13 The Burke (SD) Gazette, Wednesday, October 5, 2016
Second Place Winner (tie) in High School Division - Senior Class
We are going to give the Pirates the Hook
Second Place Winner (tie) in High School Division - Freshman Class
Scaring our way to a Victory
First Place High School Division - Sophomore Class - Run Avon into the Woods
Second Place Winner in Business/Organization Division - Burke Bap-
tist Church - 101 Deimations We Spot a Cougar Victory
Third Place Winner in Business/Organization Division - Bill's Bar
The Cougars will Freeze The Pirates to Victory
LETTER TO THE EDITOR supporters alike, knowing that many
Continued from Page 12 would have read a letter in a news-
First Place Business/Organization Division - Hospital/Clinic - Hocus Pocus
paper portraying him as a slippery Dakota school administrators' pay There were eight (8) sound reasons
fellow opposed to a pay raise for ranks 17th to 20th in the nation, given. All 8 showed his great con-
teachers. His opposition, however, South Dakota ranks 37th in the na- cern for his neighbors, his district
was to the tax increase proposed to tion in money given to its schools and all South Dakotans. I encour-
fund the teacher pay raise-the larg- per student and 1st in capital out- age you readers to obtain a copy
est tax increase in South Dakota's lay per student (meaning construc- of that newspaper and reread these
history. A 1/2 cent increase sounds tion and maintenance). Schools in reasons. His words in that column,
small, but it is a 12.5% expansion South Dakota rank 1st in the nation "I believe in teachers and appreci-
of the sales tax. In what could be in reserves with almost half a billion ate what they do for our children.
considered a politically courageous dollars put back. Perhaps some of Something will be done for teacher
statement, Lee Qualm did point out those monies could have been redi- pay, but I am not sure what it will
that many who will be paying the rected into actual teacher pay with- look like at this time." are not the
tax make less than the educators re- out the need for a tax increase. Ad- words of a teacher pay raise hater.
ceiving the raise, ditionally, there are ten (10) states They are the words of a thoughtful
The Blue Ribbon Task Force that spend less than South Dakota representative.
appointed by Governor Daugaard on a per student basis but pay their He has stated repeatedly that
did find that South Dakota teach- teachers a higher salary. How do any pay raise for teachers should
ers' pay ranked 51st in the nation, these ten states do it? Could South come from a reallocation of funds
Can these rankings be taken at face Dakota learn from them? already in the budget. And, in my
value? Was the data submitted by As state elected officials do, personal opinion, a tax increase
each state used to compile average Rep. Qualm has a weekly column in should be the last source for funding
salaries actually comparable, or was the newspapers of his district during if some other source can be found.
the Blue Ribbon Task Force corn- session. The column of February I do not want to pay more taxes if
paring apples to oranges through 17, 2016 stated plainly the reasons there is an alternative. Please re-
no fault of its own? There are other behind his opposition to the tax in- member that in March 2015 a 6-
rankings of interest, as well. South crease bill as it was then presented. Continued on Page 14
