Education Matters

According to the Institute for Emerging Issues at NC State, people in North Carolina are feeling more disconnected than ever and they want to do something about it. So IEI launched a three-year initiative called ReCONNECT NC and this week hundreds of people convened in Raleigh to focus on reconnection between rural and urban areas. The Institute’s Director Leslie Boney joins us talk about the challenges and what they’ve learned so far. We also talk to Wake County School Board Member Keith Sutton who makes some news with an announcement on the show. Guests: • Leslie Boney, Director, Institute for Emerging Issues, NC State • Keith Sutton, Wake County School Board

The State Treasurer of North Carolina has broad responsibilities over the finances of the state that have big implications for public education including state employee retirement and pension plans, the State Health Plan and how the state finances school construction. This week we talk with State Treasurer Dale Folwell about these topics and more. We also talk with an NC State Professor, Dr. Michael Maher, about why he wants to be the next State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Guests: • Dale Folwell, State Treasurer of North Carolina • Dr. Michael Maher, Assistant Dean of Professional Education, NC State

North Carolina’s public schools are becoming increasingly diverse with students of color now making up more than 50 percent of total enrollment. The state’s teaching workforce, however, does not reflect that diversity, with about 80 percent of teachers both white and female. Does it matter, and if so what do we need to do about it? Guests: • Kelly Hinchcliffe, Education Reporter, WRAL News • Lena Tillett, Reporter, Anchor/Reporter, WRAL News • Dr. Anthony Jackson, Superintendent, Vance County Public Schools • Patricia Harris, Director of Recruitment, UNC-CH School of Education

This week’s show was recorded live at the Public School Forum of North Carolina’s Eggs & Issues Breakfast. A panel of award winning educators and students discuss the top education issues facing the state in 2019. Guests: • Beth Embree, 2018-19 NC School Counselor of the Year, Catawba County • Alexa Jimenez, 2018 Latinx 20 Under 20, Wake County • Freebird McKinney, 2018 NC Teacher of the Year, Alamance County • Tabari Wallace, 2018 NC Principal of the Year, Craven County

When the new NC General Assembly was sworn in last week, about 1/4 of the 50-member Senate were new faces. On the House side, 26 brand new members joined, about 20 percent of the 120-member chamber. That group included 17 Democrats who helped end the Republican’s supermajority, but a legislature where the GOP remains firmly in the majority. This week we’re joined by four of those Freshmen, 2 Democrats and 2 Republicans, to discuss their views on education and their goals for the new session. Guests: • Rep. Julie von Haefen (D) Wake • Rep. Rachel Hunt (D) Mecklenburg • Sen. Jim Burgin (R) Harnett, Johnston, Lee • Rep. Chris Humphrey (R) Lenoir, Pitt

As a new NC General Assembly returns to Raleigh without a Republican supermajority for the first time since 2012, we’re joined by three respected journalists to discuss what to expect in 2019 in terms of education policy and how the new balance of power might shape the debates and key issues. Guests: • Rob Christensen, Former Chief Political Writer, News & Observer • Liz Schlemmer, Education Policy Reporter, WUNC Radio • Billy Ball, Managing Editor, NC Policy Watch

Peter Hans became the ninth president of the NC Community College System in May. He now oversees 58 community colleges that educate more than 700,000 students every year, the 3rd largest community college system in the country. This week we talk with Peter about the opportunities and challenges for community colleges and education overall here in North Carolina, as well as his goals for the new year.

Education research has shown the single most important school-based factor student’s academic success is the classroom teacher. But research also shows that perhaps the next most important factor is the school principal. Most teachers will tell you that the kind of school climate and vision the principal sets is what makes or breaks their success with students. Guests: • Tabari Wallace, 2018 NC Principal of the Year • Dr. Shirley Prince, Executive Director, NC Principals & Assistant Principals’ Association

Satana Deberry campaigned to become Durham County’s next District Attorney advocating for reforms in the criminal justice system, including how students are treated. She’s now one of several new District Attorneys and Sheriffs elected in November in North Carolina and across the U.S. who believe overzealous policing and prosecution has exacerbated a school-to-prison pipeline that disproportionately affects poor and minority children. Her election, and this debate, comes at the same time there are calls for increased police and security presence at our schools in the wake of recent shootings. Can we do both – protect children and also make sure all students are treated fairly? Guests: • Satana Deberry, District Attorney-Elect, Durham County • Peggy Nicholson, Co-Director, Youth Justice Project

The NC General Assembly may have stripped the North Carolina State Board of Education of much of its power, but a new chairman and several new Board Members appointed by Governor Roy Cooper are charting their own path and priorities for education in our state. This week we talk to the new chairman and two of the newest Board members about where they are focusing their attention. Guests: • Eric C. Davis, Chairman, State Board of Education • James E. Ford, Southwest Education Region, State Board of Education • J.B. Buxton, Member-At-Large, State Board of Education

North Carolinians began casting ballots on October 17th at early-voting sites across the state and Election Day is next week. This year’s election in North Carolina is being called a “blue-moon” election because it’s a rare cycle when there’s no statewide race for Governor or the U.S. Senate on the ballot. But every seat in the General Assembly is on the ballot, as well as a Supreme Court seat and 6 proposed amendments to the NC Constitution. This week we’re joined by two respected journalists to discuss the election and what it could mean for education policy and other key issues in North Carolina. Guests: • Colin Campbell, Editor, The Insider • Jeff Tiberii, Capitol Bureau Chief, WUNC Radio

