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Superintendents warn teacher‑pay boost will create a long‑term 'cliff' for small districts
Summary
Superintendents from several small districts told the committee recent salary increases and minimum‑wage hikes have improved pay now but will create unsustainable costs when temporary state funding sunsets; they described program cuts and multi‑year shortfalls of several hundred thousand dollars in concrete district projections.
Superintendents from small and midsize Arkansas districts told the Senate Education Committee that the state’s recent educator compensation increases and voter‑approved minimum‑wage rises have immediate benefits for staff but create a looming fiscal cliff for some districts when one‑time or biennial funds end.
"We have to cut something, so what are we gonna do?" Beth Shoemake, superintendent of Magazine School District, told the committee as she described reductions already taken (a 5% budget cut and…
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