Rabbi Will McCubbins, China Grove
♦ First off I want to say the students and faculty of Livingstone College did a super job of putting this forum together.
Last night at the Livingstone College School Board Candidates Forums the newcomer quickly separated themselves from the incumbents. Candidates Travis Allen, Dean Hunter, and Phil Hardin showed real command of the Rowan-Salisbury school’s facts and figures. Of course Allen and Hardin worked in the schools for years and it showed.
The Livingstone student’s were asking sharp questions and it worked to the incumbents disadvantage. The questions focused the school system’s terrible test scores, lack of transparency and communications with the community, Knox Middle School, and teacher pay.
The history of the incumbents Richard Miller, Kay Wright Norman, L.A. Overcash, and Jean Kennedy who grieviously harmed our school system is public record. Before I write about the forum, let me digress to the school board issues.
• They voted to sue YOU the county taxpayers and only backed off of this attempt when the mediator warned them it was a bad option.
• The school system’s ratings dropped to among the lowest ranking school systems in the state.
• The N.C. State Education READY Report said Rowan-Salisbury’s Schools performed well below the state level and county composite scores, making Salisbury schools particularly unattractive to both parents and to businesses thinking about moving into the area.
• They cost you and the school system many, many thousands of dollars to fatten their attorney’s wallets to waste time and energy on Miller’s legal action against the county and ultimately YOU the taxpayers and our school children.
• How is it that the school board incumbents made the Central Office’s a top priority and pushed hard for it to be built on contaminated 329 S. Main without a parking lot merely to promote a pie-eyed economic magnet to attract developers to the obsolete Empire Hotel screaming be demolished before it falls down. All for the vain-glory of a brass plaque with their names on it at 329 S. Main.
• Why are so many graduating from our schools without the ability to read or write? All on the incumbents watch.
• The school system, especially in Salisbury, is well known for their gang, drug activity, discipline problems. And the 3 suicides at Irwin? All on the incumbents watch.
• Children are going to school in trailers and in buildings without proper water. All the school board wanted to tell us about was their awards.
• How about that Freedom of Information inquiries that showed Miller entertaining the thought of a “no bid” contract? This fellow needs to be escorted out the door, not voted out.
• And the best the School Board can do is entertain us with smoke screens and “positive publicity” about championship golf and tennis teams and getting Judy Grissom an expensive Technology award in Houston at the cost of buying a warehouse full of IPads that were never put into play.
At last evening's forum the candidates were questioned about how they might keep the public alerted about what was going on at the school system. The challengers Hardin, Hunter, and Allen were right on target saying they wanted to see streaming video of the school board meetings which is done everywhere else in the United States except in our very backward and non transparent school system. They wanted these videos easily accessed on line or put on government TV like they do our county commissioners and the Salisbury City council. It might help too if they reduced closed sessions so the public had an inkling of what is going on.
Travis Allen, an overwhelming favorite for the West Seat, wants to see more school board meetings at working people's hours and less of these last minute changes. He was very strong for putting them online
Phil Hardin, North seat agreed, adding that at one time the school systems used to put on an audio of the meetings.
Dean Hunter, a huge favorite for the south seat, firmly stated that the lack of attempts to make the public aware of what’s going on at the school board seemed “shady”. Murmering in the audience favored him.
Jean Kennedy running unopposed for the “special seat” appeared to miss the question, answering that she was open to talking to anyone who reaches out to her. “If you ask me I will come.”
Richard Miller, ducked the question by going off on a tangent saying he makes efforts to go to events he’s not specifically invited to such as athletic events and civic groups in order to talk to community members. He gets the best input at ball games. This coming from the man who wanted to sue every county taxpayer and waste huge sums of money on a hired legal gun.
Kay Wright Norman followed the incumbents lead claiming she’s the school systems greatest missionaries for public education. She said not a day goes by when she doesn’t strike up conversations to talk about the school system and its needs. Her response was way off topic.
The school systems low test scores and how they planned to improve them was next next up.
Overcash believes the results come from the school system’s lack of literacy. If the reading scores come up, all the other scores will come up too.
Dean Hunter provided a more complex and detailed answer involving multiple explanations for the districts low test scores which included poverty and family life.
Travis Allen promoted student-teacher relationships and the value of the core basics. He saw where relationships were taken away and replaced with computers.
The school board’s relationship with the superintendent was next on the plate.
Travis Allen keyed in on the fact that the superintendent is supposed to report to the school board, but the current board failed to maintain its checks and balances. Nobody has been reigning in the superintendent.
Phil Hardin believed the board did not come to the community for its opinions.
Dean Hunter spoke up for the superintendent saying more time was needed to evaluate her–that she was passionate about education and literacy. He believed she would do everything in her power to make the school system succeed. We need to back her when she’s right, but hold her accountable when she goes in the wrong direction.
Miller claims the school board makes her accountable with periodic evaluations which didn’t appear to get any nods from the challengers.
Knox Middle Schools deteriorating condition was next up.Miller said the facility needs help and had a facelift. It also got two new principals . You’ll see a different environment there then when I started with the board.
Norman claims Knox was a priority for the school board for 10 years and only just received funds to be able to do something about it.
Travis Allen questioned what Norman said, asking if it’s been a priority, why is the Central Office number 1? The district had partnered with the wealthy elite for the Central Office, yet not for Knox.
The next question from the audience was about what the district was doing to recruit and keep teachers.
Phil Hardin said local supplements on top state salaries are much higher in the counties surrounding Rowan. Incentives must be a priority if teachers and classrooms are to be a priority. We are missing out on great teachers.
Kennedy said the district doesn’t get a big pot of gold. When we get money–it’s earmarked. The money is not there.
The challengers Hardin, Hunter, and Allen will make a great team to join with Chuck Hughes and Josh Wagner. Then the school board can take care of the real business of education instead of being hamstrung by those aligned with the Salisbury status quo that has decimated Salisbury for years to come.
