‘Do the right thing’: NC teachers, students demonstrate for higher raises, funding
In a series of demonstrations before the start of school Wednesday, North Carolina teachers rallied to raise public awareness over the budget stalemate that has left education funding in limbo across the state.
The “walk-in” demonstrations, where teachers and supporters picketed outside their schools just before the first bell, were held in conjunction with the state legislature reconvening in Raleigh. The General Assembly and Gov. Roy Cooper have been unable to agree on a state budget, leaving individual districts unable to finalize their operating budgets for the 2019-2020 school year.
On Friday, Cooper vetoed a proposal from the legislature for teacher raises, calling them “inadequate” and saying he wanted to negotiate for more. Senate Leader Phil Berger criticized Cooper for his decision to veto the proposed raises.
“Governor Cooper has vetoed every pay raise that’s come across his desk,” Berger said in a statement. “Governor Cooper ended negotiations on teacher pay this year when he vetoed teacher raises. Rank-and-file teachers should be livid that their so-called ‘advocates’ in the NCAE and Governor’s Office would prefer a 0% pay raise to a 3.9% pay raise.”
Tamika Walker Kelly, vice president of the Cumberland County Association of Educators, said the teachers demonstrating wanted to show their support for Cooper’s veto.
“We understand that education makes a huge chunk of the state budget, and both sides want to do things for teachers,” Kelly said. “But we as educators have our say as well, and what the Republican-led NCGA offered does not do that.”
The North Carolina Association of Educators, which organized Wednesday’s walk-ins, wants a 5% raise for all school employees and expanded state funding for Medicaid. Lawmakers proposed a 3.9% raise for teachers that Cooper vetoed Friday.
Budget ‘harms’ students
In CMS, about 15 schools participated in the demonstration. Walk-ins were held Wednesday morning outside at least seven schools in Wake County, including Raleigh Charter High School.
In Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, the lack of a budget means that the district is unable to finalize hiring for new positions created this year, including counselors, school psychologists and social workers. Last month, CMS Superintendent Earnest Winston wrote to Cooper and legislative leaders urging action on passing a budget, noting that the holdup was becoming a “kitchen-table issue” as raises, hires and funding for things like textbooks remained frozen.
“I fully support our teachers and our educators in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and across the state of North Carolina in their efforts to bring awareness to their plight,” Winston said Tuesday, ahead of the demonstration. “The lack of a budget ultimately harms our students and our families and our educators.”
At Waddell Language Academy in Charlotte, dozens of teachers and their children gathered outside the school before classes started, holding signs that criticized the lack of funding for public education.
Katharina Smith, who teaches fifth-grade German at Waddell, said she was encouraged by the teachers organizing across the state. Smith, who has been a teacher for 17 years, said she works a second job teaching Saturday school to supplement her income.
While the raise that was vetoed would have given her an extra $50 a month, she said it is insufficient because it doesn’t help many of her colleagues, particularly the younger, less experienced teachers.
“We’re not keeping them as long as I’ve been around, 17 years,” she said. “But we got to treat them right in order to keep them. We needed a raise for all of us. We all deserve the right to have a good wage.”
Working second jobs
At Harris Creek Elementary School in Raleigh, around 75 school employees, parents and students gathered outside. Protesters held signs such as “Funding for our schools, not corporations,” “Teachers just want to have funds” and “Legislators left no choice so I use my TEACHER VOICE!”
“Our kids deserve to be taught by people who can afford to become permanent members of our school family that watch them grow up through the years,” said Christy McLean, a third-grade teacher at Harris Creek who organized the walk-in. “They deserve teachers and (teaching assistants) that aren’t tired from working a second job or distracted with worry about having to take care of their own families.”
Heather Pew, a first-grade teaching assistant at Harris Creek, talked to the crowd about how she makes less than $15 an hour and needs to work a second job. She said it took her 13 years to get a $1 an hour raise as a teaching assistant.
“The state of North Carolina has too many wonderful educational institutions on all levels from elementary, Pre-K all the way through college for the state to be allowed to make educators choose between Medicaid and being able to have a living wage,” Pew said. “That is not OK. Both matter, not corporate tax cuts.”
Emily Crawford, 10, a fifth-grade student at Harris Creek, said state lawmakers are putting her generation at risk by not giving enough funding for public education.
“I am constantly taught to do the right thing,” she said. “Now I’m telling legislators to do the right thing.”
Kelly said more walk-ins and other demonstrations were scheduled to take place in schools across state the rest of this week and into the following week.
“Advocating for our schools and students is part of our profession,” she said. “So we will continue to do that.”
This story was originally published November 13, 2019 at 4:19 PM.
