Gov. Bev Perdue has made her harshest criticism of the Wake County school system for dropping the socioeconomic diversity policy while also praising the efforts of the Rev. William Barber, president of the state NAACP.
As reported today in the Wilmington Journal, Perdue said North Carolina is in a "war" over resegregation and that it may be necessary to take the fight to the U.S. Supreme Court. She made her remarks Friday to the N.C. Black Legislative Caucus.
''If it takes going to the Supreme Court of this great country from Wayne County and for Wake County, and for other counties in North Carolina, so be it,'' Perdue said. ''We will stand together, to make sure that all of the children of this state have a chance.''
Perdue tried to qualify her praise somewhat for Barber by saying she was speaking as a citizen and not the governor. The state NAACP has taken legal action against Wayne County and is raising money and seeking parents for a potential suit against Wake County.
''From my position as citizen, not as governor but as a citizen of this great state, I applaud every single thing that [Rev. Barber] is doing, and I, for one, do believe that diversity does make for a better end product for children in this state,'' Perdue said.
Perdue has been steadily escalating her criticism over the changes being made in Wake.
Comments
Perdue, who has very clearly
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 17:16 — woodstockPerdue, who has very clearly stated in no uncertain terms that she "hates busing," is now aligned with Barber in an effort to usurp decisions made by local governments. It will be interesting to see how that works out for her. I am betting it won't.
Bev....get over yourself!
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 17:35 — aquaman4life68Bev....get over yourself! Too late dear, all you are doing is just trying to save face, save votes and just trying play "damage control" in her ability to be Governor. I put her up there along with Barber, etc. They open their mouths and all I hear is "Blah, Blah...Blah, Blah, Blah,...Blah Blan!
Hard To Separate
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 15:20 — RMC10If you are speaking at N.C. Black Legislative Caucus, even if you announce "this is just my personal opinion" (which I don't know if she did or not), she is the Governor, and was not chatting with a group at the local Garden Club Social Luncheon.
Someone needs to tell Bev to
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:17 — HJ2ss2Someone needs to tell Bev to "get a grip".
Thank You Bev!
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 13:18 — ApexcitizenShe understand the reckless actions of the Wake and Wayne BOEs and the impact that they are have on our children. She is definitely in alignment with the majority of citizens of the state and since she was elected by the majority population.
For those of you who always tell people to "get over it" when they disagree with the actions of the WCPSS BOE...My comments...if you disagree with Bev on this..."get over it! and move on.
Yeah, thanks Bev!
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 16:38 — g88ky07For making sure you got the "free money" that puts us in a budget crisis for NEXT year before your do nothing gang even passes a budget for this year! You show incredibly lousy leadership and as suggested below, with your current ratings, that I'm confident won't change much in the next 2 years, you won't be able to win a 1st grade talent contest next time around.
Apexcitizen, Did you know
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:36 — shearertwApexcitizen,
Did you know that under the former WCPSS BOE, ED students in Wayne Co. (with their "reckless actions" were outperforming ED students in WCPSS?
Do you not care about the education of poor children?
Can you clarify?
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 17:04 — Dove314Can you clarify whether the proportions of ESL and LEP were the same for Wayne versus WCPSS and share insights about race/ethnicity level performance?
I'm curious whether the Wayne is doing better with ED than WCPSS with an equivalent ESL and LEP demographic within the ED population or if their demographic differs substantially given the results split we've seen in WCPSS for ESL and LEP performance.
Well....from the district
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 08:53 — shearertwWell....from the district demographics, you would expect them to be fairly comparable to WCPSS. I'm not sure if ED demographics differs from the whole district demographics but my guess is it wouldn't be a substantial difference. I'm also assuming that the %Hisp numbers is correlated to the %LEP and %ESL which is probably a fair assumption in these two counties.
Wayne Co: White (44.8%), Black (37.4%), Hisp (12.5%)
WCPSS: White (51.1%), Black (25.9%), Hisp (11.8%)
One thing to remember is
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 17:26 — danofncOne thing to remember is that Wayne County has an Air Force base. A lot of rank-and-file military families live off of one income, which makes them ED, but they aren't your typical ED families because they can live on the base in many cases.
