No extra pay for teachers seeking M.A.

Gov. Pat McCrory's Mansion

It is not surpring that the N.C. law that eliminated the 10-15 percent supplemental pay incentive for teachers obtaining master’s degrees has support for and against it.

The N.C. General Assembly passed the bill in 2013, and the law went into effect beginning with the 2014-15 school year.

Teachers with master’s degrees were grandfathered in, according to pulse.ncpolicywatch.org.

Winston-Salem State offers three graduate degree programs in education: Master of Education in Elementary Education; Master of Arts in the Teaching of English as a Second Language and Applied Linguistics; and Master of Arts in Teaching.

Since the law has been in place, enrollment in Winston-Salem State’s graduate program decreased minimally; 19 students were enrolled in the master’s program in 2013, and 18 students were enrolled in 2014.

Associate Professor Ludovic M. Kovalik teaches graduate courses in the English as a Second Language and Applied Linguistics program.

"The law is not entirely fair," Kovalik said.

"In all walks of life, we normally acknowledge special achievements carried out by people; in my mind, earning a master’s degree does fall within that category of special achievements. So it would be normal for that achievement to, one way or another, be recognized," he said.

Kovalik said that in the past, teachers with an MA were awarded funds for monetary recognition.

"They used to have small monetary incentives, no big deal but a few hundred dollars, $200 maybe $300 a month, for having an M license," where the term ‘M license’ stands for an advanced, master’s level teaching license.

"It’s not about going to school for another two or three years," he said. "It’s about earning a whole amount of extra knowledge," Kovalik said.

"If I were an oracle, I would know; I am not one. It is my hope, however, that our university will not eliminate the master’s programs in education."