May 23, 2017 - Executive Director Update: ATRS School Hall Meetings Celebrating 80 Years

On March 17, 1937, the Arkansas General Assembly created ATRS in Act 266 of 1937.  Arkansas, like all other states, was in the middle of the Great Depression.  The schools were having difficulty in recruiting and retaining teachers to deliver the education curriculum to the school children in Arkansas, especially rural areas of Arkansas.

The General Assembly responded by creating the Teacher Retirement System.  ATRS continues the original mission of recruiting, retaining,  and rewarding career educators. The mission has been expanded beyond just teachers to include everyone in the public school systems who help ensure the educational curriculum is delivered in a clean, safe, healthy, and nurturing environment.   Eighty years later, ATRS is paying retirement benefits of over $85 million dollars per month!

To celebrate this milestone year, the executive director plans to speak at schools and ATRS employers as possible across the state to highlight ATRS and explain the many benefits and options provided to all ATRS members.  This program will be a focus for the upcoming fiscal/school year, however these meetings may be scheduled at any time beginning now.  The presentation will be an open forum designed to provide information about ATRS, to obtain input from members, and to answer any and all questions about ATRS operation and benefits.   These presentations will typically be after school is out for the day with an overview by the executive director followed by input and questions.

ATRS has used this format recently with good success.  The 80th birthday celebration for ATRS is a good place to begin making these "school hall meetings" a regular part of the dialog between ATRS and its members.  Depending upon the setting, audio visual aids may be used or it can be more of a speaker format.  The presentation will be tailored based upon the focus requested at each meeting.  The only requirement to have a "school hall meeting" in your area is to contact ATRS and schedule a convenient time and date.

The ATRS Board and executive director hope to make these "school hall meetings" informative,  a listening opportunity for ATRS to hear from members, and remove some of the mystery surrounding ATRS benefits such as T-DROP, survivor benefits, age and service requirement, purchasing service, contributory/non-contributory service, retirement eligibility, and other benefit components.  If you would like to schedule a "school hall meeting", please send an email to georgeh@artrs.gov or contact Tammy Porter at 501-682-6149.

The Arkansas Teacher Retirement System began paying benefits on July 1, 1939.  There were 135 age and service retirees, receiving an average monthly benefit of $24.37.  As of ATRS' last actuarial valuation on June 30, 2016, there were 38,121 age and service retirees receiving an average monthly benefit of $1,978.19 (over $23,700 annually).  Over a billion dollars is paid out to ATRS retirees every year.

The staff of ATRS remains committed to the 3 R's of retirement:  Recruit, Retain, and Reward the members that are committed to the education of the children of Arkansas.  Not only teachers, but administrators, office staff, bus drivers, cafeteria staff, custodial staff, and all other members who make schools run successfully are invited to attend a "school hall meeting".  I look forward to visiting all employers that invite me.

REMINDER:  ATRS IS OPEN MEMORIAL DAY

The deadline to be a July 1, 2017, retiree or a new T-DROP participant is rapidly approaching.  The deadline to submit either application to ATRS is May 31, 2017.  To assist members making last minute decisions, ATRS is open Memorial Day, Monday, May 29, 2017, to provide in-person counseling, to answer telephone calls, and to confirm receipt of applications. 

REMINDER:  Benefit Payment Schedule for Retirees

Before the beginning of each calendar year, ATRS schedules the date that ATRS retirees and beneficiaries receive monthly payments. Those dates are mailed to members before the beginning of each calendar year and are also available on the Retiree Benefit Payroll Schedule page of the ATRS website.

The ATRS website allows members to have direct access to specific member account information.  Now approximately 10,100 members have direct account access to individualized account information.  You can find instructions to sign up on the ATRS Welcome page.

You can also sign up to obtain these executive director updates through your private email address.  Updates are made throughout the year such as at retirement season and other times when information needs to be shared.  Now, over 14,700 people have signed up to receive this executive director update by direct email delivery.  On the ATRS Login page you can find the link to sign up for email delivery of these updates.  It is always a great pleasure for ATRS staff to learn of more ways to provide information to ATRS members, employers, beneficiaries, government officials, and the public.  The ATRS Board is committed to providing a system that is member friendly and transparent. 

