Proposal Would Allow Associate Degree Holders To Take Teaching Jobs

By Greg LaRose, Louisiana Illuminator

April 27, 2023

14:44
News Story

• Education
• K-12
• Labor

Proposal would allow associate degree holders to take teaching jobs

By: Greg LaRose - April 27, 2023 2:44 pm

Shutterstock photo

A Louisiana Senate panel approved a proposal Thursday that would allow holders of two-year associate degrees to fill teaching vacancies in school districts that accept the qualifications. The measure has the support of state education Superintendent Cade Brumley as a way to help address teacher shortages.

Sen. Patrick McMath, R-Covington, authored Senate Bill 81 and included a five-year limit on how long someone with an associate’s degree could work as a teacher. They would also be required to be at least 25 years old and must be continuously enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program for teacher education training.

School districts could not fill more than 10% of its teaching positions with two-year degree holders, who could not be paid more than 75% of what the highest-paid teachers in the district make, according to McMath’s legislation.

The restrictions were enough for some members of the Senate Education Committee, who argued the proposal doesn’t provide a long-term solution to the state’s teacher shortage. According to the Louisiana Department of Education, there were 1,203 teaching jobs available at K-12 public schools at the start of the 2022-23 academic year.

“It seems like we’re going to pay someone to teach temporarily until they figure out what they really want to do,” Sen. Katrina Jackson, D-Monroe, said.

Sen. Beth Mizell, R-Franklinton, initially sounded opposed to the bill until she got McMath to agree to provide more frequent data for lawmakers to analyze what he described as a pilot program. His proposal included a sunset date of Dec. 31, 2033.

“I’m really sad we’ve gotta do this. I’m really sad we’re lowering the bar,” Mizell said.

Mizell ended up being a swing member on the bill that was advanced in a 4-2 vote. Sen. Bodi White, R-Central, joined Jackson in voting no.

Opponents of McMath’s legislation include the Louisiana Association of School Superintendents, the Louisiana Association of School Personnel Administrators and the state’s two teacher unions — the Louisiana Association of Educators and the Louisiana Federation of Teachers. Representatives from the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children and the Agenda for Children also spoke to the committee against the bill.

Supporters include the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education, the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry and the state’s Community and Technical College System.

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The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization driven by its mission to cast light on how decisions are made in Baton Rouge and how they affect the lives of everyday Louisianians, particularly those who are poor or otherwise marginalized.