By Rose Laudicina
Staff Writer
CARRBORO – The Lake Hogan Democratic Precinct school board candidate forum provided candidates with a last chance to voice their opinions and their proposed solutions to the most pressing issues facing the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools.
Six of the seven candidates attended the forum, held last week at the Lake Hogan Farms Clubhouse, to discuss issues ranging from the amount of stress and pressure put on students to the ever-present question of how to address the achievement gap.
Raymond Conrad did not attend.
James Barrett discussed his qualifications with forum attendees, noting his work with education through Orange County Justice United and his experience as a product of the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools system.
Barrett also applauded the previous school board when asked about the budget and what programs he would never choose to cut, no matter how small the budget.
“It is difficult being a challenger because the previous board has left us in a much better state than other boards around the state,†he said. “I would keep things that provide effectiveness, such as the Blue Ribbon Mentor program, which takes very little money to run.â€
Incumbent Mia Burroughs said she believes the new superintendent, Tom Forcella, will be instrumental in making smart cuts.
“The district under the leadership of our previous superintendent has been very fiscally conservative,†Burroughs said. “We have not made cuts to the core of education yet, and I am hopeful we may not have to do that, the core thing being excellent teaching.â€
Incumbent board Chair Jamezetta Bedford addressed what she would cut if the need arose, and what she would never cut.
“I would never cut the arts and PE,†Bedford said, “but I would cut the half-time gifted-education specialist,†as achievement levels have risen only slightly.
In order to balance the school budget, which has suffered major cuts from the state legislature, and avoid cutting school programs, all candidates said they support the quarter-cent sales tax that will also be on the ballot.
Kris Castellano, who serves on the school improvement team for McDougle Middle School, said she knows firsthand how tight the budget is, and how without the extra money from the proposed tax most of the repairs needed to improve school environments will not happen.
“It is for our schools,†Castellano said of the tax. “School improvement teams have to make a long list of schools’ needs, and a lot of them are around repairs.â€
As the state legislature cuts funding, new housing developments continue to be built in the school district, and candidates were asked how the board should accommodate the rising number of students under these circumstances.
“It is the duty of the school system to educate every child who lives here, and the schools can’t do anything about the growth,†incumbent Mike Kelley said. “Elementary school number 11 construction is hopefully being moved up to 2013, but if that doesn’t happen, then SAPFO might be invoked.†SAPFO, the Schools Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance, mandates that adequate school space must be available in order for new residential developments to be approved.
When asked about the achievement gap – which seems to be the standard question for all school board forums – incumbent Annetta Streater said the gap is rooted in stereotypes that need to disappear.
“It correlates strongly with an economic gap … and it historically has been linked to socioeconomic status,†Streater said.
“Unfortunately, administrators and teachers alike hold onto those stereotypes and put systems into place that perpetuate that. Until they stop using those, we won’t get a closing of the gap.â€
Previously, eight candidates were running for the four four-year-term seats and one two-year unexpired-term seat available on the board, but candidate Brian Bower dropped out of the race, although his name will still appear on the ballot.
Of the five candidates elected, the one with the least number of votes will serve the two-year term.