During the past 20 or more years as funding for public grade schools in Mississippi increased year after year, conventional wisdom was that in addition to money, retaining effective teachers by paying them enhanced salaries was essential to turning around what appeared to be a continuing slide in average student performance.

So it was more than a little disconcerting last week when, facing declines in real dollars this year and perhaps for a few years to come, the first topic on the chopping block was cutting or eliminating pay supplements for National Board Certified Teachers.

People not familiar with this program need to know how it works. Applicants, who are already licensed classroom teachers, pay a substantial fee to submit to a year of intensive measurement by out-of-state grading panels. They invest hundreds of hours in the process and are scored on multiple criteria. Those who pass are certified to (1) know the material in their teaching areas and (2) be innovative and effective in the classroom in helping students learn. About 40 Vicksburg Warren School District teachers hold the certification and there are about 3,000 statewide.

At the outset, the Legislate agreed to pay these teachers a salary supplement of $6,000 per year for 10 years, longer if the teachers pay to undergo re-evaluation and are recertified.

It now appears, at least for this year, that starting cuts by reducing the pay of the best teachers — reneging on a promise — is not something the Legislature will do. A compromise has “found” money to meet the state’s obligation. But no sooner than that happened, the Senate passed a measure that would allow districts to cut the number of required class days and “furlough” teachers — legally breaching contracts by paying all teachers less than they were promised when the school year began.

The state faces hard times, no doubt. Education, which takes more than half of every dollar paid into Mississippi’s general fund, will have to do with less. Further, salaries are probably the largest component in each school district’s budget — but there are plenty of other expense categories, too.

It seems that making a textbook last another year, hiring fewer consultants, finding ways to save on utility and fuel expenses, trimming or eliminating capital projects would be the initial steps.

Instructional programs should be the last place cuts are made. It’s just scary that there are some in the Legislature who see cutting the pay of the most effective classroom teachers is the place to start.