Editor’s note: Port City Daily invited all candidates for Brunswick County Board of Education to participate in our candidate questionnaire series. Candidates’ responses have not been edited for length or content.
Name: Ray Gilbert
Office Sought: Brunswick County Board of Education- Dist. 1
Political Affiliation: Democrat
Age: 45
Personal/family information: Husband and father of three students in Brunswick County Schools at each level of our schools (elementary, middle and high school). Born to a Soldier and a Head Cook.
Education:
North Carolina State University, Justice Fellowship, Morris College, Benedict College, Duke University, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Arkansas State University, Southern Arkansas University, North Carolina Institute for Political Leadership, N.C. School Board Association and many other hours of various training and seminars.
Profession: Pastor; small business owner; director, The Fatherhood Resource Center; Cape Fear Community College staff and business development trainer; university recruitment and retention specialist; 23+ years of state and federal government experience; Community Connections; PTO and PTA president; SE Employment and Training Association chairman; Jessie Mae Monroe Parent Advisory Committee president and lifetime member of NAACP; board member, Brunswick County Communities in Schools; umpire (Baseball and Softball); chairman, N.C. Fatherhood Advisory Committee; Baptist State Convention of North Carolina; SE Economic Development Commission; N.C. Employment and Training Association; Presbytery Board, Ocean View Missionary Baptist Association.
Previous elected/appointed office:
Brunswick County Board of Education (2004-2008)
Southeastern Center (Mental Health) Area Board
Southeastern North Carolina Economic Development Board
active in Brunswick County politics for 20 years; worked with Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and Independents.
What are the biggest issues in education facing Brunswick County students, teachers and administrators?
Education system greatest challenges are failure for the board and superintendent to effect the classrooms with affective learning that will increase student performance and the lack of accountability for how the board spends taxpayers money. If our student performance will be improved, it will only be done through the classroom and fostering a learning environment with partnership to include with students, parents, community and business. We must allow the local administrator to manage the school, staff and resources. We should give the principal and local school advisory committee the authority to make decisions for their schools and hold them accountable for the outcomes.
1) students: Need for academic and career options for students who are entering the workforce after high school. We need every student to have a personalized education plan that the student and counselor meets every year of high school to review and discuss possible changes. We need a vocational and virtual school that will allow for more academic options for students. We need to allow student choices and chosen vocations to drive their education, instead of what the system desires for the student. We need more time focused on students instead of the adults in our schools. We can remove some of these challenges by utilizing tablets and digital books, and this will encourage student learning and excitement because of technology. Long bus rides are a major challenge to students and should be reduced immediately. The board and the administration celebrates spending nearly $200, 000 on a survey to monitor customer satisfaction and determine if we need a vocational school. This could have purchased 3 buses.
The time has come that we stop making our students suffer the brunt of financial cuts and decisions by board members who do not have children in our schools. We need a parent on the board who can understand from a parent’s view how the policies and decisions affect students and families.
2) Teachers: The uncertainty of job security, low morale, tough economic times, and the intimidation by administrators and the demands of a teacher. Many teachers have a desire to teach and reach, but are trapped by board and administration politics. Teachers face the challenge of having to buy teaching supplies from their personal funds during the many budget cuts
3) Administrators: Poor Board and Administrative Leadership: With all these years of experience from board members to administrators, we should have more than 37% of our 19 schools meeting the minimum academic standard and making AYP (Adequate yearly Progress). Board and administrators pay should be frozen until a plan is developed to improve academics. The administration and the board should be strong in leadership but they are weak according to AdvancEd Report. Now the entire Brunswick County School System is on what amounts to Academic Probation, and left without correction will render our high school diplomas useless. This will mean that colleges and universities will not recognize the diploma from an accredited institution. Administrators are paid to much for the poor leadership and guidance of our schools!
Do you support teacher tenure? If so, does it need to be reformed? If not, how do you attract the best teachers to a state with historically lower teacher salaries than many other states?
Teacher tenure is less important to me than quality teachers and teaching. I believe good teachers should have their jobs until they can no longer be good and effective teachers. This should be determined by objective evaluation and never personal issues. Tenure may protect a few bad teachers, but I am sure it protects many more great teachers.
We attract the best teachers by compensation, training and building relationships with the business community that will allow for incentives for great teachers to relocate to our county. It is amazing how tax-payer money will be used to recruit industries (jobs) but not great teachers. Great teachers give us return on investment that will out way any company that relocates and close up the factory in 10 years. Great teachers have impacts for life. I can still remember Mrs. Hale, Mrs. Hanson, Mrs. And Mrs. Jones, Principal Wooley, Coach Davis, Coach Brown and Mrs. Wright. They made an impression and had an impact in my life that is with me long after graduation and many are deceased! What is the value of a teacher and the value of an educator is a question that every legislator should answer! They inspired and used creativity to teach and reach! Another great way that I want to see the state treat classroom educators is to allow them to receive their full retirement after 25 years. Public safety (law enforcement, military and firemen) are eligible to retire after 20 years. We should allow all classroom educators who teach for 25 years in a North Carolina public school to retire with full benefits. Neither side in Raleigh is ready to do what it will take to take education in the state to where we can go, because legislators spend too much time on issues that divide our state instead of education!
Do you support The Common Core, the new statewide curriculum implemented across North Carolina this year? What are its strengths? What are its weaknesses?
Yes, I support certain aspects.
Strengths: Will allow teaching and teachers to be flexible and creative in their design of academic enhancement. We remove the cookie cutter and all learn and teach alike practice. This new system will help the system identify weak as well as strong teachers. Teachers should be giving the professional courtesy to teach their students with multiple resources, as long as the students master the subject.
Weaknesses: It creates an environment where evaluation can be tough. Weak teachers have very little guidance. The implementation and outcome expectations are difficult to discern.
Many candidates discuss plans for education reform in North Carolina. Do you think we need education reform? If so, please outline your plans for reform.
Yes we need reform!
Plans for reform:
1) Make all school boards non-partisan and limit their term to 2 4yr terms;
2) Remove the requirements to give administrators automatic 4 yr contracts after the initial 2 year contract;
3) Put more spending focus in the classrooms (encourage teachers to stay in classes);
4) Require student, parent and school contracts and agreement plans for students education;
5) Create a system of charter schools for vocation and virtual (computer/web based education) schools to allow for more education options for students;
6) Strengthen parent participation in schools via Parent Advisory Committee;
7) Utilize community based organizations to enhance education opportunities through after-school services;
8) Require boards to visit schools that they governed at least twice a month;
9) Allow for $100 bonus for the teacher for every student who passes whatever grading standard that NC utilizes at the time of testing ($50 to Teacher Assistants);
10) Place Teacher Assistants in the classroom of K-4;
11) Require every student to have an annual review of their academic plan;
12) Allow financial literacy and money management for every 7th Grader in NC schools:
