A Board to Emulate:

Wake Co. gives 1,600 teachers a small raise
BY T. KEUNG HUI AND RAY MARTINStaff Writers
Posted: Wednesday, Sep. 02, 2009

RALEIGH In the face of larger class sizes, layoffs and frozen salaries across the state, about 1,600 Wake County teachers will get a small pay raise this year.

State legislators froze salaries for teachers and state employees this year to help close a record multi-billion dollar budget shortfall. But with a unanimous vote Tuesday, the Wake school board agreed to spend local dollars to give educators who've recently completed five, 10, 15, 20 or 25 years of teaching a raise of $200 to $350 this year.

It was a $420,000 decision that drew cheers from educators not expecting to get any extra money in their paychecks this year.

"It's nice to know that we have a board that's supporting teachers even in this tough time," said Jennifer Lanane, president of the Wake County chapter of the N.C. Association of Educators, which represents 5,000 Wake school employees. "... For 1,600 teachers, it's a nice surprise for them."

Read more at www.charlotte.com