Longleaf Politics

Longleaf Politics

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Longleaf Politics
Can $5.6 billion really solve North Carolina's education problems?
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Can $5.6 billion really solve North Carolina's education problems?

We already know the answer - the Leandro plan won't work

Andrew Dunn
Jul 05, 2021
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Longleaf Politics
Longleaf Politics
Can $5.6 billion really solve North Carolina's education problems?
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The education debate in North Carolina often boils down to numbers. What percentage raise should teachers get this year? What should the average teacher salary be? Where does the state rank in per-pupil spending?

This year, there’s just one number that matters: $5.6 billion. That’s the price tag on the consultant-driven plan that promises to fix North Carolina’s public education system, once and for all. The General Assembly’s proposed budget largely ignores this plan, but a Superior Court judge has promised to force the state to pay for it.

The problem is, we already know this plan won’t work. A virtually identical plan has already been tried and failed in the state’s largest city.

North Carolina simply can’t buy student achievement. The real answer is a whole lot harder than that.

Photo via Guilford County Schools

“Sound basic education”

Back in 1997, the North Carolina Supreme Court ruled that the state has a constitutional obligation to provide a “sound basic education” to all student…

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