RALEIGH, N.C. — The candidates for state superintendent of public instruction continue to highlight the topic of pay incentives for teachers.
What You Need To Know
- Increased compensation for educators is a focal point of both campaigns for state superintendent
- Throughout his campaign, Democrat Mo Green has repeatedly called on the General Assembly to fully fund public education
- Educators say salary is a key tool in teacher retention and recruitment
Teacher pay and the public school budget came to a head this past year in Durham County’s public schools and now with an election right around the corner, educators are speaking out once again.
“What we want people to understand is that the center, the focus of all of our fighting, yes, is about money, but the common denominator is about our students,” Christy Patterson, the Vice President of the Durham Association of Educators said.
Patterson teaches at Carrington Middle School and is passionate about the need to pay teachers more, saying competitive salaries are one of the first ways to not only attract teachers to North Carolina but keep them here as well.
“When it comes to the budget, when it comes to paying our teachers, is more than just the money, it's the respect, it's appreciation,” Patterson said. “When I feel respected and I feel appreciated, I feel like I can conquer the world. And I go in the classroom and your kids, your students, they feed off of it.”
This issue has had impacts at the local level with walkouts and protests forcing school closures as educators demand more pay. At the state level, the state House, the state Senate, the General Assembly and the Governor have gone back and forth attempting to balance public versus private funding.
One pillar both candidates running for superintendent are arguing for increased starting pay and an end to the current cap on what a teacher can earn in their career.
One of the pillars of Democrat Mo Green’s campaign is what he calls revering educators — of which compensation is a key part of.
“Pay is critically important when you think about how many of our educators actually have to take on second jobs just to make ends meet,” Green said. “That is not where we want to have our educators. They need to be fully focused on educating our children.”
Green believes that investing more resources in public education, particularly in targeted strategic areas such as educator compensation, early intervention and support services for disadvantaged students, makes a major difference in how well students learn.
“I would contend that there absolutely is money in our budget to do these things,” Green said. “This is about a matter of where we’re going to place our dollars. The students in our public schools need those dollars. Our educators need those dollars.”
You can read more about his campaign for state superintendent on his website.
Michele Morrow, the Republican candidate, said if elected she would request an audit to see where spent dollars could be saved.
You can read more about her campaign for state superintendent on her website.