To whom it may concern:

I am in my third-year as a first grade teacher in a Spanish Immersion school here in the Twin Cities. I am happy in my job: my students are rewarding, my co-workers are enthusiastic and supportive, my principal works hard to encourage my efforts and share his wisdom when I need his expertise. I’m a happy teacher. I love my job.

With a storm of negativity raging outside our school doors each day, calling into question my roles as nurturer, educator, and professional, I am, for the first time, considering leaving my chosen vocation. I say vocation, because I did not choose this essential profession expecting to make very much money. As cliché as it may sound, I want to teach because I want to make a difference. I was called to teach like people are called to their Faith or service in our country’s military. I knew in my heart that it was right.

I am bi-lingual. I am young. I am well-educated. I am good at what I do. However, like so many of you, I make just enough to help pay our mortgage, buy food at Aldi, and shop at consignment stores for my professional clothes. My undergraduate and graduate student loan bills arrive reliably in the mail, and with talks of wage freezes, I can’t help but worry.

Our Nation needs a population of educated citizens. In order to achieve that, we need high-quality teachers. The collective pointing of an angry finger at my profession, accusing me of making more than I’m worth (currently $40,000 a year before taxes), threatening the essential professional bargaining rights that I am due, and calling me lazy for working only nine months a year, does not motivate me to continue teaching your children how to read, add, subtract, share, and solve problems with words and not their hands. It’s also terrible advertising for enticing potentially incredible future-teachers. The American public doesn’t demand drastic pay cuts for family practitioners, or dentists, or opticians or even lawyers.

When problem solving, it’s important to focus on positive steps to take while planning for essential changes. I often tell my first graders: You need a break. Take a deep breath, calm down, and come back to the situation when you are willing to help solve problems instead of make them.

Please support your community’s teachers. We work really hard for your children, and we are worth every penny that we earn.

Respectfully,
Annie Olson-Reiners