The Durham Public Schools Board of Education voted 5-1 to approve the administration's recommended local master's pay program for classroom teachers, with a request to seek funding for including 11 school social workers listed as an expansion item contingent on county or other funding.

Board members and administration framed the measure as a retention and competitiveness strategy for classroom teachers; public commenters and union members pressed the district to apply the policy more broadly and provide retroactive pay for this school year.

The administration told the board the immediate recommendation is to apply the local master's supplement only to staff who have the appropriate master's on their North Carolina license and to classroom teachers and school social workers as an expansion item. "At this time, given our financial forecast, it is our recommendation that only staff that have an appropriate masters on their license from NCDPI would be considered for masters pay if they are classroom teachers and or school social workers," administration presenter Ms. Hager said.

Why it matters: The board-approved figure in the superintendent's recommended budget covers classroom teachers and includes funding for 11 social workers as a proposed expansion. Administration estimated the average local cost at about $7,002.58 per educator and said the district would need roughly $755,000 beyond the superintendent's recommended budget to expand eligibility further if the board chooses to do so.

Public comment: Several Durham Association of Educators (DAE) members and school social workers urged retroactive and broader pay. One public commenter, reading for JB Hallen, a school social worker, told the board, "The only way to begin to repair this harm and to show students that the professionals who serve them matter is to provide retroactive master's pay for this year and affirm unambiguous commitment for next year." Another commenter, Christy Clem, a classified employee and DAE member, pressed for clearer contract language and compensation for work outside of written duties.

Board discussion and next steps: Board members asked administration to clarify eligibility rules and to communicate to staff how to ensure a qualifying master's appears on an NCDPI license. Administration said it would prepare a communication plan and that the social-worker expansion included in the superintendent's recommended budget remains "contingent" on county funding and final budget negotiations with the county manager. Board Member Natalie Beyer moved approval of "the administration's master's pay recommendation presented to us tonight," which the board approved 5-1.

What the approval does not do: The board did not adopt an automatic expansion to all instructional support staff beyond classroom teachers and the named social-worker expansion; it also did not commit district funds to further expansions beyond what was included in the superintendent's recommended budget. Administration said it remains hopeful the state budget will include broader compensation changes that could alter local obligations.

The district also said it will publish guidance for staff about the licensing step required to receive local master's pay and will continue to monitor state budget developments that could change local responsibilities.