#ExperienceMatters4NC: Support Policy for Great Teachers for Every Student

PEPSC, the State Board of Education, Governor Cooper, and leaders of the North Carolina General Assembly

Cookie cutter proposals from out-of-state groups like the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) are wrong for North Carolina’s students. Other states like Mississippi and Alabama have rejected the SREB proposal and recognized that students learn best from experienced, dedicated teachers. The best way to retain teachers is through a competitive pay scale that increases with time and experience. Take action with us now to make a difference.

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To: PEPSC, the State Board of Education, Governor Cooper, and leaders of the North Carolina General Assembly
From: [Your Name]

We call on PEPSC to propose, the State Board of Education approve, Governor Cooper, and leaders of the North Carolina General Assembly to support policy changes that ensure that every student in North Carolina has a great teacher by:

• Recruiting new teaching talent by offering a competitive statewide starting salary of $45,000
• Retaining experienced teachers by restoring annual step increases and salary purchasing power offered in 2007 salary schedule with average 16% raises.
• Restoring 7,000 teacher assistants to support student learning, assist classroom teachers, and create a pipeline of new teachers through a TA to teacher pipeline.
• Restore the successful North Carolina Teacher Cadet programs and expand the Teaching Fellows program, including expansion to all HBCUs, to increase the pipeline of diverse, well-prepared teachers.
• Support high-quality teacher residency programs in high-need rural and urban districts through a state-matching grant program that leverages ESSA Title II funding.
• Provide funding for Grow-Your own and 2+2 programs that help recruit teachers in high poverty communities.
• Implement with fidelity a high-quality comprehensive mentoring program and induction support for novice teachers in their first three years of teaching to increase both their effectiveness and their retention.
• Offer worthy stipends for supplemental teacher leadership roles that reflect the skill and additional responsibility required.
• Restore pay increases for advanced degrees to incentivize professional growth and attract qualified teachers from other states.

We call on the PEPSC, the State Board of Education, Governor Cooper, and leaders of the North Caolina General Assembly to reject the following policies that would hurt students by pushing more teachers out of the profession:
• Linking teacher compensation or licensure status to limited and arbitrary data based on scores from EVAAS or other student tests that do not consider the whole child
• Linking teacher compensation to subjective measures such as principal, peer, or student evaluations