Ahhh,Bev was narrowly
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:34 — shearertwAhhh,
Bev was narrowly elected nearly two years ago and arguably would NOT be governor if Obama wasn't also on the same ticket.
That being said, her current approval rating is below 30% with a disapproval rating that is bouncing around 50%. That doesn't sound like the numbers of a governor who is "definately in alignment with the majority of citizens of the state".
I can guarentee that if there was a poll today, the new BOE for WCPSS would have HIGHER approval ratings than BP (Bev Perdue that is). Heck, the other BP may even have higher approval ratings than Bev.
Now, I know you're not
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:39 — danofncNow, I know you're not trying to downplay the results of a bonafide election are you?
If the GOP had put someone other than the grating mayor of Charlotte on the ticket, Perdue would probably not be governor.
I disagree. There were a
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:51 — CaryCurmudgeonI disagree. There were a huge number of early vote straight-party Democrat ballots cast. At the polls, there were large signs directing voters to "vote for change" by casting straight Democratic ballots. IMHO, if the election had been '09 instead of '08, McCrory would have won.
Perdue won fair and square and I do not challenge the election results. I do think that sentiments have changed quite a bit since then.
Still
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 23:42 — SDR256even so, mudge. These are fightin' words. If she doesn't understand what really happened and she would say this? Our Governor would use the words 'resegregation'? Are you kidding me? She's not a thinker. She is a politician.
"Our Governor would use the
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 07:54 — zande"Our Governor would use the words 'resegregation'? Are you kidding me? She's not a thinker."
Right. How could she possibly think re-segregation would happen under the new community schools plan?? lol
Injecting A Few Facts Into The Discussion
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 21:05 — fiveblindmicePerdue won by a 3.2% margin (50.2% - 46.9%) of almost a quarter million votes. Obama won NC by a 0.4% margin (49.9% - 49.5%) of less than 14,000 votes. The argument that Perdue was elected on Obama's coattails is - to be blunt - astoundingly rdiculous. It's pretty clear that Perdue's margin was (greatly) REDUCED by the (relative) popularity of the McCain/Palin ticket. If it had been an offyear election McCrory would've been smoked by a good 5-7 points.
And now moving from fact to opinion. on her statement - that too is absurd. The simple truth is that the LAST thing NAACP and those of us on the diversity side want to see right now is this getting to our current radical rightwing activist SCotUS. The Roberts majority has nothing but contempt for established precedent, justice, liberty AND racial equality. Alito & Roberts & Thomas & Scalia are literally crazy enough and corrupt enough to take any opportunity to fully legalize even institutional segregation.
Hey, blind, you claim Perdue
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 21:29 — woodstockHey, blind, you claim Perdue did not ride into office on Obama's coattails. Uh, please tell me how often a Democrat presidential candidate wins in NC. The year of Obama has turned into the 4-year term of enduring the burdens brought about by Obama. Unfortunately, that includes putting up with Perdue.
Did Mike Ea$ley ride into
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 22:39 — danofncDid Mike Ea$ley ride into office on Bush's coattails?
Daniel Lindsay Russell was governor from 1897-1901, and since then there have been two other Republican governors who served a total of 12 years.
If anything, the fact that Obama carried NC says something about the McCain/Palin ticket's ineptitude.
I believe you missed my
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 17:14 — woodstockI believe you missed my point...
You seem to ignore history
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 08:02 — CaryCurmudgeonNC has historically gone for Republican Presidents, Republican Senators and Democratic Governors. NC hadn't supported a Democratic President since Jimmy Carter. When a Democratic President won here for the first time in 28 years, there was no denying the wave effect. Kay Hagan was part of that wave, assisted by Dole's ineptitude. I even let myself get sucked in and voted for Hagan, who has turned out to be a straight party-line wonk.
As pointed out elsewhere, Perdue is carrying a 30% approval rating today, so while we could spend all day debating what propelled her into office, there's no debate that she's not doing a good job in the eyes of NC citizens.
