Recently, public attention has been drawn to the discrepancies of teacher wages throughout the Troy School District, particularly in relation to staff members at the International Academy East. In response to this, the teachers at this school have been protesting for fair pay. For the first time since the opening, International Academy teachers are now working under an expired contract, which is causing them to earn less money as compared to the teachers at Troy High School and Troy Athens High School. Unfortunately, this imbalance of salary is disadvantageous to these teachers.
Recently, an Instagram account has been created in support of the International Academy teachers, entitled @supportiateachers. On Oct. 3, the account showed their support to the International Academy teachers through a public post— with many similar posts following this initial post. It states that,
“IA teachers have been denied requests for fair and equitable compensation for their extra time. We are seeking a fair calendar and fair compensation to help us retain excellent teachers.”
The teachers at the International Academy have been clearly upset with this pay discrepancy; many have been protesting out on the streets, speaking about how they feel in the public and setting events such as governance board meetings up.
Scott Warrow, the Michigan Education Association Executive Director at International Academy, provided his perspective on the unfair pay within the Troy School District high schools.
“The IA teachers have a workday that is about 40 minutes longer. This difference is fine because it is something we have bargained for. But, what is not okay is that Troy teachers at IA East are only paid on average an extra $19 an hour for this longer day and longer year.”
The teachers who work at other high schools in the Troy School District earn around $45 an hour. Due to the fact that they are being severely underpaid per year, many are stacking on extra hours of work to try and gain money. These teachers already work a longer day than the Troy High School and Troy Athens High School teachers do, but the pay they receive is not an equitable reflection of that.
Additionally, many of the students at International Academy have also been providing support towards their teachers in response to this problem. Students have continually been working to try to spread awareness and make a change with this issue.

Sophomore Joanna Matthews, member of the student body, discussed the student response to this issue, “Students at IA have been taking a lot of leadership ever since this problem was being spread around. Students have been posting many posts that talk about how IA teachers have shaped their lives and others.”
Sophomore Amara Obiakor, another student at International Academy, reported that teachers were moved by this show of student support: “Teachers were really impacted by this because they were happy to see that their students care about them. My choir had asked why we all were wearing black.” She said, “When we told her why, she was super happy and was touched.”
Out of the three high schools in Troy, the International Academy is the only one that classifies as an International Baccalaureate, meaning it is a college preparatory high school that is designed for advanced students. This designation indicates that the International Academy has a high degree of academic rigor. Due to this, International Academy teachers have to put in quite a lot of effort to adequately prepare their young students for college.
Obiakor states her opinions on the treatment of International Academy teachers with regards to this designation, “IA is an IB school and the work is much more rigorous compared to a regular high school, so teachers need to create lessons that I think are more complex than that of Troy and Athens. That takes a lot of dedication and craft.”This added degree of academic rigor further complicates the fact that International Academy teachers are not being paid the same amount as the Troy High and Troy Athens teachers.
In light of the picketing, the teachers of International Academy are strongly urging for fair payment. Many are expressing their concerns on how they feel ignored and undervalued for their efforts. With this concern, International Academy teachers hope to see administration convey equality in the teaching environment. As the picketing continues to evolve with more time and awareness, International Academy is hoping to reach the same place that Troy High School and Troy Athens High School are at.
International Academy is an exceptionally bright high school. According to the “U.S. News & World Report”, International Academy is ranked the #3 high school out of 660 in the state of Michigan. Their average SAT scores are 1400 and average ACT scores are 32. The average graduation rate at International Academy is 90%. Plainly, International Academy breeds quite successful students and the teachers are pivotal to that. To get International Academy a dignified title and set a large number of students up for success, the teachers have been speaking out about how they work very hard to curate an environment for students where they can thrive and grow as young individuals. Because of all their efforts, the teachers hope that the amount of effort they put in can match up with the amount of pay that they are currently receiving.