Green urges voters to become ‘Champions of Education’

Republicans in the state legislature are dismantling public education in North Carolina “brick by brick,” says Maurice “Mo” Green, and voters need to stand up to them by becoming “champions of public education.”

There are four ways to do it, Green told supporters at a rally May 29 in Cary, NC.

1. Fully fund public education in the state and stop siphoning money away through private school vouchers.

          “We’re $5,000 per child below the national average in school funding,” he said. “49^th in the nation.” 

2. We need to “revere” public school educators, he said. Not just teachers, but janitors, bus drivers and those who help make public schools work.

3. Enhance programs for gifted students and youngsters requiring special education.

4. Celebrate the “good” in public education by appreciating its accomplishments.

          The key, he said, is to talk about these strategies across party lines so improving public education can occur in a unified way. It’s also to turn out the vote in November.

          “I believe the soul of public education is on the ballot,” Green told the standing-room-only crowd, adding that he has the experience, belief in public education and character to be the state’s chief administrative officer for public schools. Doing that job, he said, means overseeing an $11 billion budget for 2,500 public schools throughout the state.

Green previously served as superintendent of Guilford County Schools and deputy superintendent and general counsel for Mecklenburg Schools. He has undergraduate and law school degrees from Duke University and was executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, which awards grants that support public education.

For more information, go to www.mogreenfornc.com.

Maurice “Mo” Green with Richard Chapman of Harnett County, at a rally for Green in Cary on May 29. Green is running for Superintendent of Public Instruction, the position that oversees North Carolina’s 2,500 public schools.