Veteran Teachers Under Appreciated????

Veteran Teachers Under Appreciated in NC???

By Vice Chairman Gary A. House
Harnett County Board of Commissioners

I read a news  report yesterday about North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory raising the starting pay for new teachers in North Carolina by 14%.  I applaud Governor McCrory for raising the starting pay for our  young teachers.  It is, without a doubt, something that needed to be done.

I have personally sat down with Governor McCrory on two occasions and broke bread with him.  I found him to be a highly intelligent man who was willing to listen.  No, I cannot call the Governor's mansion and say "Hey Pat, can you do the same thing for our veteran teachers?"  I wish that I could.  There is no doubt in my mind that he would not remember me any more than he would remember your great, great grandmother.

Since I believe Governor McCrory to be a highly intelligent man, I believe that he has a much bigger plan and he only unveiled part of it yesterday. There is no way he will leave our veteran teachers out of his plan.  If he does, he will be a one term and done Governor.

After reading that news report, I talked with several of our veteran teachers in Harnett County just to make sure I read the news report the same way they did.  Sure enough they interpreted the announcement as a lack of respect and appreciation for our veteran teachers.  I have heard chatter about an uprising and teachers moving on to other professions.

I still believe there has to be more coming.  If this is the whole plan, Governor McCrory needs to be educated in the roles that our veteran teachers assume often voluntarily in our educational system.

WHAT VETERAN TEACHERS DO

Veteran teachers are the ones who complete mentorships, sit on school improvement committees, lead grade level planning, problem solve student learning and behavioral issues, analyze data and create intervention strategies.

There are numerous committees that have to be served on within the school setting and veteran teachers provide this guidance.  In addition, some schools have AIG committees that meet to discuss serving the needs of gifted students. Problem solving committees serve to meet the needs of struggling students.  There are numerous hours spent brainstorming on how to reach parents and community leaders.  

Teachers often write grants that provide food, clothing and coat closets, etc.   I personally know of a school who grows a community garden for families to participate in order to provide healthy, affordable food choices. Good veteran teachers recognize the needs of the whole child--academically, socially, emotionally, and physically and they strive to satisfy these needs.

Teachers provide parents and students with homework help, tutoring, and suggestions to help young learners at home.

I have often observed teachers at night grading papers and writing lesson plans.  I have observed them performing functions at sporting events and extracurricular activities.  Teachers' duties have increased significantly with Common Core testing.  You would be amazed at what I saw while proctoring a few weeks ago.

Typically, veteran teachers are  the leaders of Planning Learning Teams and observe other teachers.  

Veteran teachers have the experience necessary to manage the academic success of the students.

And all of the stated above is only the tip of the iceberg in what our veteran teachers do.  

New and veteran educators truly serve the community.  All educators deserve respect, appreciation and fair compensation.

As stated earlier, I believe Governor McCrory to be a highly intelligent man and I am anxiously awaiting to hear his plan for our veteran teachers and raising education in North Carolina much higher levels on the chart.