Don Martin: Test Pathways, but give teachers raises

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WINSTON-SALEM (March 8, 2023) – While there are always differing opinions about how much teachers should be paid, I believe most North Carolinians agree that having quality teachers in every classroom is important, our students need to perform better, and teachers should be paid more. I wrote a short piece for Higher Ed Works last… READ MORE

Getting serious about early literacy

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RALEIGH (January 19, 2023) – For several years, state leaders have talked about improving early literacy in North Carolina through the data-based Science of Reading. But a consultant’s report to the UNC Board of Governors this week found that nine UNC System colleges of education still aren’t doing enough to teach prospective teachers how to… READ MORE

4,400 invisible teachers

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RALEIGH (September 1, 2022) – More than 1.3 million students started the public school year in North Carolina this week.  Yet more than 4,400 teachers who should have been at the front of those children’s classes weren’t there, because school officials couldn’t fill the vacancies. And 3,600 more teachers across the state still aren’t fully… READ MORE

Don Martin: A middle ground on teacher pay plan?

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EDITOR’S NOTE: With school set to resume soon across North Carolina with thousands of teaching positions still vacant1 and a new pay plan being floated for K-12 teachers, Don Martin, retired superintendent of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, shares his views about the plan.  WINSTON-SALEM (August 10, 2022) – In 2020, the Forsyth County Commissioners asked… READ MORE

A pay cut

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RALEIGH (July 6, 2022) – With the 2022-23 budget they unveiled and adopted last week, state legislators simply aren’t taking care of their people – our people. The state has a $6.5 billion revenue surplus this year. Let that sink in: $6,524,141,444.00.1  Yet this state continues to systematically underfund public education. By one estimate, the… READ MORE

2 + 2 = Teachers!

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RALEIGH (August 27, 2021) – State education leaders sealed an agreement this week to expand a program for aspiring teachers to start their education at a North Carolina community college and finish at one of the state’s public universities. Thomas Stith III, President of the NC Community College System, and UNC System President Peter Hans… READ MORE

HELP WANTED: Teachers of Color

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RALEIGH – What’s wrong with this picture? Last year, 53% of the public school students in North Carolina were students of color – yet nearly 80% of their teachers were white.1  “North Carolina’s educator workforce has been unable to match this rich diversity,” says a new report from the Developing a Representative and Inclusive Vision… READ MORE

Colleges to help communities ‘grow their own’ teachers

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RALEIGH – It had nothing to do with the coronavirus, but the State Board of Community Colleges took an important step last week to expand North Carolina’s pipeline of future teachers. The board approved two new teacher-preparation transfer degrees – an associate in arts in teacher preparation and associate in science in teacher preparation –… READ MORE

NC teacher pay: Keep going

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RALEIGH – We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Teacher pay in North Carolina is headed in the right direction. The National Education Association released estimates in March that indicate average pay for North Carolina’s K-12 public school teachers now stands at $53,975, ranking North Carolina 29th among the states.1 That’s an increase… READ MORE