Carver Heights Elementary School in Wayne County has been picked by the Innovative School District to become the 2nd NC school to be taken over by the state-run program created by the General Assembly in 2016. That takeover will not happen if district leadership and many in the Goldsboro school’s community have their way. This week we talk to Wayne County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Michael Dunsmore, as well as parents and community leaders, on how they plan to respond to the state’s plan to take over Carver Heights. Guests: • Dr. Michael Dunsmore, Superintendent, Wayne County Public Schools • Sylvia Barnes, President, Wayne County NAACP • Iris Robinson, Grandparent, Carver Heights Elementary School

Our guest this week is best-selling author Richard Rothstein. He’s a Senior Fellow at the Haas Institute at the University of California at Berkeley School of Law and a Distinguished Fellow of the Economic Policy Institute. His research focuses primarily on the history of segregation in the United States in education and housing. In his latest book, “The Color of Law”, he tackles what he says is the myth that America’s cities came to be racially divided through de facto segregation from personal choices and individual prejudices. Instead, he details how laws and policy decisions made by local, state, and federal governments that promoted the discriminatory patterns that continue to this day. Guest: Richard Rothstein, Distinguished Fellow, Economic Policy Institute

“America To Me” is a new documentary series currently airing on the Starz cable network that was screened this week at events in Durham and Charlotte. Directed by the award-winning director of “Hoop Dreams” Steve James, the series follows a diverse group of students at a suburban Chicago high school as they navigate issues of race and life. One of the student stars of the series, Tiara Oliphant, joins us to talk about her experience. We also visit Enloe High School in Raleigh to learn more about a student-led effort at the school focused on race and equity. Guests: • Tiara Oliphant, Former Student, Oak Park and River Forest High School, Oak Park, Illinois • Jordan King, Senior, Enloe High School, Raleigh • Jose Espinal, Assistant Principal, Enloe High School, Raleigh

Nikole Hannah-Jones is one of the country’s most respected and influential voices on issues of race and education. She was named a 2017 MacArthur Genius Grant Fellow (one of only 24 people chosen globally) for “reshaping national conversations around education reform” and for her reporting on racial resegregation in our schools. She’s won a Peabody, a Polk and in 2017 a National Magazine Award for her story on choosing a school for her daughter in a segregated city. She was in NC this week to kick off Color of Education, a new initiative aimed at addressing racial equity issues in NC schools. Guest: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Journalist, The New York Times Magazine

In 1997, the NC Supreme Court held unanimously in the landmark Leandro case that North Carolina public school students are entitled under the state constitution to the “opportunity to receive a sound basic education” and therefore the state’s responsibility to provide it. In November 2017, more than 20 years after the initial ruling, Governor Roy Cooper formed the Governor’s Commission on Access to Sound Basic Education in the latest and perhaps most ambitious effort to date to ensure that the state meets its constitutional obligation when it comes to public education. Guests: • Brad Wilson, Chair, Governor’s Commission on Access to Sound Basic Education • Melody Chalmers, Principal, E.E. Smith High School, Fayetteville • Melanie Dubis, Partner, Parker Poe • Debra Dowless, Assistant Superintendent, Hoke County Schools

Mark Johnson was elected nearly two years ago as State Superintendent of Public Instruction. For much of his tenure he was engaged in a power struggle with the State Board of Education over who’s in charge of public education. Now that the NC Supreme Court has sided with Johnson and the General Assembly, he’s moved quickly to restructure the Department, creating new leadership positions, replacing senior staff and pushing ahead on several key initiatives. As the new school year begins, we sit down with Superintendent Johnson to discuss his top priorities and the key issues facing education in North Carolina.

This week 1.4 million North Carolina children returned to class for the start of a new school year. The new year begins just a little over three months after an estimated 20,000 teachers marched in Raleigh asking the General Assembly for more support for public education. This week we talk to the president of the NC Association of Educators, the group that organized the march, on what was accomplished and what he believes still needs to be done. We also talk to the superintendent of one of the state’s fastest-growing school districts, Johnston County Public Schools, about the challenges and opportunities he sees as the new school year begins. Guests: • Mark Jewell, President, NC Association of Educators • Dr. Ross Renfrow, Superintendent, Johnston County Public Schools

Employers across the U.S. and here in North Carolina report they have more jobs available than the number of qualified applicants to fill them. Work-based learning opportunities have been expanding here for both students and educators to give them greater exposure to the rapidly changing workplace. This week we explore some promising efforts to help close the skills gap by linking business and education to benefit both employers and our students. Guests: • Tracy Bell, NBCT Hope Street Group NC Teacher Voice Network Fellow • Albert Eckel, Board Chair, NC Business Committee for Education • Dr. Matthew Meyer, Associate Vice President, NC Community • Molly Osborne, Director of Policy and Engagement, EdNC

It’s every parent’s worst nightmare. Losing a child for any reason is devastating, but when it’s suicide, family and friends are not only grieving the unexpected loss, they often find themselves confused and guilt-ridden wondering why they were unable to prevent it. In North Carolina, suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10 and 17 — and the numbers are rising. On this week’s show, we’re going to look at the trends and data on youth suicide with state experts and then hear from a prevention specialist about the warning signs as well as what our schools are doing – and what we can do – to keep our children safe. Guests: • Michelle Hughes, Executive Director, NC Child • Kelly Lister, Crisis Intervention & Prevention Specialist, Wake County Public Schools