Teachers react to pay raise in new state budget

New teachers in North Carolina are about to get higher starting salaries; the new state budget includes the largest starting teacher raise in decades.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board Chair Stephanie Sneed says a teacher needs to make $63,000 a year in order to afford a one-bedroom apartment in Charlotte. Sneed called the raises in the budget “a great start.”

RELATED COVERAGE:

  • CMS budget request highlights financial challenges in North Carolina public schools
  • CMS board approves revised 2026–27 budget ahead of deadline
  • CMS leaders fear cuts for low-income schools amid budget battle in Washington, D.C.

Though state leaders praised how the newly passed budget supports teacher raises, longtime educators told Channel 9 Education Reporter Jonathan Lowe that it’s important to read the fine print…

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