Only 26 school systems in Texas were approved for TIA funds; five were from Harmony Public Schools
The Texas Education Agency has announced that Harmony Public Schools is one of the state’s rare first recipients of the new Teacher Incentive Allotment, a special fund created to reward the state’s highest-performing teachers. The recognition means that hundreds of Harmony teachers across the state will receive up to $32,000 in additional salary starting this fall.
“Each day at Harmony Public Schools, we see how teachers have the extraordinary ability to make a deep and lasting impact on the lives of the children they reach,” Harmony Public Schools CEO Fatih Ay said. “We are glad to have the opportunity to see them rewarded even further for all they do for our students and their families, and appreciative of the TEA for making this possible.”
Teacher Incentive Allotment
The Teacher Incentive Allotment was created by the Texas Legislature in 2019 as part of the state’s new education bill, known as HB3. The primary purpose of HB3 was to provide new funds for across-the-board pay raises for Texas teachers. Harmony used those funds as well as others for one of the state’s most comprehensive pay increases for its staff, including $3,000-$5,000 raises for each of its teachers in base pay, with additional dollars for working hard-to-staff subjects and for length of service.
Additionally, HB3 also created a separate funding pool – known as the Teacher Incentive Allotment – for the specific purpose of providing additional salary for teachers who demonstrated exceptional performance in hard-to-staff teaching positions, including low-income and rural communities.
Of the 26 districts in all of Texas chosen for Teacher Incentive Allotment funds in its first year, five were Harmony districts, including:
- Harmony Science Academy: Serving Houston.
- Harmony School of Science – Houston: Serving Houston, Beaumont, Katy and Sugar Land.
- Harmony Science Academy – Austin: Serving Austin, Cedar Park and Pflugerville.
- Harmony Science Academy – San Antonio: Serving San Antonio, Brownsville and Laredo.
- Harmony Science Academy – Waco: Serving Dallas, Fort Worth, Carrollton, Euless, Garland, Grand Prairie, Plano and Waco.
Teachers selected will receive between $3,000-$32,000 per year for five years in added salary, directly from the TEA. A total of 275 Harmony teachers will receive the funds beginning this fall, including 32 who will receive the top tier “Masters” designation.
Additional Harmony teachers will be eligible for TIA funds for the next four years.
Harmony Public Schools is a Texas-born, Texas-wide public charter school system with campuses serving PreK-Grade 12 students in 23 cities across the state, including Greater Houston, DFW, San Antonio, Austin, El Paso, Waco, Lubbock, Odessa, Bryan, Beaumont, and the Rio Grande Valley. Harmony’s curriculum places a heavy focus on STEM skills, Character Education, project-based learning, and college readiness.
Harmony Public Schools is currently accepting applications for the 2020-2021 school year for both students and team members.
About Harmony Public Schools
Harmony Public Schools are 58 high performing PreK-12 college preparatory charter schools throughout Texas. Harmony blends the highest standards and expectations, with a rigorous math- and science-centered curriculum and dedicated and engaged teachers and families to cultivate excellence and prepare students to succeed in college, careers and life. At Harmony Public Schools, we believe every child can succeed, and we are committed to helping them realize their full potential. To learn more about Harmony Public Schools and our 58 campuses across Texas, please visit: www.harmonytx.org, and follow us on Twitter at @HarmonyEdu and ‘Like’ us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/HarmonyTexas.
