Education (PreK-12)

"I am a Democrat. He’s the governor, and a Democratic governor.” And with that explanation, North Carolina state senator Paul Lowe cast the deciding vote to sustain Governor Roy Cooper’s veto of a bipartisan bill offering in-person learning for kids.

Learning loss is a real problem without a simple, one-size-fits-all solution. For addressing a student's learning deficit, research increasingly favors tutors because they have different skill sets than teachers. Education Savings Accounts are another way to tailor solutions to a struggling student's individual needs.

Senate Democrats pledged unwavering allegiance to the North Carolina Democratic Party, the N.C. Association of Educators, and the advocacy groups that ignore the overwhelming support for in-person instruction and the mounting academic and social/emotional needs of public school students.

Learning loss from pandemic-driven loss of in-person instruction in public schools is a serious problem, and its impacts vary by race, income, and geography. Education Savings Accounts offer an alternative that may be better for many families because they give parents the ability to address their children's specific educational needs.

In the end, Gov. Cooper’s supplemental budget recommendations signal his affinity for the education establishment, disregarding long-standing infrastructure needs and supporting antiquated employee compensation practices that do little to improve the overall quality of education in North Carolina.

A Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teacher was told to have middle-school students complete a "Privilege Self-Assessment." Not only are such assignments outside of state standards, but also they may well violate a 1978 law that requires parental consent to collect personal information from families.

North Carolina needs social studies standards focused on civic literacy and dedicated to providing students a balanced perspective of American history. A balanced view does not attempt to conceal the nation’s mistakes. Instead, it gives equal weight to failures and successes. It identifies errors and facts. It affirms our ideals, even as we work to create a society that honors them.

People overwhelmingly favor parents being in charge of their children's education, and Opportunity Scholarships had strong, bipartisan support. These findings should spur legislators to help parents by giving them more control over their children's education.

Friedman’s ideas have helped to fuel an education revolution in North Carolina and across the country. Choice empowers parents to make educational decisions, challenges monopolies, and calls out bureaucracies. Choice expands personal freedom but also highlights that accountability comes in different forms. In so doing, choice has helped to shift the public discussion of education from a focus on how much money is spent to how well money is spent.

There’s always been overwhelming support for programs offering school choice opportunities for disadvantaged and special-needs children assigned to underperforming or unsafe public schools. Modest investments in school choice programs can…