The Greenville Advocate: Opinion

Rarely, if ever, has the Butler County School System captured the spotlight of the entire state education landscape, but that opportunity appears near.

In a time when lawmakers are suggesting available funding for teacher raises may not be forthcoming, the local system is entering to a Pay Plus Salary Augmentation System that could provide teachers, office workers and support personnel up to $1.4 million over a two-year span.

The one-of-a-kind pilot program, approved last week by the board of education here, seeks to ultimately make the students' learning experience in Butler County a better one by financially encouraging teachers and school leaders to become more involved in that comprehensive process.

A committee of peers has identified the path to success, citing the need for improved employee attendance; more leadership as grade level, department or committee chairs, and commitment as teacher mentors and extracurricular activity sponsors; greater commitment to the adequate yearly progress (AYP) guidelines as mandated by the No Child Let Behind Act of 2001; and creation of a positive, organizational culture that helps students grow academically, socially and emotionally.

The good news is that many of the system's dedicated school employees already meet or exceed standards identified by the Pay Plus program.

Skeptics might argue with some justification that all employees should already be at that level as part of their existing responsibilities.

So for the next two years, the education spotlight will focus on Butler County. What is learned here could impact, positively or negatively, teachers and support personnel throughout the state.

If teachers and other school leaders view Pay Plus as simply another way to get more money for their services, the program will likely meet certain failure.

If, however, they place monetary gains in the appropriate secondary position of importance and embrace fully the program as an opportunity to strengthen their professional skills and to transfer their commitment, their abilities and their interest to student performance, it could become, one, a permanent part of the system here and, two, a model for other systems, one that might even revolutionize the profession.

Hundreds of manhours have been invested in the creation of Pay Plus.

It would seem appropriate now that a similar investment be made into even the most minute of details that focus on student achievement, on baselines that identify current levels of performance and on targets that will clearly illustrate and measure gains and improvements.

That the Butler County School System is willing to shoulder so large a responsibility is commendable.

That it succeed, without question, by helping students broaden and deepen their educational opportunities and progress is essential.