In 2011, when a Democratic majority regained control of Wake County’s school board, diversity advocates believed they could rest easy for a few years. They were wrong. Republicans who control the Wake County Board of Commissioners have devised a scheme that would sap much of the democratically elected school board’s power. The two boards have […]
Will Huntsberry
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Posted inNews
Raleigh universities urge Wake commissioners to stop delaying transit
Wake county commissioners are being called out on public transit—again. This time it’s Raleigh colleges and universities insisting commissioners stop blocking a half-cent sales tax referendum that would bring light rail and expanded bus service to the Triangle. In a letter obtained by INDY Week, and mailed to county commissioners today, William Peace University president […]
Posted inUncategorized
The Legislature’s disgraceful first two weeks
Don’t blink. North Carolina’s legislative session started in earnest less than two weeks ago, and conservatives in Raleigh have been very busy. A nipple ban proposed by Rep. Rayne Brown, R-Davidson, and Rep. Tim Moffitt, R-Buncombe, would make it illegal for a woman to bare any part of her nipple in public. The rule wouldn’t […]
Posted inNews
Diversity coming back to Wake schools
It has taken a long time, but officially enshrining diversity into Wake County’s student assignment policy is nearly here. On Thursday, the school board’s student achievement committee will meet to discussing striking neighborhood schools language from the assignment policy and re-establishing the prevention of high-poverty schools.
Posted inUncategorized
N.C. State wants to sell its largest forest and invest the proceeds in Wall Street
Joe Hardison woke at 5 a.m. Monday, as he always does, and sat on his porch with his coffee and his cat. From his rocking chair, he looked over a dense pine forest and watched the horizon brighten. Hardison, 77, has worked this land in Hofmann Forest for 58 years. His official title is Operations […]
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Debra Goldman resigns from Wake school board
The conservative voting bloc on Wake County’s school board is fading fast. Debra Goldman confirmed to the News and Observer today that she is moving to Wilkes County and has submitted her resignation to the Board of Education. This could allow Democrats on the board to create a 7-2 majority, which would be more diversity-friendly […]
Posted inGuides
All of Us NC: Shaping the charge against the gay marriage amendment
The county-by-county breakdown of May’s Amendment 1 referendum might make a queer personor a straight personnever want to set foot outside of the Triangle again. On May 8, 2012, an overwhelming proportion of North Caroliniansmore than 60 percentvoted in favor of a constitutional ban on gay marriage, as well as a ban on official domestic […]
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Wake forced to correct how it educates students on long-term suspension
The Wake County school system has officially conceded that it has to do a better job educating students with disabilities who receive long-term suspensions. Advocates for Children’s Services lodged an official complaint against Wake in July of last year and Wake has come up with a corrective plan of action as part of a settlement […]
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Why hyperlocal websites like New Raleigh can’t make money online
It started, as good ideas often do, in the back room of a bar. David Millsaps, a designer and web consultant in his mid-20s, brought together several other creative types at Mitch’s Tavern in 2007. The topic was the need for a Raleigh-focused online publication that could capture the city’s growing cool. “You’ve got this […]
Posted inNews
INDY Week columnist Bob Geary wins leadership award
My work often takes me to community advocacy meetings and puts me in contact with people who fight fiercely for a better Wake County. When I tell them I work with INDY Week, the first thing they tell me, almost 100 percent without fail, is how much they love Bob Geary. When I showed up […]