Statement of Margaret Cagle

Social Security Fairness Act Press Conference

February 6, 2007

After 15 years practicing and teaching architecture, I made the move to teaching mathematics in a Los Angeles public school. While I had always found my work in architecture to be rewarding, I believed that I could make a greater impact on the world by teaching in public school, especially as a math teacher in a large urban district. It was not an easy decision after six years of college studying architecture, a rigorous national professional licensing process in architecture and many years of experience in the field designing commercial and residential buildings; I gave up a lot to change careers. Our nation's schools desperately need to recruit professionals like me to teach math and science, to fill a shortage of teachers and to give students a sense of the passion that professionals bring to their disciplines.

Architecture is a combination of art and math; it is an art form and a profession that still delights me. As an architect, I could see my impact on the world in terms of buildings scattered across New York, Connecticut and California, but I saw little impact on people's lives. As a teacher, inspiring students who would otherwise be turned off to mathematics, I now see a much greater difference that I'm making in hundreds of lives over the years.

I love teaching. I am happy with my second career, but changing careers was a financial hardship for me. If I had stayed in my better-paying profession in the private sector, I probably would have contributed to Social Security for another 25 or more years and upon retirement, I would have been able to collect my full benefits. As a second-career teacher I will be penalized when I retire. Most of my retirement contributions to Social Security, from my first career, will simply disappear in a tangle of arcane laws.

America faces a critical and eminent shortage of qualified teachers in math and science. The richest potential pools of new teachers are in the private sector. After working in business and industry I'm sure that many professionals may realize that there are richer rewards, if not monetary riches, to be found in teaching. The more years of practical experience that second-career teachers could bring with them to the classroom, the more financially punitive the move would be. In California, it is projected that one third of current teachers will retire within the next 10 years, with an even higher percentage of math and science teachers retiring. At the same time that No Child Left Behind is demanding a highly qualified teacher in every classroom, there has been a drop in enrollment in teacher preparation programs around the country.

I urge everyone to support H.R. 82 and S. 206, which would repeal the Government Pension Offset and eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision of the Social Security code. It is unfair to the current work force and seriously compromises the ability of our schools to recruit knowledgeable and passionate mathematicians and scientists to become teachers at a time when they are needed more than ever.

I'm sure that there are many professionals, like me, who would choose to make a difference in young people's lives if they could afford to make that choice.