Rep. Kim Koppelman, R-West Fargo, can slice it and dice it any way he wants (letter, May 13). North Dakota teachers are still ranked last in teacher pay in the nation. This is just one issue among many that the Republicans in the North Dakota Legislature do not have the courage to tackle. They would rather go with the flow and figure out how to just get by for another biennium. Getting by is not good enough. We need to move forward instead of spinning our wheels trying to keep up, as we have for so many years.
We have been told time and time again that when things improved economically, the salaries of teachers and workers would rise in North Dakota. This has not happened. I noted with interest when Koppelman stated that the average wage of citizens in North Dakota is $10,000 less than the average teacher's wage. What does this say about the returns on our economic development dollars and efforts? Not much.
We live in a capitalistic society, which supposedly rewards hard work and excellence with more dollars. I do not see those rewards flowing to our teachers who, by all measures, appear to be doing an excellent job.
By the way, I have lived in several states and I have found it cheaper to live in North Dakota. I would suggest that the reason it may seem cheaper to live here is the result of people having less disposable income, and so they do not have the extra money to spend to help expand the economy.
Has Koppelman sat down with the paper and pencil and tried to figure out how to live on the wages of a beginning teacher with student loans, apartment rent, car expenses, etc.? I think this would be an interesting exercise. It might be an even bigger revelation for him if he actually had to survive on this salary. Words of assurance and praise do not pay bills.
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Ellen Linderman
Carrington, N.D.
