By Kim Hilsenbeck
Last fall, school counselors at Hays CISD raised the issue of pay disparity after the board of trustees split the pay scale for teachers and counselors into two separate tracks. Counselors eventually convinced the board to raise their salaries.
At Tuesday night’s meeting, school psychologists — most of whom work in special education — came a’ calling to the board for consideration in their perceived pay inequity.
During the open forum at the start of the meeting, several Hays CISD employees with Licensed Specialist in School Psychology (LSSP) credentials asked the trustees to consider the pay comparisons from surrounding districts to this one.
“There is a lack of fairness and equality,” said DeAnn Hoschek.
She also noted discrepancies in the step pay scale, saying other districts usually have five levels but Hays CISD only has three pay step levels for school psychologists.
To provide service in Texas public schools, candidates must be a licensed psychologist with a doctorate in school psychology. They must also achieve a passing score on the national exam for school psychology.
Another LSSP, Kirstyn Jorgenson, graduated from Texas State University and keeps in touch with other school psychologists in nearby districts.
She told the board, “We are by far the lowest paid school psychologists” compared to other districts.
She added that the site service team is having trouble filling a job opening because of the lower pay.
According to a 2014-2015 pay scale breakdown on the Hays CISD website, LSSPs make between $40,687 and $61,033 with a midpoint salary of $50,860. They work 187 days per school year; based on that math, that equals about $272 per day.
“I love working in Hays,” Jorgenson said, “but we want equitable pay.”
