Community groups, including Indivisible, the New Hanover County Chapter of the NAACP, New Hanover for All, and the New Hanover County Association of Educators, all participated in their Educational Focus Forum.
The purpose of the forum is to give community members the opportunity to ask leaders in local government, as well as elected state officials, pertinent questions about funding and school policies that adversely impact students and staff.
The education forum first convened in April, covering the broad strokes of the Leandro v. North Carolina case, school funding, and the impact of Executive Order 14242 (a federal order calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education) within New Hanover County’s education system.
Roles and Responsibilities
At this month’s meeting, Education Chair for the NHC NAACP Kemeka Sidbury talked about the roles and responsibilities of various stakeholders in education.
Sidbury argued that stakeholders at the state level must uphold the decision reached in the case of Leandro v. North Carolina, which helped define the right to a “sound basic education” for all North Carolina students.
Sidbury also talked about the role parents have in their child’s education and the importance of understanding Senate Bill 49, also known as the Parents’ Bill of Rights.
Public’s perception on school funding
NHCAE President Jacqui Dalessio gave a presentation about the current state of New Hanover County Schools funding, laying out where it comes from and why it always seems fleeting.
NHCS' beginning operating budget stands at $316.5 million for the 2025 fiscal year, according to NHCS’ 2025 Budget Book.
Dalessio shared that the majority of NHCS’ funding comes from the state. According to the 2025 budget book, about 32% of school funding comes from the county, and just 4.7% of schools’ operational budget comes from federal sources.
Dalessio was able to get instant feedback from the audience on their perception of school funding loss, by having them use an app on their phones to answer prompts during her slideshow.
Dalessio asked participants what things they thought could directly impact NHCS’ funding, and one of the top answers was the school voucher program.
The voucher program provides families with subsidies to pay for private school tuition if parents prefer to send their children to a private or religious institution. The vouchers are worth a portion of the per-student funding the state would distribute to schools, and are designed to allow the school funding to follow the student.
But because the NHCS budget is primarily determined by the number of students enrolled - the district is already expecting a decrease of 394 students, she said.
Dalessio pointed out that the enrollment of students in charter schools is increasing, and the school voucher program may lead to more disenrollments from public schools, which will decrease the amount of state funding they receive.
Other things that Dalessio said have a direct impact on funding are education cuts in the state budget and County Commissioners’ budget allotments.
Based on NHCS’ 2025 Budget Book the state budget is expected to provide for 3% raises for state paid employees and an increase in employer health insurance costs. However, the overall state revenue is estimated to decrease by $3.6 million.
Dalessio also said the termination of the SafeLight program, a red-light camera program that generated about $1.4 million in revenue for NHCS, will result in a significant cut in school funds.
This is in addition to the anticipated loss of $13.5 million worth of federal grants, the most significant portion provided through the Elementary and Secondary Schools Emergency Relief Funds (ESSER III), COVID-19 relief funding that ran out last year.
Lastly, Dalessio had participants rate the importance of the superintendent’s budget priorities from least to greatest. The allocation of funds for 42 new school specialist positions was voted the top priority, and people voted the Safe and Civil Schools Program as the next highest priority.
Esprit de Corps
Organizers of the Education Focus Forum say it’s designed to give the public better access to their elected representatives, so together they can discuss things like budget priorities.
That’s why they make a point of inviting state-level elected officials, but so far there have been no bites from those in Raleigh.
During the panel discussion, Democrat County Commissioner Stephanie Walker pointed out the lack of state officials in the room.
“You see who's sitting here, local people, but who's not sitting here, our state folks, because they probably feel like they don't have to answer to anything,” Walker said.
On the local level, however, the message is getting around.
The speakers from April’s panel, including Walker and fellow Democrats New Hanover County Commissioner Rob Zapple and school board members Judy Justice and Dr. Tim Merrick, made a return.
This time Republican school board member Pat Bradford and New Hanover County Superintendent Dr. Christopher Barnes joined the conversation. Mayor Bill Saffo (a Democrat, though the city council is technically nonpartisan) also attended the meeting, though only as an observer sitting in with the public.
However, organizers felt this is a sign that more local officials are learning about the forums, and are showing more of a commitment to engage in an open discourse with their community.
“All of the people in this room were able to come together in a public place and have a public discussion where I feel like we actually listened to each other,” Dalessio said. “Your thoughts may be different, but I feel like everyone listened to everyone else.”
To watch the full panel discussion on NHCAE’s Facebook page click here.
New Hanover County Schools Annual Budget Fiscal Year 2024-2025:
Annual Budget Book for 2024 2025 by Ben Schachtman on Scribd