Given the economic circumstances, here job has not been an easy one. But her failure to address all of the corruption in our state government (which has also touched her in one incidence) is unacceptable. And her race-baiting rhetoric to the NAACP disgusts me.
Perdue won by fewer votes
Mon, 06/14/2010 - 08:05 — danofncPerdue won by fewer votes than Mike Easley did in 2004. Easley was voted in while NC was being won by George Bush.
To say someone was riding coattails (or a wave), wouldn't you have to show that something happened that historically wouldn't have happened?
NC has historically voted for Democrat governors, and NC did in 2008. Talking about the people who voted only because Obama was running for office as if those people all voted for Obama is dishonest. There were a lot of people who voted in that election just to vote against Obama.
Thanks Mice. Very good
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 21:19 — zandeThanks Mice. Very good points. Looks like Obama may have ridden Perdues coattails! I agree with your assessment of the SCOTUS. I fear we will soon become the United States of America Inc. Perhaps a subsidiary of BP. They seem to be hell bent on allowing corporate ownership of our entire social structure.
Well, she won by 144,969
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:53 — danofncWell, she won by 144,969 votes.
I know a lot of people who voted for her because she wasn't Pat McCrory.
The party line voters are on both sides (but there are probably more D than R who do that), and you don't lose those votes no matter who your candidate happens to be. The people you have to appeal to are the ones in the middle, even if they may be a little left or right of the middle.
It doesn't matter if she won
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 15:04 — shearertwIt doesn't matter if she won by 2 million votes 2 years ago.....based on currently polling data by even liberal polling groups such as PPP, she has a CURRENT approval rate around or below 30%. She, therefore, is "definately" NOT "in alignment" with a majority of North Carolinians. That is the entire point.
Of course not..... The
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 14:46 — shearertwOf course not.....
The main point is that while she was elected, her actions since that time have led to a 30% approval rating. Therefore, the results of an election that is almost 2 years old are no longer relevant with regard to assessing her "alignment" with the people of NC. In this case, it is invalid to use the "she was elected by a majority" argument to suggest a majority of NC folks agree with this moronic statement. It would be more appropriate to say that at best, 30% of North Carolinians agree with this moronic statement but even that is a stretch.
So perhaps we should apply
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 22:41 — ApexcitizenSo perhaps we should apply the same logic to the WCPSS BOE. The new BOE members were elected based on a populist platform of perceived parental dissatisfaction, but yet when they surveyed their constituents' their own survey showed that most constituents were happy with their child's school and the school choice options. Clearly that disconnect between the their platform and the survey that demonstrates that the BOE majority is out of touch and out of alignment with the electorate.
It doesn't matter at this point if the new BOE members were voted in by a majority, because its clear from the surveys that they are out of touch with their constituents. So it would be a stretch for anyone to say the majority of Wake county citizens agree with this moronic BOE majority.
Survey
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 02:42 — jeffrey1Clearly that disconnect between the their platform and the survey that demonstrates that the BOE majority is out of touch and out of alignment with the electorate
How many times do we have to go over this? Many of us, including me, filled out the survey, and said we were satisfied with our schools. However, we still believe that SES should not be considered when assigning kids to school, we still believe the needs of the ED have been neglected for years, and we remain completely behind the new board majority. Please stop using the survey as an argument there is a disconnect between the board and the electorate.
And if you insist on using surveys, you may want to consider this one:
http://www.nccivitas.org/media/press-releases/civitas-poll-voters-back-board-mandatory-year-round-ending-diversity-assignment
which showed that 68.2% of voters oppose the diversity policy, and 73.3% would rather send their kids to the closest school.
Civitas Institute is about as biased as the come!
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 13:30 — ApexcitizenQuoting a Civitas Institute pole please.... Do you seriously think that Civitas does objective polling? lol. Remember the board disagrees with their own survey. I'd really place about as much stock in a Civitas Institute pole as you would in a Public Policy Institute pole.
Pretty funny how they ask the question in the lowest common denominator too, but then again that's how you shape polling results.
