North Carolina Sen. Deanna Ballard, R-Watauga, is standing firm in her support for school choice programs after several Democratic candidates for state superintendent assailed it as a form of resegregation.
“Resegregation is another offensive lie designed to drum up vitriol against a political party,” she said in a statement.
Candidates went on the record with their feelings about the program at a recent political forum in Raleigh at which Republican Superintendent Mark Johnson faced off against six Democratic candidates.
According to state records, about one in five school-aged children do not attend traditional public schools, while charter schools have a higher percentage of African-American students than public schools do.
Based on analysis by The Center Square, just over 26 percent of charter school students in North Carolina are African-American and black students make up just over a quarter of the public school population.
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