You can also get helpful ATRS information on the ATRS Facebook page under the name of Arkansas Teacher Retirement System.  Over 3,300 Facebook users get updates via the ATRS Facebook page.  Go to the Facebook page and "like" ATRS to get daily updates.  I try to go to the Facebook page every day to post information and answer member questions about ATRS.  In addition, if you use Twitter, you can join over 800 others by following events at ATRS and issues of interest on the ATRS Twitter page.  Remember that ATRS is here to serve you!  If you have questions, email me or call.

Respectfully,

George Hopkins

(501) 682-1820 Office
(501) 318-5998 Cell
georgeh@artrs.gov

 

May 8, 2017 - Executive Director Update: ATRS is Open Again on Memorial Day to Serve Members

The deadline to be a July 1^st retiree or a new T-DROP participant is rapidly approaching.  On July 1st, many ATRS members will enter a new phase of life as a retiree or a T-DROP participant.  If your plans are set to make this change on July 1^st, please do not miss the deadline.  ATRS is again opening its doors on Memorial Day, for you to call ATRS or have an in person counseling session at ATRS.

For the 9^th year in a row, ATRS has had several staff members volunteer to work to serve members on Memorial Day.  This year, Memorial Day is on Monday, May 29, 2017.  The office hours will be from 8:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.  Please know that ATRS staff is willing and ready to serve and help you by a telephone call or an in office visit if you wish.  I have again provided some summaries on retirement and T-DROP.  If you are fairly confident that you will be calling or making an in person visit, sending an email or calling 501-682-1517 can help ensure ATRS has your information prepared and ready for your counseling session.  However walk ins or calls are also welcome.

May 31, 2017 is the deadline to enter the T-DROP plan for the 2017-2018 fiscal year.  If you miss the T-DROP deadline, then the next time to enter T-DROP is July 1, 2018, with a May 31, 2018 deadline.  If T-DROP is what you intend to begin on July 1, 2017, please don't miss the May 31, 2017 deadline.

Most school employees retire on a July 1st.  That means if you intend to stop work after the 2016-2017 fiscal year and retire, ATRS must have your retirement application in by May 31, 2017, in order for you to be a July 1, 2017 retiree.

Both retirement applications and T-DROP applications may be delivered to ATRS by:

• fax at 501-682-2359; or
• as a scanned document attached to an email to info@artrs.gov; or
• by personal delivery to the ATRS office at 1400 West Third Street, Little Rock, AR; or
• by courier such as Federal Express (there is no delivery of Federal Express and other courier services on weekends) ; or
• by the U. S. Postal Service.  ATRS will treat the postmark date as the date of receipt by ATRS, so please make sure the postmark date is stamped legibly so it can be read.

ATRS must have actual possession of the application by May 31, 2017 in order to become a July 1, 2017, retiree or T-DROP participant.

IMPORTANT: Please call ATRS at 501-682-1517 locally or 1-800-666-2877 toll free to confirm receipt of your retirement application or T-DROP application, regardless of the type of delivery.

ATRS Employers: Please send this executive director update email to all your staff via a broadcast email to all employees.

The ATRS website allows members to have direct access to specific member account information.  Now approximately 10,100 members have direct account access to individualized account information.  Here is the link to the instructions to sign up: https://www.artrs.gov/welcome.

You can also sign up to obtain these executive director updates through your private email address.  Updates are made throughout the year such as at retirement season and other times when information needs to be shared.  Now, over 14,700 people have signed up to receive this executive director update by direct email delivery.  You can find the link to sign up for email delivery to these updates here: https://www.artrs.gov/login.  It is always a great pleasure for ATRS staff to learn of more ways to provide information to ATRS members, employers, beneficiaries, government officials, and the public.  The ATRS Board is committed to providing a system that is member friendly and transparent. 

You can also get helpful ATRS information on the ATRS Facebook page under the name of Arkansas Teacher Retirement System.  Over 3,300 Facebook users get updates via the ATRS Facebook page.  Go to the Facebook page and "like" ATRS to get daily updates.  I try to go to the Facebook page every day to post information and answer member questions about ATRS.  In addition, if you use Twitter, you can join over 800 others by following events at ATRS and issues of interest on the ATRS Twitter page.  Remember that ATRS is here to serve you!  If you have questions, email me or call.

Respectfully,

George Hopkins

(501) 682-1820 Office
(501) 318-5998 Cell
georgeh@artrs.gov

List of Attachments:
1. Retirement Planner

2. Retirement FAQ

3. T-DROP FAQ