Parent Teacher Magazine Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools May 2014 | Page 4

Why our budget deserves your support - Dr. Heath E. Morrison
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
proposed budget for 2014-2015 is our
statement of priorities. It calls out the
resources, financial and other, that we will
commit toward our stated goals.
As a district, we want to provide a
personalized environment of academic
excellence that prepares every child, every
day, for a better tomorrow. The 2014-2015
budget proposal is designed to strengthen
teaching and inspire learning.
We want to build on our successes.
They include our top scores on the National
Assessment of Educational Progress in math
and reading in 2013, our rising average SAT
scores, our increasing number of students
taking Advanced Placement courses and our
81 percent graduation rate in 2013. All of
these achievements indicate we are indeed raising the achievement levels of our students
in ways that will help them be better prepared for college, career or the military.
But we are concerned about our funding. Is it enough? Student enrollment has grown
6.4 percent since the 2008-2009 school year, but our operating budget has grown only
four percent. Day-to-day operating costs have exceeded our operating budget increases.
And CMS continues to grow – we expect to gain almost 1,000 students next year.
North Carolina’s average per-pupil spending ranks 48th nationally, down from 26th
only a few years ago. We fare equally poorly in national rankings of average teacher
salaries, which have risen as ours have stayed flat, pushing North Carolina into 46th
place for average teacher salaries.
Is this the way to prepare our students to meet the demands of 21st-century
workplaces? We must accelerate our level of investment in education to keep our schools
and our students competitive. The CMS 2014-2015 budget proposal focuses on four key
areas of investment: employee compensation, academic choice and personalization, more
comprehensive support services and an expanded literacy initiative in early grades.
The salaries of CMS employees have remained relatively stagnant during the past
five years while salaries for city and county employees have increased. This makes
it difficult to attract and retain top talent for our students and our schools. CMS is
particularly exposed because we are so close to South Carolina, which has higher average
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