RALEIGH, N.C. – As thousands of people marched outside the General Assembly in Raleigh, Governor Roy Cooper showed his support for helping teachers.
During Wednesday's rally, Cooper said North Carolina's teacher pay, which ranks 37th in the country, is unacceptable. He said he will put in an extra $112 million to the state's budget.
Teachers are currently scheduled to receive a six-percent pay raise next year, but Cooper is calling on state legislators to bump that pay increase to eight percent.
"The veteran teachers have been left out. We know you are critical for the success of our schools, but we have to be willing to prioritize it and pay for it," he said.
Cooper also went on to say that this was more than about teacher's pay.
"It’s about respect, it’s personal, it’s about real investment in our schools," he said. "If I’ve learned anything, teachers don’t teach for incomes, teachers teach for outcomes."
Cooper said his mother was a public school teacher and added, "if she were still here, she would have put her red dress on and have been standing with you fighting for her students."