The North Carolina Senate released its current biennial budget proposal last summer. This summer’s long session allows for a chance to amend the budget for the next year for our public schools and its teacher salaries.

But, alas.

Details of the current budget released well over a year ago can be seen here.

Proposed teacher salary schedules for 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 were explained on pages 92 and 94.

Two tables appear that show the “raises” Sen. Berger and his party were offering in a year that had a large surplus in revenue.

Remember that teachers were on this salary schedule in 2022-2023.

Supplements to that schedule resided along these lines:

Remember that teachers entering profession after 2014 can no longer get an “M” license or any pay for graduate degree obtainment. NBPTS certification is a rigorous process that teachers can still get, but the teachers must pay for their own obtainment. NC used to do that in the past.

ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT THE SCHEDULE OFFERED IN THE SENATE’S PROPOSED BUDGET IS IN “10” MONTHLY INSTALLMENTS – NOT 12!

Here is the proposed 2023-2024 schedule that was realized for this school year.

Below is the proposed 2024-2025 schedule that will stay in place because as was reported just above:

Kim Mackey, a teacher / advocate, put together this table on her Educated Policy blog and social media outreach that compares the budget proposals of the House, Senate, and the Governor’s Office with the current salary schedule enacted last summer and the one from 2007-2008 when adjusted for inflation and adds longevity pay WHICH ALSO WAS TAKEN FROM TEACHERS IN 2014.

Teachers who reside in the 15-24 year range obtained a $200 raise this school year.

FOR THE YEAR.

While chain fast-food restaurants will have varying prices depending on the location and municipality it resides, here in the greater Winston-Salem area, a 12-piece nugget combo meal with regular fries and a medium drink usually costs in the area of $11 – give or take a few cents.

For the 2023-2024, I as a teacher in that 15-24 schedule slot was able to afford almost two extra Chic-Fil-A Nugget Combos with medium soda a month for ten months.

ALMOST two meals.

And the raise that I will get this next school year might let me get one extra milkshake per month.

For ten months.

One milkshake that can melt as quick as the number of teacher applicants in our undergraduate programs here in North Carolina.

Now, consider that there will is inflation.

There will be some people who will argue that the proposed tax cuts for state income tax will benefit teachers as much as anyone else. And to a certain extent, that is true. But it also comes at a time when the state is looking to abolish all state corporate taxes and that will hurt how schools are funded.

The reality there is that more teachers will have to spend out of their pockets for supplies and that counties and municipalities will have to raise their taxes to make sure that state mandates are met.

Meanwhile Berger is expand the voucher program in NC with hundreds of millions more dollars.