Here's that iconic picture from last year's march and rally on May 16th. Those were not all teachers. There were parents, community members, students, supporters, local representatives, and other public school advocates. And on May 1st, that sea of red going flowing through the streets of Raleigh will have those same people in it who … Continue reading It Isn’t a Teacher Rally; It’s A Rally for Public Education

Every Monday, NC Policy Watch does a segment called "Monday Numbers." This week's was on public education with a list compiled by Clayton Henkel. And while this post does list the very numbers that Henkel reports (and this writer is thankful for those numbers), it might be worthwhile to add a couple of other points … Continue reading Numbers and Perspectives Concerning NC Public Education – Again, Why May 1st is Important

After thousands of teachers and education advocates marched on Raleigh on May 16, 2018 calling for better treatment of public schools, the GOP super-majority invoked what is akin to a “nuclear” option in passing its budget. Rather than allowing for debate on matters of money from elected representatives and the opportunity of amendments, Phil Berger … Continue reading From “Going Nuclear” to “Going Into Hiding” – Sen. Phil Berger’s Avoidance in Confronting Public School Teachers

Remember when Mark Johnson ran on a platform of giving more local school systems more control over how they ran their schools? The most recent budget proposals from the NC House seems to give a lot of more "state control of local systems," especially in how they are to give personal leave to teachers who … Continue reading About Mark Johnson’s Comments on The NC House Education Budget Proposals

Remember this quote from Lt. Gov. Dan Forest from 2016 when he was championing HB2, the bathroom bill? “If our action in keeping men out of women’s bathrooms and showers protected the life of just one child or one woman from being molested or assaulted, then it was worth it. North Carolina will never put … Continue reading About What Phil Berger Said Concerning About School Nurses, Psychologists, and Counselors (And Remembering HB2)

As of this moment, there are 30 school districts that have closed for May 1st in response to teachers asking for personal leave to attend a rally in Raleigh. And since the above tweet from the N&O's education reporter, two more charter schools have announced they will be closing that day as well. That's a total … Continue reading Comparing 5/16/18 to 5/1/19 – A Calculated Attempt by the NCGA to Keep Teachers From Rallying for Public Schools?

When Mark Johnson released his latest attempt at presenting himself and those who control him in a favorable light, he intentionally created a scenario that wasn't really true. Notice that he used the word "median" multiple times and compared averages to medians in a couple of places. To be clear, "median" and "average" are two … Continue reading Mark Johnson’s Fuzzy Math On His Latest “Facts”

In the new House Education budget released today, there is this provision: Simply put, this is to make it harder for teachers to again come together like we did last May 16th and this coming May 1st. Think now that we don't have power and that our collective voice do not carry incredible amounts of … Continue reading This is How Scared the NCGA is Of Teachers – May 1st Is Already Working

If there was ever a doubt that what resulted from May 16th’s march and rally in Raleigh on behalf of public education was nothing more than a moral victory, then please consider the following list of direct results of what happened in the months after the march that helped public education. And still are helping … Continue reading Dear NC Teachers, Last Year’s March and Rally DID WIN Our Students and Schools MANY Victories

Mark Johnson sent us another letter today filled with half-truths and intentionally unexplained "facts & figures" meant again to try and quell next week's march and rally in Raleigh. He stated, "We want to empower you with clear facts at your fingertips as we work together to improve public education in our state." Those "facts" … Continue reading About Mark Johnson’s Latest Letter of Empty Facts