Collier residents fear expensive housing and teacher salaries limit recruiting.
51% of Collier County citizens and education experts were satisfied with public education, although some saw the absence of teacher benefits and compensation increases as an obstacle to recruiting stronger teachers.
The Collier County Community Assessment was performed months before the school board approved a large compensation raise, but respondents thought all school employees should be paid more, according to a recent article by Aisling Swift of Gulfshore Business
“They don’t talk about bus drivers getting raises, cafeteria workers getting raises, aides getting paid,” a River Park resident remarked in a focus group. “The district’s hard-core workers, other than teachers, don’t talk about that.” Q-Q Research Consultants Inc.’s five-year assessment for the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation and Community Foundation of Collier County guides county commissioners, government and school district officials, civic groups, nonprofits, and others in addressing the county’s future needs.
Focus group participants claimed they required childcare to keep their careers; demand was strong and supply was low. The review observed that education professionals stressed the necessity of after-school programming for all grade levels as a safe environment for children to interact, socialize, and spend time. Collier County Parks & Recreation offers after-school and voluntary pre-kindergarten. Participants also worried about the pandemic’s effects on kids, the need for English-language learner support, and county and state education politicization.
The assessment found 34% happy with public pre-K–12 education and 17% highly satisfied. However, 10% were unsatisfied, 4% were very dissatisfied, and 35% had no opinion on PreK-12 education.
No. 5 on the county’s top three priorities list was public education/workforce training, at 24%; 27% for parents with children at home. Affordable housing (65%), controlling growth and development (63%), the environment and emergency preparation (41%), and better jobs (32%), were the top concerns.
In some ZIP codes, residents prioritized public education and workforce training. They were from Goodland (33%), Grey Oaks and nearby (33%), and Immokalee (28%).
The Collier County School Board authorized a $26 million wage package, 13% higher when salary bonuses like night classes are included, before the assessment findings were published on Nov. 28. The contract upped new teachers’ base wage from $50,000 to $54,000 and permitted them to petition for credit for up to 18 years of proven outside experience, including 10 years for existing personnel.
“The higher the years of experience translates to high-quality education in the classroom, and that’s important for the community to understand that’s been our focus, that we want to recognize teachers for their experience,” said Val Wenrich, the district’s chief human resources officer. The state is reviewing the average teacher’s salary, which is expected to be $62,000-$69,400.
The boost followed a 9.7% hike a year earlier and 23% wage increases across three years. However, the district started the year with 70 openings and 40% of teachers driving from outside the county.
Superintendent Leslie Ricciardelli surveyed district employees and found that 64% fear they’ll have to leave for other jobs due to high housing costs, 45% don’t expect a stable housing situation next school year, and 80% cite high housing and rental costs.
This worries the teachers’ union. “The raises aren’t livable,” said Ken Mouton, president of the Collier County Education Association, who met with three young female teachers who stated they must go because they can’t afford to live here.
He stated “Over 30% of our teachers live in Lee County and it’s growing.” Pay hasn’t kept up with Collier County’s cost of living. … You need $80,000 to $90,000 to survive, but most of our instructors don’t make that.
The median rent in Collier County is $2,230, while market rent is $3,922. Affordable units have 1.2% vacancy. According to NABOR, median single-family home prices in Naples rose 88% from pre-COVID levels to $765,000 and condominiums to $465,000. The Board of County Commissioners has approved 3,891 affordable housing units since 2018, but many won’t be completed for years.
“Normally, when these kids come out of college, they have loans to pay off,” Mouton said of the high cost of living. Teachers frequently feel unappreciated. “It’s all the things being put on teachers’ plates—vilification, underpayment, overwork, and job disrespect. That explains why there is currently a teacher shortage.
This article originally appeared on Gulfshore Business