Apexcitizen, the word is
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 08:35 — cthayes75Apexcitizen, the word is "poll" not "pole."
Maybe you are proving the point that schools should spend more time educating and less on social engineering.
So....Apexcitizen, How do
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 13:41 — shearertwSo....Apexcitizen,
How do you reconcile your comment about Bev Perdue being "alligned with a majority in NC" when PPI (the Civitas of the left wing by you're own admission) has her approval rating at or below 30%?
Last comments on this one
Fri, 06/11/2010 - 18:49 — ApexcitizenSame way you would reconcile thinking that the BOE has a mandate to make these changes when their own survey shows they don't. Plus its easy to dismissal polls as they we all know its they only represent a momentary snapshot in time and are unofficial in any real capacity. Remember what counts for a politician in the end isn't the polls but the results of their election.
Thanks for the debate, have a good weekend.
Numbers Speak
Sat, 06/12/2010 - 05:07 — jeffrey1Since Apexcitizen is done with this topic, I'll get in the last word. I don't know how you could ask the questions with any less bias, and the results of the Civitas poll speak volumes about the attitudes in Wake County.
Here are the poll questions and results divided by party affiliation:
Do you support or oppose the school board’s current policy of assigning students to schools based on achieving diversity, instead of sending students to the school closest to their home?
Rep Dem Ind
----- ----- -----
Support the policy 14.1 28.0 21.7
Oppose the policy 79.7 58.5 70.6
No opinion 6.3 13.5 7.7
Hypothetically, would you rather send your child to a school that is closest to your home or one that is further away but would be more economically diverse?
Rep Dem Ind
----- ----- -----
Closest school 85.5 61.0 78.1
Further away, more diverse 7.5 27.7 15.0
No opinion 6.9 11.3 6.8
Mandate. Game. Set. Match.
As much as you guys want to make this about politics, it's not and it never was. You are a small, but vocal minority.
Thank you for continuing to humor me
Sat, 06/12/2010 - 13:40 — ApexcitizenYour idea mandate holds about as much water as a sieve. Plus very funny how you have to end your argument with: "Your are a small, but vocal minority", Really now starting the personal attacks because you've run out of a cohesive argument?
Here's another survey discrediting the polling of your beloved Civitas Institute.
From the N&O 4/27/2010:
Business leaders are evenly split on the direction of the Wake County public schools, according to a Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce survey.
The chamber recently polled its members about the state of local education, receiving nearly 300 responses from heads of businesses.
Those who took the poll were split down the middle on the question of whether Wake schools are headed in the right direction: 50 percent said yes, 50 percent said no.
In addition, the survey showed:
About 50 percent of respondents favored the now-discarded policy of considering socioeconomic diversity in assignments, while 35 opposed it.
The system should employ more transparency in creating new policies and hiring a superintendent, according to the 86 percent who said that was very or extremely important.
"Creating a safe, stable and predictable school environment, while maintaining the priority of student achievement, is critical to the recruitment, retention, expansion of business and industry," chamber chairperson Sepi Asefnia said.
Sorry you double faulted by reusing your discrete source so I would say GAME SET and MATCH! Your welcome to come join the MAJORITY at any time, must be lonely over there. Seriously we would welcome you. :)
We really must move onto another blog posting soon.
It is rather obvious that
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 10:40 — woodstockIt is rather obvious that you are unfamiliar with research or or least survey analysis. The questions you seem to suggest support your position are dependent on extremely conditional factors and are but one aspect of the overall survey. For instance, a lot of parents love year-round schools IF it does not involve their child being on tracks 2 or 3 -- them opinions change rather dramatically. People love forced busing for "diversity," IF it leads to their children getting into a magnet school. People will tolerate sacrifices to achieve Wake County's brand of "diversity" if IF if it is others who must endure the sacrifices, not them. Magnet parents love "diversity" IF their children receive have access to special courses and a higher quality education than the rest of the unlucky students in the county.
Bottom line is as forced busing increased, ED achievement deceased. This is not debatable and it is why the voters of Wake County finally said it is time for this failed social-engineering experiment to end. Time to move on and take our school system from the 1970s into the 21st Century.
