ICYMI: Roy Cooper waged war on school choice

This week, NCGOP Chairman Jason Simmons writes in The Center Square about the history of Roy Cooper's war on school choice.

Selected excerpts:

This academic year is monumental for students as they have more options available to select an institution that works best for them, regardless of their ZIP code. Families can choose from many opportunities available: public schools, public charter schools, private schools, religious-affiliated schools, and homeschools. 

It’s no surprise North Carolina has been considered a leader in the school choice movement. At one time expanding charter schools and opportunities outside of traditional public schools was a goal lauded by both political parties. However, radical left Democrats led by former Gov. Roy Cooper broke North Carolina’s bipartisan agreement on school choice.

Only among the radical left is school choice a problem: history shows Democrats once agreed with giving children a fair shot at obtaining a quality education. That radical left is led by Cooper, who waged war on school choice as governor. In his lame duck year in office, he went so far as to call school choice an emergency on par with hurricane warnings and public health concerns.

Cooper’s state of emergency sham was called “The Year of Public Schools” – making no mention of parents or students.

In nearly every budget cycle, Cooper zeroed out funding for Opportunity Scholarships, arguing the money going directly to families to escape a failing school should go elsewhere. Cooper and his Democrats misled the public about the source of funding: the General Assembly fully funded North Carolina’s public schools, increasing appropriations every year for over a decade. This is a shameful lie perpetuated by Cooper and the radical left.

Radical left Democrats nationally continue to defend the status quo while math and reading scores for 13-year-olds are at the lowest level in decades, 6 in 10 fourth graders and nearly three-quarters of eighth graders are not proficient in math, and 7 in 10 fourth and eighth graders are not proficient in reading, while 40% of fourth grade students don’t even meet basic reading levels.

Democrats today firmly stand in the doorway between students and the education they deserve. It’s no wonder, then, why Roy Cooper wants to join Randi Weingarten and his fellow radical left activists in Washington.