MICHELE MORROW
FORMER SCHOOL BOARD
OPPONENT BLASTS
MICHELE MORROW
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
With less than thirty days before the North Carolina General Election, the man who defeated MAGA Republican Michele Morrow for a Wake County School Board seat in 2022 has written an open letter to the Black Press, warning that Morrow must be defeated in her current campaign to become state superintendent of Public Instruction.
He says that “…her vision for our public schools was dangerous.”
Tyler Swanson, who currently serves on the Wake County Board of Education, continued that Morrow’s approach to education policy “…threatens to dismantle the community-focused education system that our students, parents, and educators rely on. Her character and lack of commitment to North Carolina’s public schools should disqualify her from any role in governance. How can someone lead an institution they fundamentally do not believe in?”
Morrow, a controversial conservative and strong supporter of former President Donald Trump and Republican gubernatorial nominee Lt. Governor Mark Robinson, is a product of North Carolina public schools, even though she is also a staunch critic of the state public school system, calling it an “indoctrination center.” Currently, Morrow home schools her five children.
A resident of Cary, she shocked the political world last March when she defeated Republican incumbent state Supt. of Public Instruction Cathy Truitt during the GOP primary. Morrow also drew scrutiny when CNN revealed that she attended the January 6th, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol, and once called for former President Barack Obama to be executed by firing squad on pay-per-view TV.
A nurse by profession, Morrow’s home schooling is the only educational experience she has, having never taught in a classroom or served as a school administrator. Swanson defeated Morrow in 2022 in their race for the Wake County School Board.
On her website, Morrow claims to be a proponent of safe schools, parent-friendly schools, American unity and patriotism, getting Washington, D.C. out of NC Schools, and an end to wasteful spending in education.
She has tried to tone down her publicly stated controversial conservative views since winning the GOP primary, in order to attract more mainstream support.
Swanson warns that Morrow’s right-wing political allegiances would harm public education in North Carolina if she were to be elected in the fall.
“If she was elected to lead DPI [the Dept. of Public Instruction] she would serve as a pawn for Trump’s Project 2025—a plan that would erode our public institutions—further highlights her unsuitability,” Swanson charges. “Michele Morrow is the wrong choice for North Carolina, and we must reject her at all costs.”
Swanson continued, “The danger doesn’t stop with Morrow. We need to carefully scrutinize others running for local Board of Education seats, NC House and Senate Races who share her views and vision. These individuals will quietly work to push their extreme ideologies, posing just as much of a threat to our public education system as she does. Make no mistake: if we allow people like Morrow and her allies to infiltrate our school boards, NC House and Senate, we will see the dismantling of the values that make public education a cornerstone of our democracy.”
“In contrast, we have a true champion of public education in [former Guilford County Supt.] Mo Green,” Swanson wrote. “As my superintendent in Guilford County Schools, Mo Green set high standards for everyone in the district—students, teachers, and staff alike. His integrity, experience, and unwavering commitment to education are exactly what North Carolina needs. He is a leader who believes in the power of public schools and their role in shaping our future.”
Maurice “Mo” Green, the Democratic nominee for state Supt. of Public Instruction, calls his race against Morrow “a fight for the soul of public education” in North Carolina. Green also charges that if elected, Morrow would work to defund public schools by sending taxpayer dollars to unaccountable private schools.
Green, 56, on the other hand, has a distinguished record of leadership in education.
He is “known statewide as a champion of public education” and a strong supporter of teachers. Green spent seven years, from 2008 to 2015, successfully leading the Guilford County Public School System, the state’s third largest public school system, before going to work for the charitable Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation.
At the time, Guilford County Schools had 127 schools, over 72,000 students, about 10,000 employees and an over $600 million budget.
Green was the first African-American superintendent of the unified Guilford County School System.
“There is much to celebrate about public education in North Carolina and its transformative power,” Green said when he announced his intention to run for NC superintendent. “However, it is long past time for our state to truly fulfill its promise to each of its students – that no matter who you are, you will receive high-quality educational opportunities that will prepare you to be successful. We can make that happen if we invest fully in public education, ensure safe and secure learning environments for our students, enhance parent and community support, and revere our educators.”
“Let’s reject Michele Morrow’s divisive agenda and stand with leaders like Mo Green, who are dedicated to preserving and strengthening our public schools,” Wake School Board member Tyler Swanson said in ending his open letter. “Our students and our state deserve nothing less.”
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WHY CIAA SUSPENSION
OF SAU MATTERS
By Cash Michaels
Contributing writer
Yet another troubling episode in the continuing drama that is the survival of St. Augustine’s University (SAU) in Raleigh has occurred.
The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), of which SAU has been a member since 1933, has announced the suspension of the small, private HBCU for the rest of the 2024-25 academic year. That means none of SAU’s athletics teams will be allowed to participate in CIAA sanctioned competition from now through next spring, effective immediately.
The ruling of the CIAA Board of Directors, which came last Friday, is yet another blow to SAU, which is trying to recover from mounting lawsuits and debts, a diminished undergraduate student enrollment, fighting to retain its accreditation and dealing with difficult headwinds going forward.
Reportedly, the CIAA suspension is due to SAU not meeting the conference’s compliance requirements, in addition to the school’s problems in meeting NCAA sports sponsorships, and scheduling requirements for the balance of the current academic year.
So if popular sports like basketball or football were going to continue at SAU, they would not count in CIAA standings, nor would they be eligible for championship competition.
“While it is disheartening to make a decision of this magnitude that impacts one of our member institutions, the decision was guided through a fair, deliberate, and thoughtful process in efforts to determine what was best for the conference, while also protecting the wellbeing and holistic experience of the student-athletes,” said CIAA board chair Aminta Breaux in a statement.
As a member, SAU participated in NCAA Division II competition, a step down from Division I and I-A competition at larger institutions.
Being an historic CIAA Division II school gave SAU exposure and notoriety for all of its past championships won. That, in turn, helped to increase student enrollment and generate much needed revenues for the school.
According to the CIAA, there was concern that SAU would not be able to field at least ten sports teams this year as required by NCAA Division II compliance requirements. Reportedly, SAU was not going to field a softball team for spring 2024, or football and volleyball for fall 2024, leaving the bare minimum of just 10 sports for the 2024-25 season.
And there was concern that of those ten, SAU’s ability to complete men’s and women’s cross-country seasons, along with the compliance standards of other sports, was in serious doubt.
Originally known as the Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association when first founded in 1912, the CIAA now has 12 member schools (not counting suspended SAU). Headquartered in Charlotte, all of its member institutions are HBCUs.
While the CIAA is a Division II conference of the NCAA, it sponsors 14 annual championships, the most famous being the CIAA Basketball Tournament, considered one of the largest in the nation.
It will be a blow for many alumni of SAU not to participate in the heralded annual basketball event next year.
“Saint Augustine’s University has been a member of this conference for over 80 years,” said CIAA commissioner McWilliams Parker said in a statement. “Their administrators, coaches, students, student-athletes, alumni, and the SAU community are important and valued as part of the CIAA legacy.” Commissioner Parker added, “The CIAA will continue to support and rally around the Falcon family and President [Marcus] Burgess as they prepare to return for the 2025-26 season.”
At presstime, there was no comment from SAU.
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