Ybarra delivers news of more funding to teachers in ‘Legislative Roadshow’

On Wednesday morning, State Superintendent of Public Education Sherri Ybarra told a conference room full of local teachers and district superintendents they’ll have a bigger budget to work with this upcoming 2018 school year.

Ybarra said they walked away with another $100 million in their pockets for school districts across the Gem State.

“We can’t complain,” Ybarra said. “Over the last three years we saw that $100 million increase each fiscal year. We’ve seen the legislature become more education-friendly, and this has become Governor Otter’s top priority as well. That huge increase for the education ladder is a huge win.”

For years, teachers and school districts across the nation struggled to maintain a functioning budget, and faced significant cuts across the board.

Pocatello-Chubbuck School District 25 Superintendent Doug Howell said he feels fortunate to be seeing this budget increase.

“These past few years the legislature has been very mindful and accommodating of the educational needs here in our state,” Howell said.

But this year, Ybarra said the money increase is a result of a surprisingly enthusiastic amount of support from federal lawmakers and committees, including: state lawmakers, the governor’s office, ISBA, the teacher’s union, etc.

“When you build that budget in a team effort, you get what you saw this session, and it was a great opportunity to hear everybody’s priorities,” Ybarra added.

She said there is now a huge teacher shortage across the state.

In this upcoming year, she said she will help launch the “Be A Teacher” campaign to encourage more people to pursue teaching careers.

On Thursday, Ybarra will continue her tour to Idaho Falls at the Hilton Garden Inn.