Superintendent candidates split on No Child Left Behind

As the Nov. 4 state superintendent election approaches, the candidates are getting vocal on the No Child Left Behind Act.

Republican candidate Richard Morgan, former speaker of the N.C. House of Representatives, and Democratic candidate June Atkinson, the current superintendent, both said NCLB will be a key focus if elected.

Morgan and Atkinson have different views on how best to address the issue.

NCLB is a federal educational mandate that implements accountability standards that students, teachers and schools must meet to receive funding.

“There’s not a lot you get to say about what we can do in N.C. relative to our race,” Morgan said of the limited time candidates have to discuss complex issues.

Morgan and Atkinson both said that other elections, namely the presidential and gubernatorial races, draw attention away from the superintendent race and important issues like NCLB.

“The superintendent race is a down ballot,” Atkinson said.

“People tend to pay more attention to those elections, but nevertheless, public education is the fuel for economic development in our state and food for the minds of our children.”

Atkinson said she wants to make changes to NCLB provisions that involve all-or-nothing accountability, high standards for teachers and testing for students with disabilities and funding.

“The all-or-nothing of accountability is not fair to parents and students because it does not adequately reflect what happens in schools,” Atkinson said.

Instead, she said she suggests a school grading system to ensure an accurate reflection of the goals the school did and did not meet.

She also wants the U.S. Congress to fully fund NCLB in North Carolina.

Currently, about 65 percent of funding comes from the state budget, 25 percent comes from local funds and about 10 percent comes from the federal government.

NCLB also dictates that teachers prove proficiency in extra skills, in addition to completing the N.C. teacher certification.

“Some of our teachers have to jump through some unnecessary hoops to continue to teach in North Carolina,” Atkinson said.

Morgan said he supports NCLB because schools and teachers are subject to objective measures of their improvement.

He said that his involvement with public education from the state house level, rather than within the department, enables him to view things objectively as well.

Morgan also said his experience negotiating budgets in the state legislature will enable him to handle the $7.91 billion N.C. Department of Public Instruction budget.

“In my case, I want to put in the forefront education and children, and you do that by being an advocate,” Morgan said.

“The point that I want to make is that we have 30 percent of our kids not graduating and kids not proficient in writing. Something’s wrong.”

Rodney Ellis, vice president of the N.C. Association of Educators, said the organization endorses Atkinson because she has the right ideas about changes to NCLB and about teachers, accountability and funding.

“There are more innovative and exciting ways to measure student success, and with NCLB we are limited,” Ellis said.

However, he said he did not think that the policies of NCLB would play a major role in the election.

“I think the candidates have different views of where public education should go, but I don’t think NCLB is a major player.”

Mike Gilbert, public information officer for Orange County Schools, said the superintendent needs to develop programs to increase state scores, but doesn’t think many voters factor NCLB into their decisions because few people realize the state superintendent’s heavy involvement with the program.

“I don’t think the vast majority of people connect NCLB and the hoops districts have to jump through,” Gilbert said.



Contact the State & National Editor at stntdesk@unc.edu.