Much of the data published by some of the candidates for Wake County school board are misinterpreted and in many cases completely wrong.
To be accurately informed, voters can do some research on their own. A good source for accurate data is www.ncreportcards.org. I encourage voters to compare the data for Wake, Mecklenburg, Forsyth, Durham and Guilford counties. The bottom line is that Wake outperforms all comparable systems and does it for less money per pupil.
The majority of voters have no children attending public schools. Isn't our current cost-effective policy what best serves their interests? Is it fair to them to convert to a neighborhood school policy that has been proven in Charlotte to be more expensive and less effective? In 2007-08 Charlotte spent $478 more per pupil. Funding Wake County's nearly 140,000 students at that level would cost taxpayers an additional $66 million per year and for what? Lower achievement?
