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…
Public school advocacy organizations and teacher unions claim that educator attrition data indicate the health of the teaching profession. If that is the case, then they should be pleased that the rate continues to drop.
This week, the NC Department of Public Instruction (DPI) released the fourth draft of North Carolina social studies standards. I reviewed the available documents, but I took a particular…
Schools are finally beginning to reopen. The urgency of resuming in-person instruction cannot be overstated. Not only has it taken a toll on students’ mental health, learning losses exacerbated by remote learning are devastating and will be most severe among our most vulnerable student populations.
We know that the issues that confront public school parents and local taxpayers vary from one school district to another. School board races highlight specific local concerns about property taxes,…
The race is a dead heat even though Mangrum maintained a 6-to-1 fundraising advantage thanks to hefty contributions from the North Carolina Democratic Party, Lillian’s List, and the NCAE PAC. Notable individual donors included former governor James Hunt, documentary filmmaker Barb Lee, retired executive director of the National Education Association John Wilson, and Silicon Valley megadonor Karla Jurvetson.
What accounted for the extraordinary net decrease in public school students? A cursory review of the data offers few patterns or common characteristics of note.
The middle of an economic and public health crisis, when people are worried if they will still have work in December and the federal budget deficit is in excess of…
If large-scale in-class instruction does not resume until January 2021, the average student will have fallen behind by the equivalent of seven months of learning. For low-income, black, and Hispanic students, the loss may be much greater.
Repealing the state's law against collective bargaining for public-sector employees would increase state government spending by between $889 million and $1.32 billion — a cost of $84.75 to $126.03 for each North Carolinian and a decrease in state gross domestic product.
