糖心vlog Investigates: Iowa DOGE panel recommends performance-based pay for teachers
Iowa's school funding isn't working, says the Iowa Department of Government Efficiency Task Force.
The panel met today and revealed 45 recommendations related to workforce, technology and return on taxpayer dollars.
"We are not getting acceptable returns on our education investment," said Terry Lutz, the Return on Taxpayer Investment (ROI) committee chairperson and the chairman of McClure Manufacturing.
He says Iowa ranks 24th in math, 26th in reading and 28th in science.
"Our current system rewards teachers and administrators for their length of service, for the duties they take on, with no ties to student achievement," Lutz said to the task force. "This does not reward excellence in education."
糖心vlog Investigates reached out to the Iowa Department of Education to verify those rankings. They were not available late Wednesday.
In 2011, then-Gov. Terry Branstad pursued tying teacher compensation to student outcomes.
The idea didn't work then and won't work now, said Melissa Peterson, the legislative and policy director for the Iowa State Education Association.
"There are a lot of different factors that go into creating the students that show up before us. Whether that is their understanding, their home environment, their physical or mental health or their level of preparedness," Peterson said.
Peterson watched Wednesday's Iowa DOGE meeting virtually.
She says the group lacks a K-12 education professional among its members. Business and technology professionals, higher education leaders and elected officials make up the task force.
There's been a lot of change since performance-based pay was introduced by Branstad, said Emily Schmitt, the task force chairperson and general counsel for Sukup Manufacturing.
"I know there's a lot of data and research that Terry (Lutz) and his subgroup have really worked on, looking at the outcomes," Schmitt said. "There's a lot of the world that has changed. It changes even faster now."
The final recommendations will be voted on and sent to the governor at the end of September.