Garfield Re-2 Students Pitch Tax Hike to Boost Teacher Salaries

Three recent graduates propose a November tax increase to raise starting salaries by $10,000 and retain staff in Glenwood Springs, though the district still ranks third-lowest in pay among neighbors.

Glenwood Springs —What does it cost to keep a teacher in Glenwood Springs from quitting for a job in retail or construction?

That’s the question three recent Garfield Re-2 high school graduates are asking the school board. They want locals to vote for a mill levy override in November. The pitch is simple: raise taxes slightly to raise salaries. The math, however, reveals a stark reality about where the district stands compared to its neighbors.

Graham Riddile, Garrett Robinson, and Mely Irigoyen presented their case to the board on Wednesday. Their argument hinges on a SWOT analysis conducted after Superintendent Kirk Banghart took the helm last year. The findings were blunt. Competitive pay, lack of housing, and state funding issues are the district’s biggest headaches.

To back this up, the group hired Magellan Strategies to survey roughly 600 voters between June 4 and June 11, 2026. The data was weighted for expected turnout. The results showed a district that is generally well-liked but underpaid. Around 61% of voters viewed Garfield Re-2 favorably. 63% liked the educational performance. 71% approved of the teachers.

The disconnect? The money doesn’t match the approval rating.

According to the presentation, Garfield Re-2 teachers currently earn an average of $44,731 a year. That is the lowest pay in the surrounding area. Garfield 16 in Parachute pays $45,000. Aspen, the outlier, pays $54,000.

If the staff funding measure passes, starting salaries would jump to $47,414. That’s a $10,000 increase from current levels. It sounds like a win. It’s not. Even with that raise, Garfield Re-2 would still rank third-lowest among neighboring districts. You’d still be behind Parachute and significantly behind Aspen.

Robinson noted that the district isn’t just competing with other schools. It’s competing with local employers. "Some of these jobs are getting surpassed by different jobs in our community," he said. "We’re also competing with jobs in our communities that can pay more."

The proposal includes two parts. A mill levy override for staff salaries and a bond for capital improvements. The funding measure is described as a "small tax increase" strictly for staff. The bond would extend existing capital funding with "no taxes to the voters," meaning it’s debt service, not a new tax burden.

The money would go toward expanding Career and Technical Education (CTE) pathways, improving STEM classes, and addressing overcrowding at Coal Ridge High School. There’s also talk of building an early childhood care center and helping with staff housing.

For context, Coal Ridge is at capacity. Adding more CTE classes there requires space. The bond proposal aims to fix that physical constraint while the override fixes the personnel constraint.

The group’s mission was clear. "We wanted to go as a district, to do a mill levy override for staff," Robinson said. The goal is retention. If you can’t pay more than the local grocery store manager or the construction foreman, you lose your teachers. And you lose them to districts that can.

The bottom line for locals is a choice between status quo and a specific tax hike. The tax hike increases starting salaries by roughly $10,000. It does not make Garfield Re-2 the highest payer. It does not solve the housing crunch. It buys you a chance to keep teachers from walking out the door for a few dollars more elsewhere.

The board will listen. The voters will decide in November. The math on the salary gap remains unchanged regardless of the vote.