Democrat North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s declaration of a “State of Emergency for Public Education” is nothing more than a “political stunt” demonstrating his allegiance to teachers unions, the Job Creators Network (JCN) said in a statement on Wednesday.
Cooper made the “emergency” declaration on Monday in reaction to a spate of Republican-led legislation he deemed “extreme,” including an expansion of the state’s private school voucher program. Cooper claimed in a video address posted to social media that Republican lawmakers are “dropping an atomic bomb on public education” by expanding voucher eligibility to any K-12 student. The governor claimed the expansion will result in “steep funding cuts” for public schools.
Cooper said in a statement:
It’s clear that the Republican legislature is aiming to choke the life out of public education. I’m declaring this a state of emergency because you need to know what’s happening. If you care about public schools in North Carolina, it’s time to take immediate action and tell them to stop the damage that will set back our schools for a generation.
Alfredo Ortiz, president and CEO of JCN said via email that Cooper is “putting politics over what’s best for his people.”
“Gov. Cooper is putting politics over what’s best for his people, including ordinary kids trapped in failing district schools that have long been unable to teach basic math and reading skills. All children deserve to choose the best school for them, regardless of zip code,” Ortiz said, adding:
North Carolina legislators are pursuing legislation to make this principle a reality and give every child in the state the opportunity to learn. Yet Gov. Cooper wants to put teachers union interests ahead of North Carolina’s children. This political stunt reveals once again where school choice opponents’ true allegiance really lies.
This coming week, Cooper is set to travel across the state to meet with community leaders to “raise awareness about the danger of the bills in the NC General Assembly” and “ask them to demand better and join the fight,” according to his office.
As NC Newsline reported, critics of the voucher program “complain that the private schools that receive taxpayer money engage in religious indoctrination and exclusion, discriminate against LGBTQ students and parents, and are not held accountable for academic outcomes the way charter schools and traditional public school are.”
But supporters, like Democrat-turned-Republican state Rep. Tricia Cotham, say the program will help families place their children in schools that are a better fit for them. Cotham notably co-sponsored a House bill with the same language.
In a tweet on Monday, Cotham called out Cooper and said, “The true emergency here is that the Governor is advocating for systems rather than students themselves.”
“Education is not one-size-fits-all and NC families should have the freedom to determine what kind of education is best for them,” she said. “My bill to expand the NC Opportunity Scholarship program, to allow all NC families to make that choice, will soon be on his desk, waiting on his signature. NC kids are waiting, Governor! Stop the political theater and put kids first!”
The News and Observer pointed out that Cooper’s declaration comes as Republican legislative leaders are negotiating a state budget deal for the next two years.
“The GOP has a legislative supermajority, so it can adopt a spending plan and other legislation without needing Cooper’s support,” according to the report.
While the governor has received support from fellow Democrats, school choice advocates have been calling him out for his apparent hypocrisy. According to the Education Freedom Institute, Cooper sent his own child to “an expensive private school” in Raleigh.
“BREAKING: North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper declares a STATE OF EMERGENCY to fight against school choice,” school choice champion Corey A. DeAngelis tweeted. “This hypocrite sent his own kid to a private school. We’re freeing families from the clutches of the teachers unions once and for all & there’s nothing he can do about it.”
Former North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R) also criticized Cooper for using the term “state of emergency” as a “political prop.”
“Once again, we see leaders in government telling you that they know what’s best for your child. Our Governor has gone so far as to use the words ‘state of emergency’ as a political prop,” Robinson said. “However, words like this weren’t said when Democrats had control of the legislature and teachers were receiving pay cuts and being furloughed. Our Republican legislature is allowing families to chart their own educational destinies because they know what their children need better than a bureaucrat.”
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