List of schools closing for teacher rally grows as 10K are expected at capitol

The Wake County Public School System was the latest to join that list, making the announcement Monday afternoon.

Monika Johnson-Hostler, chairwoman of the Wake County Board of Education, said the board decided to cancel classes "to support not just our teachers but also our students."

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In a letter to parents, Johnson-Hostler said that about 2,500 of Wake County's 10,300 teachers had asked to take time off on May 16, and the board anticipated more requests to come.

"This is what they wanted to do and then we figured out how to ensure we support them. It became clear we would not open school if there were not enough educators to ensure student instruction," she said.

School leaders in Charlotte-Mecklenberg, Durham, Orange, Nash-Rocky Mount and Chapel Hill-Carrboro districts have also said they'd close schools to allow teachers to protest at the Legislative Building.

Teachers plan to meet with House and Senate members to push for better pay, school safety improvements and repairs to crumbling buildings.

North Carolina Association of Educators President Mark Jewell says the rally will also help students.

"People are rising up together to say, 'Fully fund our public schools,'" he said.

Johnson-Hostler called the May 16 rally a teachable moment, even for students not in class.

"I personally believe that what the teachers are doing will absolutely be a physical demonstration to our students for what civic engagement looks like," she said.

Paulette Leaven, president of the Wake County chapter of the North Carolina Association of Educators, said she is expecting a big crowd.

The ability of Wake County teachers to join the rally without having to take a personal day and pay $50 for a substitute teacher could see those numbers balloon.

On any given day, Wake County public schools can have as many as 500 teachers out of a total of more than 10,000 miss class. The district has policies and processes to cover those absences.

Jewell said buses are coming to Raleigh from Asheville, Charlotte, Wilmington, the Triad and from across the Triangle. NCAE is sponsoring the rally.

In preparation for the teacher workday, the Downtown Durham and Hope Valley Farms YMCAs announced Monday that they will provide care for children who need it. Registration is currently open.

In Wake County, select school buildings will be open, Johnson-Hostler said, although details have yet to be worked out.

She said that parents would be notified through their school about daytime childcare and lunch options for that day, and that some buses would run.