Small Victories by Stacy Winstryg
Sometimes it is easy to get caught up in all the negativity that is going on in the world today. And while there are many things that still need to be fixed when it comes to educational funding in our state, Vail Parent Network would like to mention a few of the small recent victories that should be celebrated.
The most recent legislative session ended last month and boy was it a roller coaster of a ride for VPN. Every day seemed like there was a new fire to put out, but out of all the back and forth came great news for our Vail community. As those who have school-aged children know, we are a community that is seeing unprecedented growth. This is largely due to our excelling schools. And with that growth comes the need for new schools. The state budget decided to allocate $63 million for the building of new schools. This is something we haven’t seen since the recession. This is great news for Vail. We are now qualified for a new high school and new elementary school!!! Planning committees for these new schools will start this fall.
We are also pleased to see that due to our community rallying together and passing the additional 2.5% on the override renewal last fall and the state putting a small amount in, teacher salaries will be increasing. These factors, along with several other additions will result in 5.4% pay raises for our returning certified teachers. The Vail Parent Network has been working hard to help our teachers receive the pay that they deserve. And while pay is not competitive compared to the rest of the US, it is a positive step in the right direction. We will continue to work with our legislature to push for more increases to teacher pay.
We are a blessed community! We have some of the best teachers in the state and we want them to feel loved and appreciated. Thank your teachers for the work they do. They truly can and do change the lives of our children for the better! Vail Teachers, thank you for all you do. The title of teacher doesn’t even begin to describe the many roles you serve; please know that your work makes a difference. The Vail Parent Network and our community appreciates you!