EDITORIAL: Teacher raises a win for us all

May was a miserable month for local critics of public education.

For the rest of us? Downright beautiful.

First, patrons in Lakeland and Coeur d’Alene school districts passed levies that were needed just to maintain financial status quo. Coeur d’Alene voters were overwhelmingly supportive, sending an emphatic message that they recognize the vital importance of their public schools, teachers, support staff and administrators.

Next up were the once-upon-a-time acrimonious annual negotiations over teacher pay. Not acrimonious this year, and not by a long shot.

Thanks to levy supporters but even more, Gov. Brad Little and the Idaho Legislature, Coeur d’Alene teachers, staff and administrators were rewarded with what’s likely their biggest pay raises on record.

With a tremendous boost from the state, Coeur d’Alene’s school board ensured minimum raises of $6,359 per teacher. Levy funds are helping cover raises for more than 110 full-time educators who were not eligible for the state funds.

Hourly employees are also seeing a happy pay jump, from $12.75 to $16 an hour.

Coeur d’Alene School District’s rookie teachers will start this fall at $47,477, a respectable initial salary for almost anyone.

But the biggest winners, in our view, are our communities. The extra pay will flow into every artery of daily life, boosting the overall economy. But there’s more to it than that.

With pay for these most dedicated of public servants at least beginning to reflect the respect they deserve, teaching may again become the bright career light it once was for so many. While money isn’t everything, it’s a fundamental need made more challenging when wages don’t keep up with escalating prices. Fair pay portends attracting the best and brightest and retaining happy, experienced teachers who excel.

Like the rest of the nation, the Coeur d’Alene area has felt the pain of a disappearing middle class. In our view, no profession represents that middle class better than educators, people who improve life all around them by instilling a love of learning and honing the tools needed to constantly grow and contribute.

Raises for Coeur d’Alene School District personnel are a middle class lift and a windfall for the rest of us, too. Well done to the negotiating teams and a standing ovation to the Coeur d’Alene School Board.