JoMeka Gray spent many evenings away from her family to complement her salary as a kindergarten teacher, earning extra cash by caring for aging adults. Her credit cards were maxed out, and she sometimes worried about not having enough gas to get to school. She knows she was not alone-other teachers found side gigs baking cookies, designing T-shirts or working at nightclubs to stay afloat. But life began to change a few years ago when Gray, who teaches at Kennedy-Powell Elementary in the Temple Independent School District, started earning pay increases through a state program that incentivizes educators who demonstrate that they have improved their students' academic outcomes.
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Michael Spurlin
ATPE
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