In tough economic times, how can Kent educators be concerned about the district’s spending? Because your children won’t get a second chance at their education when the economy improves. Our community wants a great education for our children – in good times and in bad. Kent Education Association members are professional educators dedicated to quality education for every student.
Educators need time to prepare lessons, absorb training, apply skills learned, confer with colleagues, meet with parents, and complete paperwork. Most importantly, teachers need quality time to teach our students. Time matters.
Educators need a manageable workload. Students benefit from smaller classes. Some special-education teachers instruct 40 students with unique needs. Middle-school teachers are asked to integrate laptops into daily lessons. High-school teachers may have 35 or more students in a class. Psychologists, speech and language pathologists, and occupational and physical therapists travel to several buildings, with no limits on their caseloads. Some teach in a corner or a closet. Workload matters.
Students benefit when great teachers choose to come – and stay – in Kent. Teachers in Kent work as hard as colleagues in neighboring districts and deserve equitable compensation. Kent is losing top veterans. They’re leaving to work in districts that pay as much as $10,000 more, and offer a greater degree of professionalism to their staffs. The children of Kent deserve better than the lowest-paid teachers in the Puget Sound region. Compensation matters.
Can Kent afford this investment? The district’s own budget data says yes. Nearby districts prove more can be done. The district spends 67 percent of its budget on teaching and teaching support. Neighboring districts spend up to 73 percent. Lake Washington employs a teacher for every 16 students; Kent has only one teacher for every 19 students. Kent has more administrators per teacher than it has teachers per student. The district expects to end the year with nearly $20 million in the bank, which exceeds the 5 percent reserve policy. Taxpayers in Kent deserve to see their investment spent on Kent students.
The Kent Education Association believes it is time for the Kent School District to make children its number-one priority. Improving the time, workload and compensation for educators in Kent will improve education for children. The children of Kent are as valuable as children in districts around Puget Sound. Our community deserves to see its money spent where it belongs: in the classroom.
Connie Compton is a voter and the parent of a current student and a graduate of the Kent School District. She teaches special education and is vice-president of the Kent Education Association.
Cindy Prescott is a voter and parent of KSD graduates. She teaches 4th grade and is secretary/treasurer of KEA.
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