The bad and tyorse reviews for
McCrory’s teacher pay plan
By Chris Fitzsimon
Iviews for Governor Pat McCrory's proposal to give only a third of teachers in North Carolina a raise next
■still coming in and the news is not good for the governor.
Ithan the predictable remarks from his partisan supporters and the think tanks funded by his state budget d'irec-
L of the reactions to McCrory's plan fall into one of two categories, neither of them supportive.
[.people agree that starting teachers need a raise but are appalled by McCrory’s decision to do nothing for
[veteran teachers who are also among the lowest paid in the country in their profession. And those are the re-
Lqving him the benefit of the doubt.
t see The whole plan as a cynical ploy to deflect some of the sharp criticism of McCrory and legislative lenders
J for their disregard for low teacher pay. but for the recent dismantling of public education with deep budget
[end to career status for teachers and the creation of voucher scheme to divert public school I unding to almost
hclv unaccountable private and religions schools.
[hers are popular with the public. So are public schools in general. Vouchers are not. Neither are bigger classes,
leather assistants, and a shortage of textbooks.
Lry apparently felt like he had to do something to get some positive headlines about education - to show, that
■ - so he proposed raising the base pav lor teachers Irom $30.KOO to $3.3.000 next fall and $?5.000 the yeai
til ’ . ■ , . .
Jan teachers get nothing and there was no mention of restoring some ol the massive cuts to public schools made
Lt few years and in the budget that McCrory enthusiastically signed last summer.
Bitting of MeCrorv's announcement seems to support the theory that it was as much about politics as educa-
Ijcy. There's no reason to announce a pay plan in early February before budget officials have a handle on state
for the year.
Bnors traditionally set their spending priorities when they release their budget and Me( rory will presumably
■get recommendations for state lawmakers this spring in advance of the General Assembly session that begins
lory said when he announced the raise for only a third of teachers that more pay hike proposals were possible
toney was available.
(raises the question of how McCrory plans to pay for the raises for starting teachers that will cost more than
Hi lion. He didn't say specifically but promised it would not require a tax increase. Most likely the money would
from the $250 million lawmakers set aside in the budget they passed last y ear. but that s only a short term solu-
Iblicains for y ears chastised Democrats for the unw ise practice of using one lime money to pay for ongoing
Is like salary increases, but that appears to be McCrory 's idea that was heartily endorsed by I louse Speaker
Tillis and Senate President Pro fem Phil Berger.
|ii the plan all along was to use that money for salary increases, why didn’t teachers receive it this y ear?
lust as importantly what about state employees, many of whom worked around the clock clearing highway s
lining emergency services during the recent snow storm?
I of them have received a meaningful raise in quite a while either, with the exception ol a lew categories ol
rs McCrory hand selected for an increase.
there was no word from McCrory about a pay hike for rank and file stale employees. Ibis announcement was
llucation remember - responding to the polls showing that voters don t appreciate the disdain lor public schools
Tv the folks currently in charge in Raleigh.
tofthe more telling moments of this week’s announcement came when Tillis suggested that Republican leaders
ted credit fop realizing that they made a mistake when it came to ending the pay supplement lor teachers w ho
taster's degrees.
■decision was roundly attacked by educators and advocates alike as yet another attack on teachers, lillis said
lefal Assembly would change the law to allow students who earned their advanced degree by July 1st ol 20 13
‘he the pav supplement, in effect moving back the effective date ol the law by a couple ol months but still erid-
; supplement for teachers who earn a master's degree.
it’s what passes for support for educators in I illis and McCrory s book, as does cynically proposing that only
|chers receive a pay raise.
THE CAROLINA" IMES - SATURDAY. FEBRUARY 22. 2014-3
(Joy. McCrory
The other 60.000 teachers w ill just have to get over ।
Stale employees will too. But remember Governor Mi
Crorv reallv. really cares about public schools. Can’t yc
tell?
UNC selects “The Round House” for
2014 summer reading
-The Round House" by Louise Erdrich. a Pulitzer Prize-nominat
ed author, will be the 2014 summer reading book lor incoming stu
dents al the University of North Carolina at Chapel Ilill.
A nine-member selection committee of students, taculty and st; I
selected the book from live finalists. I he story, which takes place ot a
Native American reservation in North Dakota, won the 2012 Natior .
Book Award for fiction.
M i n rose G w i n. Kenan Eminent P ro fesso r o f E n g I i s h an d c h a i r
the committee, said that " I he Round House" was selected because
its dual focus on a current issue facing Carolina and other campus
nations ide
and on a less familiar topic: the lingu -
ing effects of injustices embedded in Native American history .
"Louise Erdrich’s award-winning novel is a riveting encomia
11 ith a number of raw and resonant issues in American culture, part* -
ularly concerning rape—its ubiquity in our culture and its perniciou
long-term effects not only on victims, but on their families and cor
munities." said Gwin. "Erdrich further exposes a national amne*.
around the history of Native peoples and raises compelling questio
about our legal sy stems and their failures. I he novel is w ritten fro
a voting person’s perspective, and Erdrich s 13-year-old protagom
must confront the question of w It at to do w hen legal remedies 1« 1
the question of justice versus retribution. In the end. this is a boot
that leaves us with questions, not answers, about the ethics ot SIKI.I
justice."
I irst-year students who will enroll next tall are expected and en
couraged to read the book this summer and participate in small group
discussions on the Monday before classes start in the fall. The pro-
eram. now in its 16th vear. aims to stimulate critical thinking outside
the classroom and give new students intellectual common ground
An academic icebreaker, it encourages students to engage with the
scholarly community and come to their own conclusions about lie
material.
y
Memtar
,«!
HISTORY IS MADE BY THOSE WHO ASK QUESTIONS.
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support and celebrate Black History Month
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