Action Alert

Make Our Schools Great Again: Support Our Teachers (sent 01/17/2026)

North Carolina is the only state in the U.S. that hasn’t yet passed a budget for 2026. This, despite the fact that both Houses of the General Assembly are in Republican hands. Among the many North Carolinians who are suffering from this dysfunction are our teachers and students. On January 7th, approximately 700 teachers from 52 schools across the state stayed out of work to call attention to the unpassed budget, which is only the latest assault on public education committed by this legislature. North Carolina has moved to dead last in the nation in state funding for public schools.

In support of NC teachers we call on the North Carolina General Assembly to pass a budget that supports our teachers. Specifically, this budget should:

Restore longevity pay, a benefit the state used to provide to reward teachers for their years of service.
Unfreeze increases for teachers with more years of experience. Teachers with 16 to 24 years of experience no longer get an automatic annual pay raise under the state’s salary schedule.
Restore master’s pay for teachers and instructional staff, a benefit the state used to pay that boosted the salaries of teachers with Master’s degrees by 10% a year.
Restore retiree health coverage. State employees and teachers hired after Jan. 1, 2021, don’t receive any health benefits from the state when they retire.
Fully fund the Leandro plan, a multibillion-dollar plan required by law but unfunded by the General Assembly to increase school funding and ensure access for every student in the state with highly qualified teachers and principals.
Cap health insurance premiums at a time when State Health Plan costs are rising.
Recover funds unconstitutionally diverted to private school vouchers to restore accountability for spending of public funds.

TAKE ACTION NOW. Let your SENATOR know (find him/her here: www.ncleg.gov/FindYourLegislators), as well as the Speaker of the House, Representative Destin Hall (Destin.Hall@ncleg.gov), that you support public education.

Sample script:

Dear (legislator),

I am a member of the Friends Committee on North Carolina Legislation (FCNCL), whose policy priorities are aligned with Quaker Testimonies. Led by the testimonies of Community and Equality, and motivated by the courage of Teachers in Action, Quakers support the vital responsibility of the government to educate its citizens.

I ask you to pass a budget now and ensure that the budget returns to levels of support for teachers and schools that approaches the average for the nation. For North Carolina to be last in the nation is not acceptable. In the budget, please:

Restore longevity pay
Unfreeze step increases.
Restore master’s pay, Restore retiree health coverage.
Fully fund the Leandro plan.
Cap state health insurance premiums.

Recording of Justice Earls Presentation

to FCNCL Annual Meeting Available

Click here for the recording

Winter 2026 Newsletter Available

Contents:

Annual Meeting 2025

Policy Discernment 2026

Siembra and Immigration

Action Alert: State Budget

FCNCL Supported Workshops

FCNCL Proposed January Webinar