Social Engineering - Student Assignment Committee
Sun, 06/13/2010 - 22:18 — Solon77I am not sure if the goals listed in WRAL write up were in order of priority or just random. Number 2 on the list was "Preventing Minority Isolation". This wouldn't count as social engineering would it ?
Perhaps the question should
Sat, 06/12/2010 - 08:36 — zandePerhaps the question should have been asked the following way:
"Currently 95% of the students in Wake co. attend school within 10 miles of home and 85% attend schools within 5 miles of their home. Many of those who travel further do so voluntarily to attend magnet schools so that the schools in the growing suburbs are less crowded and facilities can be used more efficiently. Would you support a tax increase in order to completely reorganize the entire system even though this will not take one single bus off the road and is not likely to result in considerably shorter bus rides and would result in an increasing number of very high poverty schools?"
I think this is an honest and expected result
Sat, 06/12/2010 - 08:32 — Athey01Also, I think if they would have asked, ' Hypothetically, if the new community zone model resulted in a significant increase in high poverty schools, would you still support the community zone model?" the result would be 75% Yes, 20% No, 5% No opinion.
Didn't Perdue say that she
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 12:32 — jenmanDidn't Perdue say that she was against busing?
Convenient
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 23:45 — SDR256Convenient at the time, as I imagine are these comments. Riding the wave without really understanding what she's talking bout.
Busing and diversity are not
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 13:04 — danofncBusing and diversity are not the same thing.
Being in favor of the old diversity policy doesn't automatically mean that someone is in favor of 20 mile bus rides.
I don't think she said she
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 15:40 — jenmanI don't think she said she was against 20 mile bus rides, I think she said she was opposed to 'forced busing'. How else does she (or anybody else) think that the diversity policy could be maintained?
She's just being a politician, pandering to her audience.
Is everyone who wants to
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 23:01 — user12345Is everyone who wants to attend another school than the one they are assigned being "forced" to attend that school.
...
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 15:43 — Sideburnshttp://projects.newsobserver.com/under_the_dome/perdue_on_wake_county_schools_policy#comments
She did say she was against
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 12:58 — doctorjShe did say she was against bussing. What does that have to do with believing diverse schools are a good thing?
I'm wondering if anyone has
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 11:03 — shearertwI'm wondering if anyone has informed Perdue that the ED students in Wayne Co. are outperforming ED students in WCPSS?
Rev Barber's lawsuit should have started in WCPSS under the former BOE.
My apologies for this slight
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 11:02 — willynillyMy apologies for this slight hijacking:
In the Blue Diamnd strand I got an accusation leveled that I "whine." This from exYank_WCprin. A year ago another person, a WCPSS employee, did the same thing on the BLOG. ExYank, I am offering you the chance to judge me on facts, not opinion. I will offer you the same thing I offered this woman(who refused to meet with me and continued to drop charges here and there) that is to meet you and show you names, signatures, emails, times, places, dates....everything. If you want to accuse me (and other teachers here) of whining then take the time to see what my proof is. No, I will not send this electronically. However, I will bring the orginals. Keung was given copies of this stuff a few years ago.
Bye Bev
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 10:23 — willynillySo my pay gets frozen 4 times....2 steps and 2 cost of living freezes. Hmmmmmmm
Hasn't
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 09:51 — TrailerParkGirlHasn't race-based assignment already been run up the judicial flagpole more than once?
Heh heh heh.
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 23:54 — SDR256Yep. And thank you for reminding us about what the public has asked for. You know the people I'm talking about? Those-who-vote-but-are-afraid-of-the-media-and-who-do-not-necessarily-organize movie-nights-to-convince-everyone-of-what-the-right-idea-is -
you know - - - those folks?
As the governor!
Thu, 06/10/2010 - 09:46 — mommy59Since the statement made the paper on what Perdue said then no matter what she said she is speaking as the governor.If she was so concerned about the Wake County schools where was she last November during the elections and better yet in March when the diversity voting was going on.