There are some things John Hood (SMN, May 29) and his ilk don’t want you to think about in their relentless promotion of “school choice” and “educational freedom” — their feel-good euphemisms for the transfer of your taxpayer dollars to private, church-related and “charter” schools. Hood, who pops up everywhere these days, is a paid mouthpiece for the libertarian-conservative and free-market agenda of Art Pope (remember him?) — and it shows. 

As the July 1 budget deadline for Child Care Stabilization grants approaches, it appears the Republican-led North Carolina House and Senate are struggling to agree on how to spend the $30 billion or so taxpayer dollars slated for the upcoming fiscal year. 

Jackson County Public Schools announced that current assistant principal Joey Robinson has been named the new principal at Smoky Mountain High School. Robinson will step into his new role on July 1. 

To the Editor:

I am an emeritus faculty member in the College of Education and Allied Professions at Western Carolina University. I am concerned about the possible ending of the cooperative agreement between WCU and the Jackson County Public Schools regarding the Catamount School.

Last week, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction released performance and growth data for the 2022-23 school year, and none of the four school districts in the Smoky Mountain News coverage area received a low-performing state designation. 

Jackson County Schools recently approved an agreement to undergo a master planning process that will move the school system one step closer to securing a middle school. 

More students in Macon, Jackson and Haywood counties will receive free breakfast and lunch in the coming school year thanks to the Community Eligibility Provision and work by local school nutrition departments.

So this is what it’s come to.

Macon County has experienced incredible growth over the past several years, both in population and property values. Despite this increase in the tax base, county administration is recommending a revenue neutral tax rate that would leave Macon residents with the lowest property tax rate in the state, but with a public school system in need of more funding.

As Haywood County Schools hammered out its 2023-24 budget, administrators faced declining student population and the imminent end of COVID-era relief funds, both of which will diminish the amount of money available for the public school system.