Thursday seminar to discuss changes in education legislation
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on October 22, 2013 1:46 PM
The impact budget cuts and policy changes have on education will be the centerpiece of a public forum being held in Goldsboro later this week.
In collaboration with the N.C. Association of Educators, two advocacy groups, Public Schools First N.C. and Progress NC, are participating in a state tour rallying for a better education system.
Wayne County Association of Educators is hosting the forum, said Lashaundon Perkins, WCAE president.
"Educate Each Child" is the theme of the event, planned for Thursday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium of Goldsboro High School. The public is invited.
Paige McCullough of Public Schools First said the mission is to ensure a quality education for every child in the state.
"We just started on this," she said of the tour. "It's a learning experience."
Over the past year, a variety of different sessions have been held around the state, she said, all in an effort to share information about legislative changes to education.
"The basic format is to put together a meeting where Public Schools First can give an overview of what's happening in the state," she said.
It also provides a "call to action" for smaller communities to become part of the process, she said.
"Because people are like, 'What can I do?'" she said. "We urge people to be more informed, more engaged in the issues.
"(We share) what children need to succeed in school and then we go into the kind of things that have happened. Can we really have our children succeed with the resources being provided?"
The evening's format will be a panel discussion, she said.
Local representation invited to lead the discussion include The Rev. Dr. William Barber, state NAACP president; Dr. Marvin McCoy, Wayne County Public Schools' assistant superintendent for human resources; Dr. Dwight Cannon, Wayne County Board of Education representative for District 2; Corey Dickerson, pastor of Walking By Faith Ministries International; and Kathy Drew, a fourth-grade teacher at Spring Creek Elementary School.
"We certainly have some good people who have said they're willing to speak on this," Ms. McCullough said.
In addition to the dialogue, there will be a brief question-and-answer segment and information handouts will be available.