Durham parent: Our students and schools can’t wait. County holds the key on funding | Opinion
Durham schools and families experienced a rocky winter and spring, with parents like myself scrambling to secure child care after a wave of last-minute school closures swept the city.
The reason behind those closures revealed a complicated financial mess that ultimately resulted in slashed paychecks for many critical school system employees and the resignation of Durham Public Schools (DPS) leadership, including the superintendent. The ship has been steadied — for the moment — with an interim superintendent. But the crisis of turnover in educators isn’t over.
In response, with a strong push from Durham’s educators and overwhelming support from Durham educators, parents and community members, the Durham Board of Education unanimously put forward a budget request in April to Durham County. It outlines what Durham schools desperately need.
The request — a $27 million increase from current funding — would restore salaries cut over the last few years and and provide important, carefully thought-out raises to a range of our educators, alongside some much needed building repairs.
After the tumult of the past year, voting to pass this budget at the June 10 Durham County board of commissioners meeting should be a no-brainer. This request embraces the improbable, yet unmistakable, momentum that the DPS financial crisis generated in support of our public schools.
Public schools are one of the best investments that can be made, and DPS must pay enough to hire and retain high quality educators.
Good teachers have long-term economic impacts. A study that followed students in a Tennessee K-3 program into adulthood showed powerful results: students with above average kindergarten teachers had earnings in adulthood of $10,000 in additional income each year compared to those with below-average kindergarten teachers for a lifetime benefit of upwards of $320,000. As adults, these students were more likely to attend college, own a home and save for retirement.
Other data demonstrates the positive impact of strong per pupil spending on a range of outcomes, especially for students from low-income families. One study found that when public spending increased by 10% over the course of a child’s public school education, children from low-income schools were more likely to stay in school longer, stay out of poverty as adults and earn 13% higher wages.
However you work the math, the long-term result of investing in our schools and high-quality educators would be deeply impactful on students, families and the local economy.
Like many N.C. districts, Durham has seen ongoing, record levels of turnover among teachers and other staff. I’ve seen this firsthand after a beloved elementary school STEM teacher left last year to take a job outside DPS, taking with her a piece of my child’s STEM enthusiasm. We still have Mrs. V, my daughter’s beloved first-grade teacher at Forest View Elementary, who left a deep imprint on our family and many others long after first grade. We must keep teachers like her, who inspire our children.
Passing this budget will address the critical short-term problem of Durham staff leaving for neighboring districts or new careers with better pay.
To be sure, there are trade-offs. We have many needs in the Durham community, and our state public education funding is not enough to meet our schools’ needs. That leaves local government on the hook for more. But our schools and our kids can’t wait. Durham commissioners must do the right thing and invest wisely in our schools — and by extension, in our community.
