From unruly students to tough subjects to teach, being a teacher is a hard job at the best of times. However, in the current American culture, there has never been less attention and funding provided to our education system. This could explain the recent vogue of teachers leaving SHS for better opportunities. In the past few years, nearly 10 teachers have left or are planning to leave before the end of this school year, and fewer than that are being hired.
In a recent interview with SHS Social Studies teacher Heath Ellis, he detailed his personal reasons for moving on to greener pastures. At SHS, he taught AP World History, Psychology, and American History. His departure is not completely motivated by the want to explore a new, exciting place. Unfortunately, his main reason for leaving is how economic conditions have made this town a non-viable option for anyone not already established here or extremely wealthy.
“I think for my own [reasons], it’s just, it’s primarily economic. So the cost of living in this town is really high. And if you don’t already own a home, you’re not going to be able to buy a home on a teacher’s pay,” Ellis said.
This discrepancy in pay between teachers and other professions in Salida is a major driving factor in the decisions of our teachers. Ellis says both he and his wife work in education, making it difficult to earn a living salary. The housing market in small towns is another major reason.
“And, you know, we’ve wanted to have our own house. That I mean, that’s really it. So in order to make that happen, we have to move across the country,” Ellis said.
Heath and his family plan on moving to Roanoke, Virginia, this summer. They plan on staying in the education field, but in a more economically viable place. Part of the reason teachers are being forced out of their towns of choice is the lack of state funding for education in Colorado. Colorado ranks 32nd in the nation in education spending, a disappointing number, and one that has major impacts for the students and educators living in the state.
“Yeah, it’s, it’s changing. So you have to be more strategic,” Ellis said, “You can’t just be […] it’s the old mantra like just work hard. It takes a lot more than that.”
Students and teachers alike will miss Ellis and hope he finds happiness in Virginia.Unfortunately, this combination of factors seems to be too much for many of the teachers at SHS, and it will be a real challenge for administrators to hire enough new staff. For the several teachers who have left this year, only two new teachers have been hired. Gaps in staffing have been filled by teachers who have to pull double duty, or who have been moved out of their preferred position to teach another class. In all, the teaching crisis in Salida needs to be remedied somehow, and until we pay our teachers enough for them to live comfortably, the education of our students will continue to suffer.
