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Frisco ISD has seen a lot of growth in the past ve years, as seen by a rising student population as well as the new campuses opened and sta hired to keep up with it. NEW SCHOOLS, NEW STAFF
A FAST GROWTH DISTRICT
“Keeping competitive compensation is the least we can do,” Smith said. Like other districts, FISD’s start- ing salary represents what an appli- cant with a bachelor’s degree and no teaching experience would make in a year. Teachers coming to FISD with more experience would be paid more, according to the district website. Prioritizing retention Texas Education Agency data shows 2021-22 was the worst year for teacher attrition statewide with 13.4% of Texas teachers leaving the profes- sion altogether between fall 2021 and fall 2022, according to an April 20 TEA press release. Data for the 2022-23 school year has not yet been released. As a way to encourage teachers to stay in the district, FISD’s budget included multiple incentives for its returning teachers including two addi- tional paid days o , a retention incen- tive of 1% with an extra $50 for every year and a $1,200 raise. While the budget was approved, Board Member Stephanie Elad voted against it 6-1. One of the reasons for her vote was the $1,200 raise wasn’t enough, she said at the June 20 meeting. “I’m troubled that for many of our sta , the … increase, which I am very appreciative of, don’t get me wrong, but that it will not be felt in a meaning- ful way,” Elad said during the meeting. The raise was the highest it could have been without completely break- ing the budget, Smith said. “Every 1% raise in Frisco ISD costs $5 million,” Smith said. “The dif- ference between $1,200 and $1,500 would have been a number in the millions that [FISD] didn’t feel like [it] could sustain.” Determining raises has always been
Student enrollment has been overall increasing for years in Frisco ISD.
The district’s enrollment is projected to increase to students by 2030. 71K
KEY
80K
Enrollment Projected enrollment
70K
EMERSON HIGH SCHOOL Opened 2021
Middle school opens Elementary school opens Intermediate school opens High school opens
60K
PANTHER CREEK HIGH SCHOOL Opened 2022 MINETT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Opened 2022 WORTHAM INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL Opened in fall 2023
50K
0
Year
SOURCE: FRISCO ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
Emerson High
Wilkinson Middle
WILKINSON MIDDLE SCHOOL Opened in fall 2023
hopefully attract people to Frisco ISD and also hopefully retain them once they’re here,” Smith said. A growing district FISD is still considered a high- growth district despite the intensity of its expansion having slowed in recent years, Smith said. “In some ways, growth makes build- ing a budget easy because you know where your money has to go,” Smith said. “In other ways, it makes it very di cult because projecting growth is very hard.” One marker of the district’s ongoing growth can be seen at its job fairs— FISD has held four hiring events over the past year instead of its usual two, Human Resources Executive Director Pamela Linton said. “We always recruit,” Linton said. “But knowing that we’re in the midst of this [national] teacher shortage, knowing all the competition that’s
coming from the private sector, know- ing the opportunities that are out there for sta members, we just knew we needed to start early.” FISD recruitment has also taken place at college fairs, during outside hiring events, through invitations for candidates to see the district and more, Linton said. “We looked for places that had not been previously tapped in this area so that we can ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that our principals and supervisors and hiring managers have an adequate applicant pool,” Linton said. As the number of FISD teachers grows so have their starting salaries. The starting salary for the 2018-19 school year was $53,000. It has grown to $59,000 for the 2023-24 school year, according to district data. Nearby districts, such as Plano ISD, o er a similar starting salary at $60,000, according to PISD’s website.
FOCUSING ON TEACHERS
As district growth continues, the number of FISD teachers and their starting salaries have also increased.
Teacher count
Starting salaries
Year
2018-19 4,093
$53,000
2019-20 4,296 $54,500
2020-21
4,522
$54,900
2021-22 4,543
$56,500
2022-23 4,657
$58,250
2023-24 4,688*
$59,000
*AS OF AUG 2 2023 SOURCE: FRISCO ISD COMMUNITY IMPACT
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