ST. CLAIR SHORES, Mich. (WXYZ) — A Detroit teacher is sending a message about teacher pay by undertaking a massive run across the state.
Sarah Porter is a teacher and girls cross country coach at Detroit Cristo Rey High School. She loves her job but says the salary reality is a tough pill for many to swallow.
"It impacts me directly as a teacher. Every few years, I have to reevaluate whether it's sustainable for me to keep teaching,” said Porter.
It's an issue many teachers have advocated to change nationwide for years. It's also why Porter decided to take a unique approach to spread awareness this summer.
"Across the nation, we just have a lot of differentiation in teacher pay, for most teachers, they have to work multiple jobs," said Porter. "There’s a lot of talk about working through summer to compensate we just need to be having a conversation – how can we get teachers to a livable wage.”
On Monday she finished her seven-day, 200-mile journey. Her run included a donation drive to Girls on The Run (greater Detroit) and The Teacher Salary Project.
Porter exceeded her goal of $5,000 with $5,500 from 71 donations as of Sunday night.
Porter was greeted by family at Champine Park in St. Clair Shores. Many of them encouraged and met her along the run.
Porter says the idea came to her during the winter last year.
In addition to wanting a challenge for herself, Porter wanted to advocate for an important issue to her. Her motto was "Mind over miles."
Despite injuries and fatigue, Porter says she knew she would make it to the finish line.
"I didn't ever think about quitting. I told my sister the other day, 'I'll crawl back to Detroit if I have to.'"
She’s grateful she got to use her love for running to send the message.
Her plan is to ice and recover over the next few days before cross county season and the first day of school.
