To the Editor:

I’m really not surprised about the Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin, quote, “I’m getting really frustrated with these people. You can never make them happy” in your recent article about the teacher pay raise. Sen. Davis has shown his disrespect towards teachers (“these people”) in so many ways.

He voted to eliminate longevity pay, an incentive for teachers with 10-plus years of experience to stay in the classroom. He voted to devalue educators who work on continuing their education by eliminating extra compensation for advanced degrees.  

He voted to make teaching much more difficult by cutting funding for teacher assistants, at-risk student services, textbooks and instructional supplies. He co-sponsored a Senate bill to eliminate public school teacher tenure. Anything which harms teachers also harms students.

In addition to his votes against teachers, Sen. Davis has shown his disrespect for public education in general. He voted to transfer public school funds to private schools, a law which has recently been declared unconstitutional. The Superior Court judge who ruled the law unconstitutional declared, “The General Assembly fails the children of North Carolina when they are sent with public taxpayer money to private schools that have no legal obligation to teach them anything.” It is clear that Sen. Davis does not think that public education in North Carolina is a priority.

If you think that public education in North Carolina is a priority, I urge you to learn about Sen. Davis’ opponent in this November election. Jane Hipps spent more than 38 years in public education. She knows firsthand what it means to be an educator and the actions required to restore quality public education to give our children a foundation for the rest of their lives. 

Learn about the specific actions she will take by visiting hippsforsenate.com.

Carole Larivee   

Waynesville