Governor under fire for what some are calling misleading teacher pay raises
DURHAM (WTVD) -- Opponents of the state's new plan to boost teacher pay took their criticism to the front steps of the governor's office Thursday.
About a dozen parents, teachers and education advocates with Aim Higher NC and the North Carolina Association of Educators staged a rally outside the Capitol building dubbed the "Teacher Truth Tour."
"I'm mad. I'm furious. It's kicking us when we're down," said math coach Stacy Eleczko. "I feel like we've heard a lot of things that, when the budget is delved into, just aren't true."
The group accused both Gov. Pat McCrory and the General Assembly of false advertising when it comes to teacher pay raises.
While the new state budget includes an average 7 percent salary increase for teachers, veteran teachers will likely receive only a fraction of that percentage.
"I was stunned," said WCPSS art teacher Melanie Walker. "I couldn't believe it. I felt like the hype about the biggest pay raise in history was just a smoke screen to make the public calm everybody down, but the reality of it was it just did not come through."
McCrory has praised the plan as one that saves teacher assistants, but according to the N.C. Dept. of Public Instruction it spends $105 million less on teacher assistant positions than originally planned for the upcoming year.
Several school districts have reported they could have eliminate TA positions but hoped to avoid layoffs by cutting vacant positions first.
Administrators with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are considering cutting 90 TA positions. In Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, 125 TA positions could get put on the chopping block. Leaders in Lee County Schools could eliminate 22 TA jobs.
"Gov. McCrory said this was not going to cut teaching assistants," said Progress NC Exec. Dir. Gerrick Brenner. "He clearly said that and now you're seeing newspaper headlines pop up all over the state."
McCrory defended the budget Thursday at a state education conference in Durham. He told reporters local school districts have the responsibility to keep TAs on the job.
"We did have some school districts using the money for teacher assistants for other reasons" said McCrory. "You're going to have to listen to the wording very closely. If you were a teacher assistant last year, you should be rehired this year based upon the budget."
Critics say the budget forces local school districts to make a no-win choice between larger class sizes and cuts in the classroom.
"There's so much need it's almost like asking school districts to make a Sophie's choice," said Walker. "Which one do you do?"
