Durham rally held Wednesday amid pay dispute; dozens gather for early morning walk-in

Dozens of educators gathered Wednesday at Merrick Moore Elementary School in Durham to show support for classified employees at the center of a salary issue.

The Durham Association of Educators (DAE) led teachers, staff, administrators, parents and community members from more than 30 different schools in a "walk-in" before sunrise as a sign of unity.

Wednesday's walk-ins did not disrupt the school day after seven Durham schools were closed Monday due to protests.

The district said in January that some Durham Public Schools "classified" employees – transportation, cafeteria, maintenance and others who are not teachers – were unknowingly overpaid when the district implemented raises during the second half of 2023.

The DAE is demanding that rate of pay stay in place until the district reaches a long-term solution.

Sue Sims, an instructional assistant who participated in the walk-in, told WRAL News it is about solidarity and unity.

"When you stand together you can’t fail," Sims said. "When you divide, anything can happen, and we don’t plan on failing. We’re going to stay. We’re going to stand and we’re going to voice our opinions until we get answers."

Sims explained her concerns about her paycheck.

"Not only was I affected, but all classified staff has truly been affected," she said. "We were given a raise and then it was taken away from us in a blink of an eye ... this is very important to me because a lot of people are hurting. A lot of people need answers ... people are suffering."

"We want to make sure the school staff and teachers know that we as parents are here to support them and ultimately all of this impacts our kids," added Brittany Thomas, president of the Merrick Moore PTA. "If we don’t have appropriate staff, if things are not kept safe, if there’s not reliable transportation, that impacts us as parents and caregivers. It impacts our ability to work. It impacts the ability to keep our kids safe in the classrooms and actually learning."

On Tuesday morning, reporters asked Gov. Roy Cooper what he thought of the ongoing DPS pay dispute.

"I want teachers in the classroom," Cooper said. "I think we need to have our teachers in the classroom ... they need to get this straight. We need to invest more in our public schools."

Durham Public Schools' chief financial officer, Paul LeSieur, has already resigned. There are rumors about the future of DPS Superintendent Pascal Mubenga, who has been in the job since 2017.

On Wednesday the chair of the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People cautioned the school board against "hasty action."

“My efforts to understand what happened and why seem to suggest that responsibility is shared across several levels up to and including the school board, and a thorough investigation and review ought to be completed before actions are taken that could ultimately further damage DPS and its reputation," wrote Walter Jackson, the organization's chair.

Rally held Wednesday afternoon

Durham Public Schools’ employees rallied again at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Durham Public Schools Building at 511 Cleveland St. in Durham before a board meeting.

The Durham Public Schools Board of Education will hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Fuller Administration Building at 511 Cleveland St. in Durham. The district said the purpose of the meeting is an open and closed session to discuss attorney-client privileged and personnel matters.

Durham church leaders want to see the district retain DPS Superintendent Pascal Mubenga

Church leaders with the Durham Interdenominational Minister's Alliance, which represents more than 50 congregations, held a news conference on Wednesday afternoon.

Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance President Michael Page expressed his support for DPS Superintendent Pascal Mubenga.

“Dr. Mubenga has not only been good for students, but also for the staff and the overall community,” Page said.

Page listed off Mubegna’s accomplishments:

• Guiding the school system through the COVID crisis
• Had an unmodified financial audit for the last six years
• Generated excess funds to increase the district’s fund balance
• Claims Mubenga has fought to increase educators’ salaries
• DPS recognized with Blue Ribbon Schools twice during Mubenga’s tenure
• DPS featured in The New York Times as one of the districts that recovered quickly from COVID
• DPS received an $18 million grant from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott

"This is not the time to remove a trusted leader," Page said of Mubenga.

St. Mark African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Rev. Julian Pridgen echoed Page’s sentiments about Mubenga.

“We are here today to express a concern that we’ve heard that the school board is considering terminating Superintendent Mubegna, and this too troubles us,” Pridgen said. “Firing a superintendent who has a solid record at improving the school system does not address, nor does it fix, the current problem.”

Page called on DPS employees to make competitive salaries.

First and foremost, Durham Public Schools was right initially to increase salaries for long, underpaid staff,” Page said. “There are huge number of employment options here in the Durham community and the Research Triangle, and we are grateful that these employees have chosen to work in our system.

“Therefore, they need to be offered competitive salaries.”

Both Page and Pridgen said they wanted to see DPS resolve its salary issues.

“It is our prayer and hope that the Durham Public School System would set aside any political agendas and other agendas for the purpose of working together as leaders to fix the problem immediately,” Pridgen said.