Amen!! I don't know one teacher that didn't know what they were signing up for when they wanted to become a teacher.
The idea teachers don't make enough is a myth to start with:
http://www.calvertnet.k12.md.us/departments/hr/contracts/cea/documents/payscales/fy12.pdf
190 days / $90K a year = $474 a day.
That's not entirely accurate. I know what they were offering starting teachers a few years ago, and it was about a third of that. Maybe a few teachers make $90, but I think most are not even close. At least not in St. Mary's.
Do they get paid enough? That's an interesting debate, but from what I read, way off topic. Now, if you asked how many paid days off does a teacher get per year? Or what are the rules for taking sick days? That would be on topic.
The OP asked about one particular teacher missing a lot of school this year. On seeing said teacher out and about, the OP inquired about her absence. The implied reason was illness, or should I say a fake illness.
So, the question remains, what are the rules, what are the allowances, as I mentioned, could the teacher have put in her papers to retire and they are letting her burn off accumulated sick leave.
But hell, what ask the school administration for an answer, let's discuss salary.
BTW, you should be paid what YOU are worth, not the position. Teachers should be given merit increases, not longevity raises. Good teachers should be rewarded, bad teachers should not get the same raise.
There are a lot of factors that go into compensation, when you can draw a pension is one of them, working conditions, hours, flexibility, job security.