Superintendent candidates debate teacher bonuses, classroom tech, funding public schools

Candidates for superintendent of the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction discussed teacher bonuses, tech in the classroom and funding public schools during a debate this week.

The debate hosted by Plain Talk Podcast co-hosts Rob Port and Chad Oban featured Superintendent Levi Bachmeier, a former business manager for West Fargo Public Schools who is running in his first statewide election, and Tracy Foss, a teacher with more than two decades of classroom experience from middle school to college students.

Teacher bonuses

Bachmeier said a proposal to provide teachers annual bonuses spearheaded by himself and Rep. Mike Nathe, R-Bismarck, is a step to addressing the state’s teacher shortage.

“I’ll be the first to say that money does not solve every problem,” Bachmeier said. 

He said high schoolers have told him during his school district trips across the state that teacher pay is one of the biggest barriers for them in choosing a career in education. Bachmeier said teachers make about 20% less in North Dakota than other careers that require bachelor’s degrees.

“I think we have an obligation to do something,” Bachmeier said. “This isn’t a silver bullet, but I think it’s a meaningful step to solve, what I think is probably one of the biggest issues facing education in North Dakota, and that is ensuring that every kid in our state has a quality teacher standing in the front of the classroom.”

The bonus program would require approval from the 2027 Legislature.

Annual bonuses proposed for North Dakota teachers to improve recruitment, retention

Foss said the bonus proposal is “a start” to stem the outflow of teachers from the career field, but she said pay isn’t the only reason educators are leaving.

She cited a 2023 North Dakota United survey that listed burnout and heavy workloads as major contributors to teachers leaving the profession.

“Teachers’ plates aren’t overflowing; they are breaking,” Foss said. 

Foss added the bonus program wouldn’t guarantee financial stability. She said a North Dakota teacher’s average wage is about $60,000 while minimum living wage is $65,000. She added a teacher’s starting pay in North Dakota is about $45,000.

“We also need to focus on, not just giving them a bonus for a little while, but really working on getting them the salaries that will get them up to being financially stable,” Foss said.

State funding

Both candidates agreed that state funding for school districts has lagged in recent years. 

Bachmeier, appointed to the job in October 2025, said the percentage of the state budget going to K-12 education has decreased over the last several years. He said state support for schools has not kept up with inflation, in part because schools received one-time federal funding during the COVID-19 pandemic that has since dried up.

“Now our schools are hurting,” Bachmeier said.

Foss said the state should have planned better for the expiration of federal funding.

“We should have known that that money was going to dry up, and we probably should have had a backup plan by this time to figure out how were we going to make up that money,” she said.

Bachmeier said he didn’t disagree.

The state constitution requires the state to provide free public education, Foss said. Without adequate support, schools don’t have enough paraprofessionals or bus drivers and teachers spend $1,000 a year on supplies. It also shows up in local discussions about keeping music and art programs in the district.

She advocates for providing state funding to K-12 schools at a level that does not require school boards and administrators to make tough decisions every year.

Superintendent candidate Foss supports teacher bonuses as temporary fix, not long-term solution

“We should be giving them enough money to fund the services of what it means to be a school,” Foss said.

Tech in schools

During the 2025 legislative session, lawmakers banned the use of cellphones in schools during the school day. Lawmakers are expected to debate the use of other technology, such as laptops and tablets in the classroom, during the legislative session that begins in January.

Foss said she supports locking up cellphones during the school day, but she has noticed some students appearing to have withdrawal from their personal devices.

“We need to do a better job of educating parents and guardians about how these devices are actually affecting the way students think,” she said. 

Any new policy on laptop use in the classroom should find a balance between what is educationally beneficial and what feeds into the addictive nature of technology, Foss said. She added limiting or prohibiting use for younger students should be considered.

Bachmeier said technology is “creating an addiction” with many young people. A positive impact of the cellphone ban is that lunch rooms are loud again across North Dakota.

“Students are asking to learn how to play card games from teachers,” he said. 

An outright ban of technology in the classroom would be a disservice to students, Bachmeier said, because they will be using technology in college, the military and in the workforce.

“I think we certainly need to be more skeptical of it,” he said. Lawmakers should consider some reasonable guardrails when they discuss the issue, Bachmeier added.

Any technology policy would need to balance letting school districts control their curriculum locally while addressing student health as a statewide wellness issue, he said.

Bachmeier identifies as a Republican, but did not seek a letter of support from the North Dakota Republican Party during the primary. Foss received a letter of support from the Democratic-NPL Party during its state convention in March and is running in her first statewide election.

North Dakota Monitor reporter Michael Achterling can be reached at [email protected].