WFISD teachers awarded Teacher Incentive Allotment stipends

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - Wichita Falls ISD has announced that 91 teachers received designations through the Texas Education Agency’s Teacher Incentive Allotment program, generating over $800,000 in stipends directly to the teachers.

WFISD’s data submission was accepted and teachers were informed of their designation and their anticipated stipend amount this week.

Designations are planned to generate funds for the district, and are almost entirely paid to teachers annually for five years. Amounts are based on the level of designation earned and the socio-economic status of the students at the teacher’s campus.

Wichita Falls ISD now has:

• 34 Recognized teachers - annual award ranges from $3,500-$6,000
• 37 Exemplary teachers - annual award ranges from $5,700-$13,000
• 20 Master teachers - annual award ranges from $12,000-$22,000

Final dollar amounts will be determined in April 2023.

“I’m so happy for our teachers,” said Ward Roberts, Director of Innovation and Advanced Academics. “The approval of our district’s designation system will, hopefully, shine a light on the hard work that teachers do every day for our students. We know that WFISD is full of great teachers, but it’s nice to receive the additional confirmation from the state. Through the TIA program, we have another reason to celebrate our staff and students.”

Made possible by the passage of House Bill 3 during the 86th Legislative Session, the Teacher Incentive Allotment provides a pathway for high-performing teachers to earn six-figure salaries while enabling districts in rural and high-needs areas to recruit and retain highly effective teachers on their campuses. Since 2019, TIA has apparently allocated $138.7 million in additional funding to school systems across Texas.

Now in its fourth year, a total of 373 districts across all 20 ESC regions are actively participating in TIA.

For districts to be approved for a Local Designation System, they must undergo a multi-year application process. The process starts with system development and an application that must pass statutory and regulatory requirements, followed by a full year of implementation to capture teacher performance data. Districts then submit their data to be validated by Texas Tech University and holistically reviewed by TEA for full system approval.

More information on the Teacher Incentive Allotment and a complete list of participating school systems can be found here.

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