Charlotte Observer endorsements: Our choices for CMS school board

This fall’s school board elections — the first since the pandemic — are among the most contentious on the ballot. Eighteen candidates are vying for six district seats on the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education.

In many ways, the biggest issue on the ballot is the school board itself. The public’s frustration with CMS has reached a fever pitch, as fresh frustrations over learning loss and teacher shortages mingle with the board’s enduring reputation for arrogance and secrecy. Just four of the six incumbents are seeking re-election, and each faces multiple challengers.

There’s a lot of work to be done at CMS. Recent test scores showed dismal outcomes in reading and math, and too many students aren’t college or career ready. The next board will also be tasked with hiring a superintendent — the district’s sixth in 10 years — after the current board abruptly fired Earnest Winston in April after extending his contract and giving him a raise the year prior.

Here are our recommendations for all six nonpartisan races:

District 1

This race in north Mecklenburg is the most crowded of the bunch, with four candidates challenging incumbent Rhonda Lennon Cheek in her bid for re-election.

The field includes Hamani Fisher, a member of the African American Faith Alliance; veteran CMS educator and public education advocate Melissa Easley; Ro Lawsin, a CMS parent; and Bill Fountain, an Air Force veteran unhappy with what he calls “woke culture” in CMS.

Cheek, who was first elected in 2009, is the board’s longest-serving member, and she has emerged as somewhat of a leader because of it. She’s one of the board’s more moderate voices, and that’s been a good thing. Cheek has worked hard to build cooperation between unlikely allies and quiet some of the outside noise to refocus on student outcomes. She represents her district and CMS well, and we recommend her for another term.

District 2

Thelma Byers-Bailey, the board’s current vice chair, is seeking a third term in this west Charlotte district. Rev. Monty Witherspoon of the African American Faith Alliance and Juanrique Hall, a community advocate and former volunteer coach, are also running. All three are CMS graduates.

Byers-Bailey is a well-respected leader in the community and has been a capable representative for her district, helping lead the implementation of a new governance model focused on student outcomes. But she too often seems to take a backseat approach to governing at a time when the district needs bold and strong leadership, and that’s done little to help struggling students.

Hall is particularly passionate about making sure students are supported outside of the classroom, which is a worthy cause. But we recommend Witherspoon, who thinks CMS has lost its direction and is focused on solving systemic issues “from the top down.” Like many other candidates, his chief concern is student outcomes. He’s a thoughtful leader who would serve this district well.

District 3

Ruby Jones opted not to seek re-election in this northeast Charlotte district, and two candidates are running to replace her. Both are first-time political candidates. Gregory “Dee” Rankin is a former educator and longtime education advocate who serves on the CMS Equity Committee. Steven Rushing is a CMS parent.

Rankin is deeply familiar with CMS and the needs of the community, and that’s because he’s long been dedicated to improving it. His campaign is focused on education quality and equitable resources for all students, regardless of zip code, and he believes the school board needs to be held more accountable for its progress toward improving student outcomes.

Rushing did not respond to the Editorial Board’s request for an interview. We recommend Rankin.

District 4

This east Charlotte race is a particularly high-profile matchup between incumbent Carol Sawyer and Stephanie Sneed, an attorney and former chair of the Black Political Caucus who has run for school board twice before. Clara Kennedy Witherspoon, a retired CMS school counselor and support specialist, is also running.

It’s a true microcosm of the larger controversy surrounding CMS as of late, and the tense nature of the race reflects that. As a school board member, Sawyer has led steadfastly but quietly. She’s among the board’s hardest workers and was instrumental in crafting the district’s new equity policy, as well as its new governance structure.

Sneed says CMS is in a “state of emergency,” and she’s running to help fix it. In addition to student outcomes, Sneed is particularly focused on transparency and accountability, two areas in which the school board has been lacking in recent years. It’s not a new problem, either — the revolving door of CMS superintendents has long been an issue, as have the board’s chilly and increasingly fractured relationships with the community and other public bodies. (We haven’t forgotten how the board, including Sawyer, tried to bully suburban towns into approving a moratorium on municipal charter schools in 2018.)

Voters in this district have a choice: more of the same, or a fresh perspective. We think the latter is sorely needed. We recommend Sneed.

District 5

Voters in Myers Park and Matthews have two strong candidates to choose from this year in the seat currently held by retiring incumbent Margaret Marshall. Trent Merchant previously served on the board from 2006 to 2011, and he’s running again to help solve what he sees as leadership issues in CMS. Merchant thinks the board needs to be laser-focused on improving student outcomes and avoid all “distractions.” Lisa Cline is a veteran CMS educator and assistant principal who thinks the board needs a “total change,” and she might be right.

Both candidates are sharp and possess the knowledge and ability to be effective on the board. But oftentimes, experience is about relationships, and that’s especially the case with Merchant. He has the respect of people within the community, including county commissioners whose relationship with the school board has soured. That’s a real asset on a board that needs all the goodwill it can get. We recommend Merchant.

District 6

In this south Mecklenburg district, incumbent Sean Strain faces two challengers: Summer Nunn and Michael Watson, both of whom are CMS parents with a business background. All three are critical of CMS and its performance under the current board’s leadership, and they each offer plenty of ways they might improve it.

Strain, now running for his second term, asks important questions and works to hold CMS accountable, perhaps more so than anyone else on the board. But his acerbic attitude toward others has cost him the respect of his colleagues and CMS staff. That makes him an obstacle to progress, no matter how strong his desire to move CMS forward.

We recommend Nunn, whose frustrations with CMS and its leadership largely echo Strain’s — without the condescension that Strain too often brings to the dais.

This story was originally published October 19, 2022 at 6:00 AM.