Local teacher and state lawmakers discuss teacher pay raise bill

MERIDIAN, Miss. (WTOK) - Going in to the 2020 legislative session, Mississippi teachers were on-track to get a pay raise, but the pandemic derailed a lot of plans here and around the world.

In February, Mississippi senators passed the Teacher Pay Raise Bill, which would give most teachers a pay raise of at least 1,000 dollars.

“When the senate passed this it was before corona, but obviously now revenue is down,” said District 33 Senator Jeff Tate.

Northeast Middle School teacher Christina Henderson said she usually spends anywhere from $300 to $500 on classroom necessities. She said the raise would come in handy for purchasing supplies and could help her further her education.

“It is very important for teachers to receive a pay raise because they spend a lot of money out of pocket for expenses for their classroom, and also for personal items that they need in order to be an effective teacher,” said Henderson.

The bill recently died in the House Education Committee. District 83 Representative Billy Adam Calvert said the bill didn’t move forward because of the pandemic’s impact on the state budget.

“Mississippi took a big hit, we’re going to climb out of it,” said Calvert. “If it’s too late this year it will come up next year, it’s something we all want to see happen.”

Henderson says despite the change of plans regarding the budget, she’s ready to get to work in the fall and hopes she and her colleagues will see a pay increase in the near future.

All 52 members of the senate voted in favor of the bill in February.