On Nov. 8, northern Orange County residents will vote on a schools tax referendum supporters say will address “unfairness” to rural kids they believe results from an existing local schools tax imposed by neighboring Chapel Hill/Carrboro on its residents. If approved, the referendum would add up to 10 additional cents per $100 of assessed valuation on northern Orange property owners. Writing in the Chapel Hill Herald, Orange resident Donna Martinez decried the willingness of supporters to believe more tax money is a panacea. Reform requires sweeping policy changes, she wrote, including higher expectations, merit-based teacher pay, and a choice of schools that gives parents control over dollars now given to bureaucracies.