Public School Forum

A think-and-do tank committed to North Carolina public schools

The Root of Discipline Disparities

Below is an excerpt from The Root of Discipline Disparities by James E. Ford, Program Director at the Public School Forum “The Teacher for Those Kids” Having spent my career as a teacher in urban schools with large majorities of black and brown students, I’ve witnessed the school-to-prison pipeline at work too many times to deny […]

Education Matters -School Finance Across NC

The Haves and Have Nots – School Finances Across NC North Carolina’s poorest counties continue to fall further behind our wealthier counties in terms of resources available to their local schools. What is the impact and what we can do to ensure all schools have the resources they need to serve every child? Guests: Dr. […]

Education Matters – Teacher Pay in NC

There’s probably no subject that has generated more headlines and more debate over the last few years than teacher pay. How much should teachers earn? Where do we rank? Will teachers really make on average $50,000 next year? We explore this week on Education Matters. Guests include: Mark Binker – Reporter, WRAL News Alexis Schauss […]

Education Matters – October 23, 2016 – Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina

“Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina” is the title of the just released report and action plan from the Public School Forum of North Carolina and the topic of this week’s show. Looking at the challenges effective teachers and leaders face every day, what would it really take to help them ensure every student in NC has the opportunities guaranteed to them in our state constitution of equal opportunity for a sound basic education?

Public School Forum of North Carolina Releases Study Group XVI Action Plan on Expanding Educational Opportunity

RALEIGH, NC (October 20, 2016) – The Public School Forum of North Carolina today released the findings of its 16th Biannual Study Group — Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina. The yearlong process involved more than 175 education, government and business leaders from across the state focused on three key topics related to expanding educational […]

Failing schools legislation needs to account for the complexity of the problem of perennially low-achieving schools

This is the fourth in a series of five articles on expanding educational opportunity in North Carolina in Education NC, culminating in the release of the Public School Forum’s Study Group XVI final report — Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina: Action Plan and Recommendations. The author served as one of the co-chairs of the […]

Representing North Carolina Teachers on “Education Matters”

The College of Education was well represented when Education Matters, a new television show that focuses on the state of public education in North Carolina, debuted earlier this month. Dean Mary Ann Danowitz was the opening guest along with the dean of UNC Wilmington’s College of Education, Van Dempsey. Following the deans’ discussion of North […]

Committee on Trauma & Learning

Childhood trauma is an all-too common factor in the lives of students. The CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study, conducted from 1995-1997, documented the prevalence of traumatic experiences in childhood. Among respondents, 28% were physically abused as children; 21% were sexually abused; 27% lived in households where substance abuse occurred; and 13% lived in homes […]

Committee on Racial Equity

Study Group XVI’s second committee focused explicitly on how race affects student outcomes in North Carolina, and the equity issues implicated by the effects. Committee members sought to better understand critical areas where race correlates with educational opportunity in ways that diminish the likelihood of success for students of color, and to develop solutions that […]

Committee on Low-Performing Schools

Our third committee focused on the challenges of turning around the state’s lowest-performing schools. Its work complements the efforts of the other two committees; together, they offer a suite of interventions that address key factors impacting student learning at multiple levels and addressing the inequality issue. The Committee on Trauma & Learning grappled with highly […]

Elevating racial equity as an education imperative

This is the third in a series of five articles on expanding educational opportunity in North Carolina on Education NC, culminating in the release of the Public School Forum’s Study Group XVI final report — Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina: Action Plan and Recommendations. The author served as one of the co-chairs of the […]

Study Group XVI: Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina

  “Our efforts to date to confront the vast gaps in educational outcomes separating different groups of young Americans have yet to include a serious and sustained commitment to ending the appalling inequities—in school funding, in early education, in teacher quality, in resources for teachers and students and in governance—that contribute so mightily to these […]

Education Matters – October 16, 2016 – School Resources

Across our state, public schools are being asked to do more with less. Eight years after a crippling recession forced significant cuts in state spending, including in public education, many key funding areas still remain below pre-recession levels. We’ll explore with our guests, including two teachers who have felt it in their own pockets. Guests […]

Expanding educational opportunity in North Carolina: A preview of the Public School Forum’s Study Group XVI action plan and recommendations

Public School Forum’s Study Group XVI work was previewed in Education NC. Next week, the Public School Forum will release the final report from its 16th biennial “study group.” The report, entitled, Expanding Educational Opportunity in North Carolina: Action Plan and Recommendations, is a call to action for all of those who care about public education […]

NC EPFP Begins for 2016-17 Cohort

This week, the Public School Forum hosted its newest class of North Carolina Education Policy Fellowship Program (EPFP) Fellows for a three-day retreat in Raleigh. The Forum welcomed 52 new Fellows, including, for the second year, a significant number of Fellows from counties in Western North Carolina, supported through a US Department of Education GEAR […]

Education Matters – October 2, 2016 – Teacher Pipeline

With increasing retirements and higher turnover in our teacher workforce — along with steep declines in our teacher preparation programs —  how will we ensure we have the teachers our children need? Guests include: Dr. Mary Ann Danowitz – Dean, School of Education, NC State Dr. Van Dempsey – Dean, Watson School of Education, UNC-Wilmington Trey Ferguson […]