Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina

Mon, January 17, 2011


A Letter from Darrell Allison, President of PEFNC
"Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Since 2005, Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina (PEFNC) have been working to inform North Carolinians of the benefits of expanded educational options and empower them to exercise freedom in meeting their children's needs, regardless of income, race, or religion. PEFNC envisions an education system that maximizes parental choice because children have unique needs and parents should have the freedom to choose the best education to meet those needs.

Unfortunately, we are living in a time of educational crisis - where one education model simply doesn’t work for every child. Many children in North Carolina’s schools are struggling to keep up. Often these struggles will result in low-performance, disciplinary issues, and dropping out of school entirely. This is the situation for too many children in North Carolina.

Consider the crisis in North Carolina:

According to the 2010 Education Week study, North Carolina currently ranks 46th in the nation in graduation performance, with an average graduation rate of only 57.8 percent.

According to The Raleigh News & Observer, North Carolina currently ranks 4th in the nation for suspension and expulsion rates, with minority and special needs students disproportionately represented within those statistics.

According to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, of economically-disadvantaged middle school students pass their math and reading End-of-Grade tests.barely 50 percent 

Finally, a study released by PEFNC and the Foundation for Educational Choice determined that each statewide class of dropouts costs North Carolina approximately $169 million.

Clearly, North Carolina needs new and innovative solutions.

Over the past few months, nearly 2,000 North Carolinians from communities across the state have attended our free screenings of the critically acclaimed documentary Waiting for “Superman.” As the finale to our statewide campaign based on the movie, we are hosting a Town Hall Forum themed No Longer Waiting for “Superman" on Monday, January 24th at the North Raleigh Hilton at 6:30 p.m. This forum will discuss the political realities and potential solutions for transforming K-12 education in North Carolina.

Special guests will include Dr. Howard Fuller, who is featured in the Waiting for “Superman” film and is a Distinguished Professor of Education at Marquette University, and Peter Groff, former president of the Colorado State Senate and now President of the National Alliance of Public Charter Schools.

Other leaders at the forum will include elected officials, policy makers, community leaders, educators, and school officials. This is a bi-partisan effort to discuss needed education reform for North Carolina.

This forum will be an opportunity for folks to ask questions and express their support for school reform.

I would like to extend a personal invitation to you to attend the forum on Monday, January 24th. This is YOUR opportunity to let your voice be heard and express your desires for education reform in this state.

The simple truth is that a good, sound education is essential for the future of our children. We can only ensure that they receive one if we all become aware of the problem and potential solutions to the educational crisis. In short, we need you and so do our children.

Please come and learn how you can make a change – a real difference – for the future of our children and grandchildren. Come join us on Monday, January 24th!

To RSVP, click here or call 888-977-3362.

Sincerely,
Darrell Allison, President, PEFNC