Friends,

Imagine this.

It’s the first day of school and North Carolina’s kids are pumped to return to class. Every child walks into a bright classroom led by an excellent teacher who knows their name and story. shelves are stocked with supplies. Buses run on time. The cafeteria is serving healthy food. Parents and caregivers feel confident their kids are safe and will get the support they need to thrive.

For decades, North Carolina leaders worked to make this vision a reality.

Starting in the 1970s, a bipartisan coalition of governors, legislators, educators, parents and leaders in business and philanthropy united behind a bold effort to invest in our local public schools.

The results? By 2000, NC ranked in the top 20 states for teacher pay, and student achievement was rising faster than in any other state.

The lesson is clear: when we invest in NC’s public schools, our children– and our state– succeed.

But in the last 15 years, we’ve slipped backwards. Today, North Carolina ranks 48th in per-student funding and 43rd in teacher pay. Districts across the state, including in ZSR’s hometown of Winston-Salem, face budget crises. Teachers pay thousands of dollars out of their own pockets for supplies.

Meanwhile, instead of fully funding public schools that serve every child, NC’s leaders recently chose to expand a voucher program that uses taxpayer dollars to subsidize wealthy families’ tuition to private schools that can discriminate against students based on religion, disability status, or academic achievement.

Our children are paying the price for choices our leaders have made.

Public education is the foundation of North Carolina’s future, and it’s time to invest in it. We’ve done it before. We can do it again.

All for NC,

Joy Vermillion Heinsohn

ZSR Executive Director