Chanting and holding signs, a crowd of teachers rallied before Thursday night鈥檚 Prince George鈥檚 County school board meeting to call for better pay and smaller class sizes.
The event, which the Prince George鈥檚 County Education Association organized, featured local lawmakers and educators who said they鈥檙e fed up with current conditions.
Kim Williams, a school counselor in Maryland鈥檚 second-largest district, said if the status quo continues, there will be overcrowded classrooms and children with disabilities whose needs won鈥檛 be met.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just going to be an empty building,鈥� Williams said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be empty. No one is going to want to come to the county if they鈥檙e not paid fair wages to live in the county and to take care of their babies.鈥�
Thursday鈥檚 rally comes after the union and school division spent months working on a new contract. In a statement, Superintendent Millard House II said the two sides have been negotiating since March, considering nearly 40 proposals 鈥渨hile balancing looming budget impacts, the needs of our students and community at large.鈥�
The two sides have reached some tentative agreements, House said, but 鈥渨e remain far apart on many issues, a normal part of the ongoing negotiation process.鈥� He said community members can watch open negotiation sessions virtually.
Justin Robinson, who has been a teacher for 14 years, said the workload is increasing and pay isn鈥檛 competitive with surrounding areas, including D.C. and Montgomery County.
He said the Prince George鈥檚 County school system has 鈥渢he most vacancies ever, and that鈥檚 because we don鈥檛 compete in terms of starting salaries.鈥�
As a result, Robinson said teachers take on extra roles, such as covering other vacant classes during planning periods. He鈥檚 also a teacher coach, and there are 鈥渕ore and more new teachers that we have to support because we have so much (turnover), and we鈥檙e not attracting enough people who are going to stay long term.鈥�
Sometimes, he said, students could often have substitute teachers for different subjects because of job openings, 鈥渁nd that鈥檚 not fair to them, for them to develop as well-rounded learners and global citizens.鈥�
Darlene Burks, meanwhile, has worked with the county since 1999, and said teacher pay and classroom infrastructure need to improve.
Because of staffing challenges, she said, teachers get asked to cover other classes, and 鈥測ou feel kind of pressured. Like if I don鈥檛 do it, will I be looked at kind of funny, or will there be negative consequences for not doing that?鈥�
She鈥檚 concerned that starting salaries will discourage young educators 鈥� who either want to pay for a wedding, home or get another degree 鈥� from becoming teachers in the county.
Williams is asking the school division to 鈥減ay us what we鈥檙e worth.鈥�
鈥淚 spend money every day to make sure that my babies have what they need,鈥� Williams said. 鈥淭hey need a hoodie, I get the hoodie. I see they need shoes, their parents can’t afford it, we get the shoes. They need a meal, I’m delivering something to the house.鈥�
“What we’re asking for is for fair salary. We’re not asking to be rich here, because we’re not. What we’re asking (for is) fair salaries to be competitive. 鈥� How is it that we’re being paid $10,000 less than D.C.?” Williams said.
Get breaking news and daily headlines delivered to your email inbox by signing up here.
漏 2025 91欧美激情. All Rights Reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
