Legislators talk jobs, schools on Sanford visit
Sunday, September 25, 2011
SANFORD — Democratic representatives from the North Carolina General Assembly met with local education officials Wednesday to discuss the impact of the recent state budget cuts on Lee County Schools.
House and Senate Democrats stopped by the McSwain Center as part of the 19-city “N.C. Forward” tour, which launched Monday and ends Friday. The North Carolina Democratic Party has touted the tour as a means to learn about “the impact of the job-killing Republican budget passed in June and press for a renewed focus on investing in public education and creating jobs.”
“We think and we work to understand what’s going on, but you all are at the tip of the spear,” Sen. Bob Atwater of District 18 said.
Atwater, Rep. Ray Rapp of District 118, Rep. Earline Parmon of District 72, Rep. Becky Carney of District 102 and Rep. Verla Insko of District 56 were among the legislators at Wednesday’s session. Vickie
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Wilkins, a teacher at Southern Lee High School and president of the Lee County chapter of the North Carolina Association of Educators, and Board of Education members Bill Tatum and Linda Smith represented Lee County Schools.
The primary focus of the Sanford leg of the tour was the effect of the recent public education budget cuts. According to the representatives’ presentation, about 6,000 public school jobs were eliminated statewide, including 320 in the Lee, Chatham, Harnett and Moore County region.
“There has been a draconian cut in the budget, and there is a horrific long-term impact for their short-term solution,” Carney said.
The North Carolina Republican Party has referred to the tour as the “Tax Me More Bus Tour.” Rapp said the tour was meant to serve as a “listen and learn” opportunity for legislative Democrats.
“We’re really concerned that North Carolina is moving backward instead of forward,” Rapp said.
Atwater invited Tatum to share his concerns about the progress of Lee County Schools in the wake of the budget cuts. Tatum noted the Head of Class Project and the 1:1 laptop program as positive steps for the district, but cited the elimination of some teaching positions, the cuts to the More at Four program and North Carolina’s drop to 49th in the country in per-pupil spending as detriments.
Tatum also expressed concerns about the upcoming county-directed performance audit, which he said he felt was a waste of taxpayer dollars. Lee County commissioners Linda Shook, Jim Womack and Charlie Parks have said they would not have supported the $140,000 audit, awarded Monday to Evergreen Solutions, if they weren’t confident the cost would be recouped in savings down the road.
“Nothing is more toxic in Lee County at this time than partisan politics,” Tatum said. “There is a lot of frustration on my part, both locally and at the state level.”
Wilkins said though she felt education in North Carolina had hit a temporary standstill, the stall in progress wouldn’t last as long as teachers remained passionate.
“If you had told me when I started teaching 36 years ago that education in North Carolina would be where it is today, I would have told you you had lost your mind,” Wilkins said. “The budget has been cut ... but that doesn’t mean we’re going to stop doing what we do.”
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