For me, fighting for our schools means ensuring all students are well-fed and learning environments support healthy, balanced development. It also means looking out for the adults in the room, lifting administrative burdens off our school staff, and fiercely protecting our public funds for their intended purpose: our public schools.
Empowering and Retaining Educators
Our teachers and school staff are the foundation of strong schools. I believe in centering educator expertise, fighting for highly competitive pay, and actively creating conditions where great teaching can flourish. Through many candid conversations with my sister, a Wake County public school teacher, I have gained a sharp understanding of the overwhelming administrative demands placed on our educators. Beyond increasing compensation, we must evaluate what we can safely take off teachers' plates. By reducing unnecessary operational burdens and redundant paperwork, we can give our educators the time and energy they need to focus entirely on what they do best: teaching our children.
Supporting the Whole Child
Especially in the early years, we must ensure students have a balanced experience that includes ample outdoor time, the arts, and physical movement. While digital tools have a place, we must prioritize tactile, physical books in the classroom and ground our technology policies in data-backed, age-appropriate recommendations. Furthermore, as artificial intelligence adoption grows, we need a proactive, thoughtful framework for its integration and regular auditing to ensure we are staying attuned to best practices.
Ensuring Students’ Basic Needs Are Met
Students cannot reach their full potential if they are sitting in class hungry. Addressing food insecurity must be an urgent priority, and I will leverage my professional background in food policy to bring real solutions to our cafeterias. Our state has the financial means to provide universal free school meals, just like the 9 other states who have led the way on this issue. Securing state-level funding for free school meals will permanently relieve the financial pressure on our county budget and provide much needed access to students who most need support.
Protecting Public Education
Wake County’s public schools are one of our community’s greatest cultural and economic strengths. I am committed to fighting for adequate, reliable funding so that every single public school student has access to an excellent education. I plan to leverage my advocacy background to partner with rural counties, which are the hardest hit by state-level underfunding. Together, we can build a unified, statewide voice to advocate effectively at both the state and federal levels for the robust public school funding our children deserve.