CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) is on the brink of what it’s calling a "funding cliff."
Millions of dollars in federal funding that schools have come to rely on during the pandemic is coming to an end. COVID-19 relief funds were meant to address the consequences of the pandemic on schools, including learning loss and teacher shortages.
CMS still has significant teacher vacancies. There are currently more than 500 positions that are unfilled. But, these classes aren’t without a teacher. Instead, guest teachers are filling the roles.
Emily Iten is a guest teacher at Croft Community School. Iten said a few months ago that she might not have been in a classroom this year.
"I was originally leaving teaching," Iten said. "I was going to be done with teaching, taking a break, still like in the education world with curriculum, but it was just I needed just like a break.
Iten was a full-time teacher at Ballantyne Elementary School at the time.
"Over the summer, I just had that, like, boom, thought, like, oh, I'm gonna go back to school," Iten said.
Iten decided to take some time away from full-time teaching and become a guest teacher instead, while she pursued another degree.
"This position that I'm in right now, this guest teacher position has been awesome," Iten said. "And it's like, made me like, love teaching again."
Guest Teachers are full-time employees dedicated to one school, with some differences.
"I'm not doing parent-teacher conferences," Iten said. "I'm not in charge of grades and that kind of thing. So that's just been really, really nice to come home and really focus on my studies after school."
The guest teacher program is paid for by about $22 million in COVID-19 funding, which expires next school year.
This means Iten’s positions may not be here.
Iten is hoping to have her other degree by then—and become a teacher helping students who don’t speak English as their first language. Iten is pursuing a master’s degree at Western Governors University to learn to teach English as a second language. According to the district, more than 28% of CMS students come from homes where English is not their first language.
"I love this position," Iten said. "But like I said, like you said, I know the COVID-19 money is running out."
CMS pays certified teachers $180 a day and non-certified teachers $150 a day.
"You get benefits, which is great," Iten said. "So that's a plus."
Guest teachers, depending on the school, run their classrooms like a fully certified teacher would. Guest teacher positions are usually based on their past expertise in education.
Iten’s is literature.
Her job as a guest teacher allows the district to have a short-term solution to the teacher shortage and her the flexibility to get another degree. The guest teacher program started in 42 high-needs schools and then expanded to almost all 184 district schools.
Guest teachers have been called a lifeline, filling the gaps where classrooms would be without teachers.
CMS executive staff is having meetings on how it’s going to overcome the shortfall that’s going to happen once the COVID-19 dollars expire. For the program to continue, the district will need to get the money elsewhere.
Contact Shamarria Morrison at smorrison@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.