A recent study by the State Board of Community Colleges shows that, on average, North Carolina community college faculty earn less than their colleagues nationwide.
According to the report, the average community college instructor in North Carolina earns $36,205 per year-17 percent less than the national average of $43,600 and 13 percent below the Southern average of $41,400 per year.
Those affiliated with the community college system find this data troubling and cite various reasons for the divergence.
"One [reason] that I see is we have grown as a system," said Herman Porter, chair of the North Carolina Board of Community Colleges. "We required growth money and as we've received more growth money, we haven't received equal increases in salary items."
There are additional reasons why these discrepancies have gone unnoticed so far. Up to this point, no one has compared North Carolina salaries to those in other states nor have the salaries recently been adjusted for inflation.
"The legislature has not kept pace with public education salaries," said Martin Lancaster, president of the North Carolina Community College System. The North Carolina General Assembly allocates funding to community colleges each year based on a prescribed formula.
Proponents of increased salaries plan to ask for more funding from the Assembly. But to raise salaries to the national average the study reports that the state will have to give an extra $33.8 million per year to the system.
"It will be our top priority in the upcoming General Assembly," said Lancaster. "The more the legislature learns about our under-funding, I feel they'll do what they can."
State Representative Mickey Michaux said there are possibilities for more funding from the upcoming Assembly.
He said he plans to support efforts to allocate the additional annual funds needed to raise salaries.
"It's going to be difficult to reach [the goal], but we'll have to try," said Michaux. "We can't afford to lose the instructors we have."
Peter Wooldridge, the program director for the Associate in Arts Program at Durham Technical Community College, said the issue of low salaries is a well known one.
"It's an issue that all the faculty at Durham Tech are aware of," said Wooldridge. "Historically, I feel the community college system is underfunded."
However, Wooldridge pointed out that the North Carolina Community College Faculty Association is addressing the issue. "I'm optimistic because the issue is out in the open and people are talking about it."
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