On November 5, the general election for North Carolina superintendent of public instruction takes place. The Republican candidate is Michele Morrow, a former nurse and homeschool teacher. The Democratic candidate is Mo Green, former Guilford County Schools superintendent. Both candidates ran for a seat on the Wake County board in 2022, but both were unsuccessful. Neither candidate has held a statewide political office. The roles of the state superintendent include being the secretary and chief administrative officer of the State Board of Education, the administrative head of the Department of Public Instruction, and a member of the Council of State.
Michele Morrow’s background as a nurse and homeschool teacher has helped form her perspective on education. She beat out the current superintendent Catherine Truitt for the Republican nomination by a very narrow margin. Morrow wants to make public schools safe and to stop bullying so homeschool parents will feel comfortable sending their children to school. Her priorities include safety, discipline, and academics. As reported on WUNC, Morrow in reference to homeschool parents, stated, “… and they weren’t going to have this worldview that is not their family’s worldview, pushed on their children.” She is very critical of the current public school system and has urged some parents not to send their kids there. It has been quoted that she while she was on her campaign trail she called public schools “indoctrination and socialism centers.”
Mo Green refers to himself as the “very soul of public education”. He spent seven years as superintendent in the third-largest school district in North Carolina. Green also was an executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation and a school district attorney in Charlotte. The Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation is dedicated to improving the quality of life for all North Carolinians. Governor Roy Cooper asked Green to run for the superintendent position because he thought he would be a good fit. He won the Democratic nomination by a very wide margin.
Mo Green’s campaign has put forth six pillars he will prioritize if elected. Those include preparing students for their next stage of life, investing fully in public education, revered public school educators, enhancing parent and community support, ensuring safe and secure learning environments, and to celebrate the good in public education. https://www.mogreenfornc.com/ On her website, Michele Morrow has six issues on which she will campaign. Her issues are that she wants safe schools, to put academics first, to have parent-friendly schools, American unity and patriotism, to get DC out of NC schools, and to put an end to wasteful spending. https://www.morrow4nc.com/
Morrow is known for making very controversial comments online. She attended the riot at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. She has made multiple comments about executing Democrats. She tweeted about former President Barack Obama saying, “I prefer a pay-for-view of him in front of a firing squad”. She has made multiple comments about executing Roy Cooper, Ilhan Omar, Andrew Cuomo, Bill Gates, Hillary Clinton, and many more Democrats for treason. Morrow also referred to Green’s foundation as a “far-left extremist group”.
Currently, 40% of voters plan to vote for Green, while 38% are planning on voting for Morrow according to a WRAL news poll. The race is considered a statistical tie. Green’s voters are mostly women under 50, and Morrow’s voters are mostly men over 50. Education Week’s Libby Stanford described the choice between Green and Morrow as “a person with experience teaching in and leading K-12 schools or an outsider with a potentially new take on education policy”. Some voters have decided to switch their vote from Morrow to Green based on controversial comments she has made in the past. A WRAL news poll also stated that although 36% of people said those comments did not affect their vote. 25% of people said that Morrow’s comments have made them more supportive of her.
The election for North Carolina superintendent is on November 5. This will determine the direction for North Carolina public schools. The new superintendent will have great influence over our public schools. Anyone who will be 18 or older by October 11, can register to vote. You can register to vote at https://vote.gov/register/north-carolina.