Unless you live in states like Georgia or Texas, chances are pretty good your coaching stipend is the kind of money that would be enough to put up for a down payment on a middle-of-the road used car or get a head start on some Christmas shopping for the family.
Well New Mexico Senator Moe Maestas (D-Albuquerque) is looking to get head varsity coaches a bit more money in their pockets.
"In recent years, teachers have got raises, state workers, and I think coaches deserve a little pay increase as well," Maestas shared with news station KRQE.
The bill being proposed would appropriate $3.3 million in recurring money from the state's general fund, which would work out to about $5,000 for every head varsity coach at public schools.
"A lot of good coaches in this state choose not to coach because the time is so consuming. They have obligations at home with their spouse or whatnot. So, we can show the coaches of New Mexico a little bit of love. Hopefully, we can get better coaches and get the good coaches to stay.”
“High school sports matters here in New Mexico to a tremendous amount of folks: students, the parents, the schools; so, anything we can do to enhance the student-athlete experience is definitely in our interest."
The article goes on to share that there at 668 varsity high school head coaches in public schools of every sport across the state that would see the bonus money.
This may be an intriguing outside the box answer for states who are struggling to get teachers to contribute to coaching athletics, especially in districts where teachers can't get to the door fast enough at the end of the work day.
The bill will be heard by the Senate Education Committee tomorrow.