The North Carolina School Board Association held its Region 8 annual conference in Macon County for the first time in nearly two decades on Sept. 26.
Representatives from school systems in Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, Polk, Rutherford, Swain and Transylvania counties, along with Asheville City and Cherokee Central systems, assembled at Mountain View Intermediate School in Franklin to hear about the current state of North Carolina’s educational system.
In the first general session, governmental relations director Leanne Winner had plenty of updates to offer on the General Assembly and the upcoming changes to education policy. New mandatory financial literacy classes, the adoption of a 15-point grading system, reductions in standardized testing time allotments and new opportunities for teachers’ professional development were all discussed.
One of the most discussed topics was the state budget, which continues to sit in limbo as Republican legislators seek a way around Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of their budget.
Due to several reforms in funding policy and limits to new hiring under a continuing resolution, public schools are among the most vulnerable institutions in the budget debate, several attendees said.
Many educators expressed concern over the surprise vote in which the House overrode the veto while many Democrat members were not present. Winner encouraged the attendees to keep an eye on the General Assembly for more details, especially with elections drawing closer.
“What I can say is that there are a lot of hard feelings,” Winner said. “If we end up with the same people in the same positions after the next election, it will probably spill over into that legislative session as well.”
In the second general session, the focus shifted to sound basic education recommendations from the Governor’s Commission. This session dealt with hiring policies, including efforts to ensure that teachers and principals are qualified. Another topic was expanding staffs to include more support personnel and retaining high performing employees.
Leslie Winner, former executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, framed issues of sound basic education as a moral and legal mandates as well as an asset to the children.
“This is not just something that we want,” Leslie Winner said. “It is a constitutional imperative here in North Carolina that we provide every child with the sound basic education that they deserve.”
After the general sessions, attendees broke into smaller groups to discuss more specialized aspects of their field. The workshop topics included STEM & Community Connections, the Computer Science for All in NC Initiative and legal updates with the NCSBA’s director of policy. At the end of the night, attendees enjoyed a pasta dinner catered by Macon County Schools’ child nutrition program and a musical performance by local country singer Carey Deal.
The conference marked the first time that Macon County has held a regional conference for the NCSBA since 2001. Superintendent Chris Baldwin said that hosting the event is an honor that provides the school system with a greater opportunity to voice its concerns. For schools systems that feel isolated from the state capital, every opportunity to speak closely with state officials counts.
“We were excited to host the North Carolina School Boards Association’s district meeting,” Baldwin said. “This event gives our school board an opportunity to showcase our school system while networking with and learning from the experiences and successes of our neighboring districts.”