James Carr's advice to active teachers: Base your retirement on the premise that STRS does not honor long term commitments.

From James Carr

September 12, 2022

Just a thought I'd like to relay to active teachers.  I am not a financial planner and I'm not qualified to offer advice about how you should plan for your future retirement. I do, however, have this piece of advice about what not to do.

Do not plan your future based on promises and commitments made by STRS. Not even if they are spelled out in writing. There are thousands of retired teachers right now who regret retiring when they did based on the false promises that were made by STRS. When you are promised an annual COLA and it's taken away after you retire, it's impossible to mitigate the damage that's done.

Base your retirement on the premise that STRS does not honor long term commitments. When it comes to priorities, teachers are nowhere near the top of the STRS checklist. Not even close. I hope the new Board members are able to change those priorities because what we have had for too many years is an organization that operates without a conscience. They couldn't care less about the havoc their decisions have caused in our lives.