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Teacher advocates ask board to raise starting pay to align with recent Department of Labor baseline
Summary
A teacher and parent urged the board to set a minimum teacher salary near a cited Department of Labor baseline (~$59,000), saying district starting teachers earn about $6,000 less; the board agreed to add the topic for future discussion.
Kelly Lewis, a teacher and parent, used public comment time to press the Archuleta County School District board to address teacher pay, citing a Department of Labor action she said raised a baseline to about $59,000 and urging the district to set a minimum salary nearer that figure.
Lewis told the board that teachers in the district “earn less or earn $6,000 less than this baseline,” called the pay gap demoralizing and warned it will hamper recruitment and retention if not addressed. She asked the board to add a discussion of aligning teacher salaries with that benchmark to a future agenda.
Board members did not take immediate action on pay at the meeting. The board’s consent agenda did include a revision to the non‑educator salary schedule that staff said was required by a new federal or state law regarding minimum compensation for certain positions.
Administration and board members acknowledged the concern and indicated the topic will be scheduled for deeper discussion with budget‑planning materials later in the spring budget cycle.
