News

Poor test scores show the effects of school closures, remote learning on students

Test results in reading, math, and science for the 2020-21 school year show the effects school closures and remote learning have had on public school students in North Carolina. According to data released by the N.C. State Board of Education on Wednesday, Sept. 1, student performance was lower in all content areas and grades and...

David N. Bass
Opinion

Challenges and opportunities ahead for new state superintendent Truitt 

The results are in, and voters selected Republican Catherine Truitt, chancellor of Western Governors University N.C., to be North Carolina’s new superintendent of public instruction. She defeated her Democratic opponent, UNC-Greensboro education professor Jen Mangrum, by around 148,000 votes.  Truitt will replace Republican Mark Johnson, a one-term superintendent who failed to win the Republican nomination...

Dr. Terry Stoops
News

Incoming superintendent Truitt wants to put students, not politics, at center of education policy

As state superintendent, Catherine Truitt will oversee North Carolina’s vast public education system, which spent more than $14 billion this school year. But she won’t be doing it alone.  Truitt, a Republican, narrowly defeated Democratic candidate Jen Mangrum for the state’s top education position. Truitt won 51% of the vote.  Truitt is chancellor of Western...

Lindsay Marchello
News

Republican Council of State majority will make policy impacts

Republicans can take a breath, even if their signature red is mixed with myriad shades of blue.  They keep control of the N.C. Council of State, 6-4, albeit with narrow margins in all the races. The results remain unofficial. Elections officials are dealing with 41,000 provisional and 94,900 outstanding absentee ballots, which either will be...

John Trump

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News

CJ politics week in review, Sept. 28-Oct. 2

Each week, staff at Carolina Journal looks back at the week in N.C. politics and chooses several interesting, relevant stories you may have missed. Grillgate: In North Carolina, barbecue is for fighting. Cal Cunningham learned that the hard way. The Democratic U.S. Senate candidate tweeted an image of himself preparing to grill some hot dogs...

Lindsay Marchello, Kari Travis
News

Truitt, Mangrum debate Opportunity Scholarships, reopening schools

Reopening schools is the top priority of Catherine Truitt, the Republican candidate for state superintendent.  Truitt also wants to defend the Opportunity Scholarship program, but her Democratic opponent, Jen Mangrum, argues learning must take a back seat to teacher safety. Opportunity Scholarships provide low-income students up to $4,200 per year to help pay tuition at...

Julie Havlak
News

GOP leaders, parents call for Cooper to reopen public schools

For Tara Deane’s two youngest children, virtual learning has been a nightmare.  Deane’s four children attend school in Wake County. Her two youngest are adopted from China and have severe disabilities. They struggle with basics like learning, speaking, and socializing. The teletherapy services provided by the school district aren’t working, Deane said. Her children are...

Lindsay Marchello
News

Opportunity lost? The education empire strikes back at school choice 

Traditional public school wasn’t working for Charlonda Brown’s two sons.   Her eldest, Amoree, attended private school until the second grade, but Brown lost her job, and the change in circumstances sent him back to public school. When Amoree returned to public school, he found himself miles ahead of other students in his class and became...

Lindsay Marchello