DURHAM, N.C. — Durham Public Schools superintendent Pascal Mubenga has resigned as of Wednesday evening according to an announcement from the Durham Public Schools Board of Education.
The decision was announced Wednesday evening at one of the district’s two special meetings planned for this week. The Board of Education is expected to vote on an option to move forward in correcting pay discrepancies at the second meeting. It will take place at 5:30 p.m. today.
The week started with uncertainty as seven Durham schools closed on Monday. It was the second time in less than a week that multiple schools were forced to close due to a lack of staff available in each building.
These protests, along with demonstrations at the district’s administrative building, come in response to the district’s miscalculated pay raises for classified staff last year. The district told employees like custodians, nurses, cafeteria workers and bus drivers that they had been overpaid from July to December 2023.
The Board of Education announced a choice between two options to move forward and correct the error. Option one would give classified staff a 4% pay raise from the state, while option two would give an 11% raise.
Physical therapist Heidi Jo Hetland says either option could potentially pay less than what employees made while being overpaid. She says the changes put people in very vulnerable positions.
“In one of our former town halls, someone said ‘oh, I quit my third job after I was getting this raise. I’m living in my car,”’ she said. “So, people made major changes and changed their budgets based off this raise, so really the only acceptable answer is for this board and DPS to find the money to give this raise they promised everyone in October.”
School nurse Chelsea Rhodenhiser echoed this sentiment, saying the board has taken far too long to make a decision.
“I think, you know, we’re in a critical crisis moment. Call a special budget meeting. Re-do the budget. Look at what money you have allocated for other things and decide to put it towards properly compensating your classified staff,” she said.
And while her pay hasn’t been affected, Spanish teacher Deja Price says she would like to see more transparency while waiting for the district’s decision.
“Show us the books, let’s see where this went wrong and have that person actually, actually speak up and say to our faces what happened,” she said at the protest Monday.