Latest news with #Charlotte-MecklenburgBoardofEducation
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
CMS board members challenge NC legislature to ‘do more', say teacher raises not enough
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education members are calling the North Carolina Senate's proposed educator raises insufficient. 'What's happening right now in North Carolina is not just budget mismanagement,' CMS board member Melissa Easley said at a news conference Thursday. 'It's an attack on the very foundation of our public schools.' The Senate introduced its 2025-27 budget proposal Monday night, and it passed Thursday. It includes an across-the-board raise for state employees of 1.25% in fiscal year 2025-26, along with a $3,000 bonus over two years. Teachers would receive an average 2.3% pay increase next school year and an average total increase of 3.3% over the next two years. They'd also get the $3,000 bonus. The proposed 2.3% increase for this fiscal year falls short of the expected state increase CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill laid out in her budget proposal for the district, which assumed an increase of 3% from the state. It's also a far cry from the budget recommendations Democratic Governor Josh Stein made in March, which included teacher pay raises of an average of 10.6% over two years. However, the governor's plan would require halting planned tax cuts, while Republicans in the Senate have emphasized cutting taxes for North Carolinians as a top priority. CMS Board Chair Stephanie Sneed called out the increase as failing to keep up with inflation, which currently sits at 2.4%, down from 2.8% last month, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Sneed and Easley both worry the state increase is not enough to keep NC teachers in the profession. 'Would you stay in a job where the pay increases a total of less than 5% over 3 years, while groceries, gas and rent keep rising?' Easley said Thursday. 'We are still watching qualified, passionate educators leave this profession because they cannot afford to stay.' Pay increases for educators will vary based on years of experience. The proposed raises would increase monthly pay for beginning teachers by $50 and the most experienced teachers, with 25 years or more in NC schools, by $70. Educators' salaries are based on a 10-month salary schedule, not a 12-month one. The new proposal would bring the yearly salary of a first-year teacher to $41,510, for example. 'Under this proposal, it's estimated that average teacher pay will be at $62,407,' Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, said at a news conference Monday. 'On average, teachers will receive an additional compensation, with the step increases and the pay raise and the bonus, of 8.9% over the biennium.' Easley argues the one-time $3,000 bonus is not enough to keep teachers. 'A one-time bonus is not a sustainable investment,' she said. 'What we need now is for the political will to stop treating our teachers like a line item and start treating them like the professionals they are.' The proposal will now go to the NC House of Representatives, which will write and pass its own version. The House proposed higher raises for educators than the Senate during the last budget cycle in 2023. Both Sneed and Easley called on the House to increase teacher pay raises in this budget, too. 'We must challenge our state legislators to do more,' Sneed said. 'We issue a challenge that money is allocated where the overwhelming majority of students are educated, which is our traditional public schools.'
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board responds to executive order to dismantle Department of Education
CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education issued a response to President Trump's executive order (EO) to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education (DOE). The statement issued on Saturday states the board's concerns that the executive order will have a devastating impact on funding to public schools. 'Although the federal administration has stated educational funding will continue, the EO is silent on the level of federal funds school districts will receive or how those funds will be distributed to ensure uninterrupted funding to local school districts,' the statement reads. There are approximately 49.5 million students in the U.S., 1.5 million of which are in North Carolina. Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools house more than 142,000 students. The board stresses that any potential delays or reductions in funding will majorly impact education and required services for students. NC Superintendent Maurice Green released a statement on March 20, regarding Trump's executive order which reads in part, 'Dismantling the U.S. Department of Education raises significant concerns for our state' schools, as federal funding represents nearly 11% of our education budget and supports over 14,00 public school positions.' He adds the these funds are critical for all students, especially those with disabilities and from low-income families. 'The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education remains committed to our students' educational well-being. Although we recognize that only Congress can dismantle the DOE, we must speak up about the detrimental impacts that we may face,' the statement reads. The board encourages Congress to act immediately to ensure access to the much-needed funding. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
CMS board members address concerns over proposed cuts to Medicaid program, nutrition funding
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board of Education has sent a letter to local lawmakers highlighting what they say are concerns about a proposed Continuing Resolution in the House of Representatives. The board claims the resolution 'requires a minimum of 10% or $860 billion to be cut from the Medicaid program over the next decade. It further proposes a significant reduction in school nutrition funding' and further said Medicaid cuts would impact more than 17,000 students in the district, with many of the students directly affected being those with specialized needs. Board Chair Stephanie Sneed noted, 'We're in our budget cycle now. So, we're having the tough conversations now on what can be funded, where we will have to trim, what things we would like to do that maybe we can't do, because we are in uncertain times.' Sneed and the Board laid out their concerns in a letter to Representatives Alma Adams, Tim Moore, and Mark Harris, who all represent various parts of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Congress. CMS-House-CR-2.21.25Download In a statement to Queen City News, Rep. Adams said of the proposed cuts: 'The proposed cuts to critical programs like Medicaid or Title 1 funds, included in the budget resolution put forward by the House Republican Conference are unacceptable. These proposed cuts will impact more than 17,000 students in my district. It is disheartening to hear that Republicans are trying to punish poor and working class people by taking away these government programs in order to give tax breaks to billionaires and giant corporations. I will continue to push back against these attacks and fight for the working families of the 12th District who need these programs to survive.' Rep. Harris also responded to our request for comment, saying: 'The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education's letter is not based in reality. The House Budget Resolution does not include any specific programmatic cuts to Medicaid or school nutrition programs. The resolution directs committees to reform programs and eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse of our government that spends $2 trillion more than it takes in annually. Congress must work with the President to put us back on a path to fiscal sanity so our country is in a better position to support students and everyday Americans over the long term.' Rep. Moore further echoed Harris's comments, saying: 'While I appreciate the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education's advocacy for their students, it is important to set the record straight: no specific programmatic cuts to Medicaid or school nutrition programs are mandated as part of the House Budget Resolution — that is a fact. This resolution sets responsible spending targets to rein in wasteful spending and put our country on a sustainable fiscal path, but it does not eliminate or defund the critical programs that support students.' The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Association of Educators is in support of the Board's letter regarding the Continuing Resolution. 'When we look at the black and white fine print and we look at the budget and what could be the effects of it, it means that our students could be losing in our schools and our families could be losing essential programs that really help support the immediate needs of our students,' said CMAE president Amanda Thompson. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
