Among the other news from the State of the State yesterday morning from Gov. Brian Kemp was the announcement of a one-time $1,000 bonus payment for Georgia every K-12 teacher and staff member in the state.
“In a day and age where so much is thrown at those investing in our children on the front lines, the additional burdens of remote learning, social distancing, wearing a mask, adapting to the new normal — honestly made educating overwhelming,” Governor Kemp said in his State of the State address. “But the great men and women running Georgia’s schools didn’t miss a beat. From principals to teachers to custodians, bus drivers and support staff on down, their actions have inspired all of us, and today, I am proud to announce that, working closely with State School Superintendent Richard Woods, the state will provide additional support to school system reopening efforts, equating to a one-time supplement of $1,000 for every teacher and other employee.”
The payments will go to all school-level staff, including, besides what Kemp mentioned specifically, paraprofessionals, counselors, nurses, nutrition staff, media specialists and more. School districts will receive the payments and be in charge of distributing them. Superintendent Woods will make what is expected as a pro forma recommendation to the State Board of Education at their February 18 meeting. Ultimately, presuming the U.S. Senate delivers in the next few weeks on the promise of an additional $1,400 relief payment, Georgia teachers will have received an additional $4,200 in the last 12 months.
“Our teachers and school staff have done extraordinary work in the last ten months,” Superintendent Woods said. “At the onset of the pandemic, they essentially reinvented the educational delivery system in the space of a weekend, and since then have continued to show up for their students, whether virtually or in-person. What we’ve asked of them has been far from easy, and we are providing these bonuses as a tangible gesture of our gratitude and respect for their work and sacrifices, and as a means of retaining these dedicated educators and support personnel who make educating our students possible. This is about restoring hope for our educational workforce – during these unprecedented times, we must continue to invest in the people who directly serve students and make our education system run.”
The payments will come from two sources, $60 million from the Governor’s Office and approximately $180 million from the Georgia Department of Education’s portion of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act stimulus funds. The bonus payments were not a required use for the funds but the governor and superintendent has made them a priority and the U.S. Department of Education has verified that they are an allowable expenditure.
The new bonus will go part of the way towards fulfilling Kemp’s promise of a $5,000 teacher pay raise when he ran for governor. The second round of that raise was
