Stakeholders mixed on teacher funding priorities

From: Education Daily
The budget justifies the shift in funds, saying most teachers are highly qualified and it is therefore appropriate for those funds to be used for TIF purposes. Jane West, vice president of government relations for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, said her organization supports more Title II targeting, but not at the expense of overall teacher quality money. Instead, the budget reflects a lack of unity in federal teacher quality policy, she said. “You’ve got a limited pot of money, and a real significant challenge in relation to teachers — critical shortage areas, teachers ready to retire, terrible teacher turnovers, a misdistribution of teachers,” she said. “I think you really want to target your money to address them in a systemic kind of way, and I don’t see a systemic kind of initiative.”