Salt Lake City School District study session focuses on Title I staffing, differentiated pay and planning time

Salt Lake City School District staff reviewed research and local data at a study session about how Title I funds and other district resources are being used to support staffing, teacher pay and planning time in high-poverty schools, and the Board directed staff to survey Title I schools and report back with site-level needs and options.

The discussion matters because Title I and related district dollars fund services that directly affect students in high-poverty schools — including additional teachers, paraprofessionals, counselors and behavioral supports — while those federal and state allocations are declining and the district must choose whether to reallocate local funds or seek new revenue.

Staff presented mixed research on retention incentives and transfer stipends. District staff summarized studies showing that one-time retention bonuses of about $5,000 produced short-term retention gains for teachers in tested subjects, while a multi-district pilot that offered up to $20,000 to move high-value-added teachers into Title I schools showed measurable gains in elementary reading and math during the pilot’s two-year window. Staff also reviewed studies indicating that increasing base pay for teachers in high-poverty schools produced higher retention (roughly a 12 percent increase in some studies). Staff cautioned that these models raise sustainability questions because ongoing funding sources were not guaranteed in the research…