- Oklahoma education officials request repayment of mistakenly awarded bonuses to teachers, totaling $185,000 to ineligible recipients and $105,000 overpaid to qualified teachers.
- Erroneous payments were made to teachers who had applied for bonuses through a program aimed at recruiting teachers for difficult positions.
- Backlash ensues over the demand for repayment, with criticism from lawmakers and teachers questioning the agency’s plan for recovering the funds.
Additional Coverage:
Oklahoma education officials are trying to recover a substantial amount of money mistakenly paid out in bonuses to a number of teachers. Reportedly, between $15,000 and $50,000 each was awarded to the teachers last autumn. The Oklahoma State Department of Education has requested that at least nine unintended recipients return the funds by the end of next month. In total, $185,000 went to teachers who did not qualify for the program at all, and $105,000 was overpaid to teachers who qualified for a lesser amount.
The erroneous payments were given to teachers who had applied for the bonuses through a statewide program designed to recruit teachers for difficult positions in Oklahoma schools. The education department made the error by not properly verifying the information provided in the applications.
One teacher, Kristina Stadelman, expressed her frustration at being asked to return the money, as she had used it for home improvement projects and a car down payment for her growing family. Another teacher stated that she received an email in January instructing her to repay the bonus by the end of February.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters, who implemented the program, claimed that some teachers had misrepresented their experience and qualifications, leading to the erroneous bonuses. He criticized the media for not providing all the necessary context and blamed them for the negative consequences of the situation.
There has been significant backlash against the education agency’s demand for repayment, with criticism coming from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Some argue that the teachers should not be forced to give back the money. It is worth noting that the average teacher pay in Oklahoma is approximately $54,800, ranking 38th in the country according to the National Education Association.
The education agency has not responded to requests for comment on the number of erroneous bonuses or its plan for recovering the funds.