RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — Candidates for North Carolina’s Superintendent of Public Instruction debated Saturday, offering very different perspectives on public education.
Democrat Mo Green is the former superintendent of Guilford County public schools, who also led the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and sent his children to public schools. Republican Michele Morrow is a former nurse who homeschooled her children and taught other home school students.
The two candidates disagree on a number of issues including school vouchers, which provide taxpayer dollars for families to send their children to private schools.
“I do not believe dollars that are public dollars, our taxpayer dollars, should be going to private schools,” Green said.
“If you can’t afford to pay for a private school, this is a short-term solution,” said Morrow. “The money should be following the student.”
When it comes to school safety, Morrow is advocating for more school resource officers and talked about assaults on teachers. She said students who cannot control themselves should be removed from the classroom.