Mid – Mo lawmaker says a lot of smaller school districts don’t like teacher pay hike

While he voted for it, a key Missouri House committee chair wishes lawmakers had handled the issue of starting teacher pay differently. House Elementary and Secondary Education Committee Chair Chuck Basye tells KWOS that school administrators don’t like the Legislature’s decision to increase the baseline salary for new Missouri teachers to 38-thousand dollars:

Governor Mike Parson called for the increase during his January State of the State Address, noting Missouri ranks 50th in the nation for starting teacher pay. The governor says half of Missouri’s new teachers leave the profession by their fifth year. Missouri’s current minimum teacher salary is 25-thousand dollars.