly little world of learning to applied ideas. If they can't, they are a bit useless in the real world and should go back to their secure little world of academics to teach instead of attempting to teach children or run school systems.
You are quite correct about the need for career avenues other than college.
She stood at the doorway and greeted each student as they would enter her classroom. She made sure every boy had his shirt tail tucked in, and would use a boobie pin from her beehive hairdo to pin up my hair so she could be sure to see my eyes while she was teaching.
That woman had a zero tolerance for crap policy, and you knew it and respected her for it. Any riff-raff would be dealt with immediately, and harshly at the end of a wooden paddle.
When my kids come home complaining that the teacher has no control over their classroom,which makes it difficult to learn anything,I think of her. I'll never forget the first time that one of them reported to me that someone walks around the classroom the whole time disrupting everyone. It was hard for me to comprehend how this could be tolerated. Now, it's just to be expected, I've heard it so many times that it must be the norm.
I know Ms. Rankin never earned anywhere near the amount of money that teachers make today, but, I'm not really sure that she did it for the money anyway. I'm sure she didn't have any advanced degrees.
She stood at the doorway and smiled at us affectionately as we left her classroom everyday, and would retrieve her boobie pins from my hair. You felt good about yourself and relieved at the same time that it was over with.
I didn't realize then that her lessons or the impression she made on me would last a lifetime.
We need more like her today.
ps. The parents didn't complain about Ms. Rankins' hard-nosed approach to teaching. I'm not sure if it was because they appreciated her efforts, or feared her like the kids did. Probably both. Oh, and if you got paddled at school (for any reason) you got a whoopin' when you got home, no questions asked.
“The first thing you will hear is a giant sucking sound and that will be all our jobs going out if the country.”
Ross Perot on passing NAFTA-1992.
Addressed where? In public schools currently? Discipline problems and declining standards have been a growing problem for the past 30 years with no hope in sight of solving anything. Private schools tailored to the attributes and difficulties of each student would be a reasonable approach to solving these problems. What we're doing now just is not working and never will!
I was told it was because the higher performing students would help to "bring up" the below average ones. I told them (teacher and principle)that what they would end up with from this experiment was a group of, at best, average students. I was right.
I don't see public education as we know lasting another 50 years.
Read Democracy in America by Alexis De'Tocqueville.