The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1957-11-21

rs percent of the teachers of the
state will be getting starting
salary of $4,000, or 5000 more than
the starting salary in Garrett at
the present time. In this room are
some of the finest teachers in the
state and our higher paying coun-
ties would be glad to have any of
them-and well they might be. But
l believe first of all that the chill
dren of Garrett county-your chill
dren-deserve teachers who are
Just as good as are the teachers of
children in any other county and
believe such teachers deserve
Just as much pay for teaching in
Garrett county tbarring perhaps
some slight cost of living differ
entiaD as do the teachers in any
other county.
The first order of business be-
fore the short session of the Legis-
lature in February is the disposal
of the salary bill vetoed by the
governor last April. The bill calls
for a $400 increase in the minimum
state salary schedule, bringing the
starting salaries from $1,000 to
$4,000 and the maximum salaries
from $4,000 to $4,000.
1T is now imperative to us that
the governors veto be over-ridden
or we will face next year salary
scale so much lower than IS per-
cent of the rest of the state that a
substantial loss of highly qualified
teachers, without opportunity for
adequate requirements. must be
anticipated.
Il am the last person on earth
who feels that the wealth in Car
rett county is sufficient to enable
it to compete with inequities. 1t
takes six cents on our tax rate to
produce enough money for a 500
raise for teachers in Garrett coun-
! ty. You can easily figure for your
self what it will mean to increase
teachers pay S400 next year on a
local basis and I'm quite sure moth
ing less than that will suffice.
What | am trying to do is to place
some cold facts before you-factS
that should be a concern of every
thinking citizen in the county.
Yes, there is another side to
this picture-there is the side of
teacher responsibility. No amount
of pay is too much for the good
teacher, while those who do not
give an honest measure of effort
and devotion to duty are perhaps
already overpaid. Every parent
has a right to expect sincere and
conscientious effort as we'll as a
reasonable degree of competence
from the teachers of their children.
Contrary to the popular notion of
/, those who know no better, the
4 teachers day is long and arduouS
one requiring skill, study, plan
ming. a vast knowledge of children
of how they grow and behave-and
above all an honest feeling for the
welfare of the children they teach
Much of the work of the good
teacher is done beyond the hours
of $3.50 a. m. and p. m. And let
me say in all honesty to those of
you who are parents of children
A in our schools, you are very for
tunate indeed, for in the vast ma
iority of cases your children are
taught by teachers truly dedicated
to the great profession to which
they belong, and numbered among
them are some of the finest to be
found anywhere.
Garrett county has made a
noble effort to improve its schools
within the past decade. 1t has d
$500 tax rate which is higher than
many counties that are much
weather.; it has a 100000 900 asses
sable base, one of the lowest in
the state; it has a high bonded in
debtedneSs and a great portion OF
it is for the two high schools; il
has the lowest per capita income
level in the state, but this level
is steadily rising; it has not had
the benefit of industrial promo
ton, government installations Of
any kind, or many opportunities
for high paying jobs; it has lost
ground in the coal and lumber in
dustry. 1t has had some help from