A Charlotte view of the elections

The school election results are getting some attention from the folks over in Charlotte.

Mecklenburg County Commissioner Bill James, arguably the most conservative member of their board, is calling Tuesday's results "a positive sign reflecting what happened in Mecklenburg County 10 years ago."

Supporters of the diversity policy have claimed that a victory by the WSCA candidates would put Wake on the road to Charlotte.

Here's what James sent on his e-mail message list:

Wake Neighborhood Schools Candidates Win!
Diversity Acolytes Sent Packing
One race to be decided but the diversity candidate comes in 3rd

In a positive sign reflecting what happened in Mecklenburg County 10 years ago, Wake County voters kicked diversity acolytes from the Wake Board (or refused to elect the diversity slate) and installed what seems to be a solidly pro-neighborhood schools majority.

With one race to be decided, and a possible run-off in November, the voters in Wake have clearly and unequivocally stated their opposition to 'diversity' as an educational tool.

After Mecklenburg County got sued over 10 years ago, Wake altered their diversity policy to claim that it was 'race-neutral' using 'socio-economic' status as a proxy for race to allow them to continue to bus students.

Busing students never improves tests scores but it makes liberals feel better because it spreads around the low-performing students so that all schools are equally mediocre on test scores.

Instead of one school that had poor test results and another with good results, Wake hid the achievement gap in plain sight by busing kids so that no one school would look much better than any other.

Wakes attempts to creatively keep busing by race (using socio-economic status as a strawman) was basically unpopular as it was here in Mecklenburg.

When the fig leaf of the 'court order' was exposed and Mecklenburg Schools forced to abandon race-based assignments; Wake County liberals hunkered down and redefined 'race' as 'socio-economic' in an attempt to keep busing going.

Over the intervening 10 years the public grew weary of the constant shuffle. Parents and their children had no stability which creates animosity. Busing and 'stability' are mutually exclusive.

Like Mecklenburg County's battle 10 years ago, the public, when given a choice, prefers neighborhood schools for all children.

Underlying Wake County School's existing busing policy are two irrational positions:

1. That 'diversity' (sitting a poor kid next to a middle class one or a Black kid next to a White one) improves educational achievement.
2. That Wake's liberals actually cares about Black-White 'achievement gap' (what they really care about is hiding the differences so that no one school gets a 'low-achievement' tag line).

Those that have won should consider immediately starting the public process of returning to neighborhood schools at their first meeting after the swearing-in. Management of the School System will try and stop you at every turn. They will try and create divisions within your ranks. They will try and develop revised plans that pit one neighborhood school board member against another. They will work hard to delay, delay, delay so that implementation is stalled as long as possible.

Fixing the achievement gap is the only real way to create educational equality. To fix the gap, elimiate busing and force the problem squarely into the public arena where it can not be ignored.

All children can learn if given the opportunity. Busing never raised a single test score or improved the life of one child. It was and is a failed 50 year old social engineering experiement designed to protect bureaucrats and special interests. They problem has always been family stability (or lack thereof).

Congratulations to the Wake County Neighborhood Schools folks who won!