Wake County School Board Chairwoman Christine Kushner talks to reporters on March 4, 2014, about state legislation that eliminates tenure for teachers.
Leaders of the state’s largest school system unanimously voted Tuesday evening on a three-page resolution asking North Carolina lawmakers to repeal legislation that eliminates tenure for public school teachers in return for offering a limited number of teacher pay raises.
The vote was met with a standing ovation from those who packed into the school board meeting room.
The pay provision, included in the state budget last July, is aimed at rewarding teachers based on their performance instead of having a tenure system that authors of the law say “fosters mediocrity and discourages excellence.”
Wake County Board of Education Chairwoman Christine Kushner told reporters Tuesday afternoon that the board has concerns that the law will drive away good educators, hurt recruitment in the state and discourage teachers from working together to share best practices – something the board believes increases teacher effectiveness and heightens student learning.
