Mankato Schools Vote to Allow Extra Pay For Non-White Teachers

The Mankato School Board voted unanimously earlier this month for a policy that may grant additional pay exclusively to non-white teachers.

The board is chaired by Jodi Sapp, who previously came under fire for requiring concerned parents to dox themselves in order to comment on school matters. Under her leadership, the board voted to amend district policy so that non-white teachers only may receive “additional stipends” to become mentors to other non-white colleagues. The new policy will also have the district “placing American Indian educators at sites with other American Indian educators and educators of color at sites with other educators of color.”

These new measures are designed to “increase opportunity for collegial support” for BIPOC teachers, boosting the district’s retention rate among these demographics.

“It creates global citizens at the end of the day,” Vice Chair Kenneth Reid added, speaking on the new policies.

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The Mankato School Board didn’t come up with this policy on its own. Rather, the board adopted the new language from Minnesota statute 122A.70, which commands that “school districts must develop teacher mentoring programs” and that districts may offer “additional stipends as incentives to mentors of color or [those] who are American Indian.”

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