MISSOURI (WGEM) – Superintendents in Missouri reacted to education legislation that went into effect earlier this month.
Senate Bill 727 introduced 21 different provisions to The Show-Me State’s education landscape. One of them is a raise in the minimum salary for teachers.
Currently, the minimum pay is $25,000 a year. Starting this fall, that will increase to $40,000 for educators. The number is higher for those with a master’s degree and at least ten years of teaching experience. Their base salary will become $46,000.
It is part of an effort to increase teacher satisfaction and retention. Ralls County R-II Superintendent David Koogler explained his district already pays teachers a base of $41,000, but higher salaries alone may not be enough to keep some educators around.
Advertisement
“That in itself is not enough to draw teachers in. They want to make sure that the administration has their back, they want to make sure that the community supports them, that they are respected, that they’re not going to get challenged at every little thing,” Koogler said. “But definitely, increasing pay is a good first step.”
Superintendent Susan Johnson of Hannibal Public Schools (HPS) shared a similar sentiment.
“Is it enough? I mean, I certainly hope it is. It’s certainly moving in the right direction. So, I think that’s a great thing,” Johnson said. HPS’ current base pay for teachers is $40,400.
SB 727 requires all school districts in Missouri to achieve the raise in minimum teacher salary. If unable, they could face cuts to funding.
Koogler said that is a point of worry.
Advertisement
“I am very concerned about that,” Koogler said. “Basically, it sends the message that if you’re too poor to afford these salary increases, you’re really going to be poor.”
School districts can utilize the newly created Teacher Baseline Salary Grant Fund to help pay those salaries. It is essentially a pool of funds appropriated by the General Assembly that districts can dip into if needed. The language of SB 727 reads the General Assembly, “may” appropriate money to the fund. That word spelled some concern for Johnson.
Base teacher salaries starting in the 2028-29 school year and all subsequent school years are required to be adjusted annually by the percentage increase in inflation. Koogler noted it may be difficult for some districts to cut expenditures to pay higher salaries down the line.
Also created in SB 727 is the Elementary Literacy Fund. It provides matching grants to schools in order to send books to K-5 students. Six to nine books can be sent to any individual student. Grants cannot exceed $60 per student, per semester.
Johnson praised this aspect of the bill.
Advertisement
“I think that’s a great thing. Anytime we can get books and literature in a student’s hand, that’s wonderful,” Johnson said.
There is also more incentive for a five-day school week wrapped into the legislation.
Districts with a five-day school week will receive additional funds. They will get a kickback of 1% of their state aid to go toward teacher salaries in 2026-27, and 2% of that in the following years.
As another part of SB 727, the non-emergency phone number for the local police department will be added to the ID cards of students in grades 7-12. That starts July. The ID cards may also include a suicide hotline number.
Koogler referred to poor student mental health as, “a pandemic that needs to come to an end.”
Advertisement
He said he has noticed a decline in students’ well-being since a couple years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.
RICHMOND, Texas (KTRK) — Former Missouri City police officer Blademir Viveros was convicted of aggravated assault by a public servant on Monday.
After five days of witness testimony, body camera footage, and tears in the courtroom, the jury found Viveros guilty after he was accused of killing three people in a high-speed wreck while responding to an emergency.
PREVIOUS REPORT: Families of victims testify, state and defense rest cases in former MCPD officer manslaughter trial
Arguments closed just after 2:30 p.m. on Monday.
Advertisement
Chief Prosecutor Alison Baimbridge made it clear throughout the trial that no stone was left unturned in the investigation in this case, saying that this crash was avoidable and not an accident.
Defense attorneys tag-teamed their closing argument, with Eric Cagle going first as he told the jury Viveros intended to help the victims of the robbery he was responding to.
Defense attorney Robert McCabe then spoke, adding that Viveros has a servant’s heart. He called the crash an accident and said that Viveros did not drive his car intentionally into the car of Mason and Angela Stewart.
McCabe told the jurors Viveros was negligent and should’ve done better, and mentioned the failures by the police department and his supervisors.
“This case just doesn’t belong here, it just doesn’t in this court…in criminal court…in criminal district court on a felony offense with a weapon, alleged for these facts. For this case, it doesn’t belong here. Justice comes in many forms and shouldn’t be sought in this court. There’s plenty of reasonable doubt.” McCabe said.
Advertisement
“If you think about the facts in this case, they’re not disputed,” Baimbridge said. “Nobody is arguing that this crash did not happen in the way that the officers say it did. No one is arguing the defendant turned off his patrol lights and his sirens. No one is arguing he was going 107 miles per hour when he took lives from our community – he just wants a pass.”
After the closing arguments, the jury was sent out of the courtroom to deliberate. The jury then returned about two and a half hours later, finding Viveros guilty on all three counts of aggravated assault by a public servant.
The punishment phase of the trial begins on Tuesday morning. Viveros now faces five years to life in prison.
For updates on this story, follow Daniela Hurtado on Facebook, X and Instagram.
The Missouri Department of Transportation announced a segment of I-70 Drive Southeast from Woodridge to Glenstone Drive in Columbia will close beginning Monday after being delayed for 14 days.
The entrance to Woodridge Drive from I-70 Drive Southeast will also be closed. The closure is set to last 300 days and aims to be completed in January 2027, according to a news release from MoDOT.
The closure will enable crews to shift traffic on I-70 to construct two new bridges on I-70. This will allow the construction of the new underpass connecting Hanover Boulevard to I-70 Drive Southeast.
Advertisement
All businesses will remain accessible during the closure. Motorists will be directed around the closure via Keene Street and St. Charles Road, according to the news release.
The closure was originally set for March 9. According to past KOMU 8 reporting, MoDOT postponed the project due to weather and crew availability.
A 29-year-old man was seriously injured in a Friday night motorcycle crash in Morgan County.
The crash happened around 7:50 p.m. on Old Five Road north of Leatherman Road, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report.
A Ford Explorer crossed the center of the roadway while heading southbound and struck a Kawasaki motorcycle heading northbound, according to the crash report.
Advertisement
The 29-year-old man was airlifted to University Hospital with serious injuries, according to the crash report.
The motorcyclist was not wearing a helmet. The driver of the Ford Explorer had no reported injuries and was wearing a seatbelt, according to the crash report.
