Jillian King, CMS Board of Education District 4 candidate, answers our questions
To help inform voters in the Nov. 4, 2025, election, this candidate questionnaire is available to be republished by local publications in North Carolina without any cost. Please consider subscribing to The Charlotte Observer to help make this coverage possible.
Name: Jillian King
Age: 32
Campaign website or social media page: votejillianking.com
Occupation: Homemaker
Education: Master’s in Education
Have you run for elected office before? (Please list previous offices sought or held): No
Please list your highlights of civic involvement:
Public school teaching, active and informed voter, volunteer with community activities through HOA
What are the most important issues in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools today, and how would you address them?
The number 1 issue has been – and continues to be – the safety of all students. This needs to be addressed on a school culture level and the process for investigation of issues and for disciplinary action needs to be re-evaluated to ensure that these incidences of aggression and bullying that mentally, physically, and emotionally harm and traumatize students are not tolerated and that students involved in these events receive mental health services and appropriate corrective measures.
How can the district improve student performance, close achievement gaps and get schools off the state’s low-performing list? (There were 56 CMS campuses on the low-performing list during the 2023-24 school year, and 32 in the 2024-25 school year):
The evidence for studies on effective ways to do this point to (1) smaller class sizes and more individual face time with adults to guide, personalize, and support learning; (2) Culturally competent, responsive, and inclusive school cultures that recognize, celebrate, and adapt to the cultural differences in learning among students; (3) community engagement where members of the community feel included, informed, and active in helping support the efforts of schools.
How should the school system handle decisions by the federal government that you may disagree with or that negatively affect the district? And how should the district communicate with the public about the effects of those decisions?
The school system should ask themselves if the federal decisions harm any groups of students in our schools. If the answer is yes, we hold the line and refuse to comply with the federal government’s directives. CMS should be open and honest about their choice to prioritize student safety and wellbeing over harmful orders, no matter who they come from. CMS should stand firm in its decision and accept whatever consequences may come from it, while keeping families and community members informed.
Teacher shortages remain a challenge across North Carolina and the nation. What do you believe CMS needs to do in order to attract teachers and keep experienced ones in the classroom?
Teachers are being told that schools can’t afford to pay them fair wages for all the work they do, but CMS turns around and hires expensive consultants that can’t seem to provide evidence that their work is improving student outcomes. I guarantee every teacher in the county could provide such evidence. We need to be allocating funds to pay teachers more. In addition, we need to give teachers more autonomy to lean on their own expertise and understanding of the students in their care to teach in ways they know are most effective.
What separates you from your opponents and makes you the best choice on November’s ballot?
I have teaching experience that allows me to understand what it is that schools, teachers, and students need most. The kinds of connections I made with my students while teaching have given me vast insight into the things lacking within the system. I also never shy away from defending my choices because I know I made them with the students’ best interests at heart. I won’t dodge reporters and I won’t shy away from holding the board and all of CMS accountable for their decisions and actions.
This story was originally published October 8, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
