Air Force report gives WCPS a failing grade

The first of what will be an annual study conducted by the Department of the Air Force has revealed that of the 154 school districts that serve the children of airmen across the nation, Wayne County Public Schools is among the worst — particularly in the “most important area,” academic performance.

The results of the assessment will, according to the USAF, “now be one of several factors considered in future basing decisions.”

Seymour Johnson Air Force Base’s annual economic impact on Wayne County is nearly $800 million. The county has worked diligently for decades to position itself to be safe from the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process.

There were three categories researched for the “Public Education” section using data through 2019 — academic performance, school climate and service offerings. Each received one of three “scores” — green is the highest mark a school system could receive, yellow indicates work to do and red is the worst.

Here is where WCPS stands:

Academic Performance (RED) — “The most important area, this measures student learning and successful program completion.”

• Graduation rate, Yellow

• Student learning rate, Red

School Climate (YELLOW) — “Captures whether the schools provide an environment supportive of academic learning.”

• Chronic absenteeism rate, Green

• Suspension rate, Red

Service offerings (YELLOW) — “Includes programs and staff designed to ease transitions and provide emotional and academic support to students.”

• Pre-kindergarten availability, Yellow

• Student to counselor ratio, Green

• Student to mental health support ratio, Yellow

• Student to nurse ratio, Yellow

• Student to teacher ratio, Green

The other section of the report, “Licensure Portability,” rated North Carolina, along with 44 other states, in the yellow and was included because “military families report that the decision to continue military service is influenced by the ability of their spouses to sustain careers.”

The release of the Air Force’s findings comes as WCPS’ interim superintendent prepares to deliver a budget proposal to the Wayne County Board of Education Monday that is certain to include staff cuts — a result of a multi-million-dollar budget deficit some members of the board have blamed on hiring far more teachers than the state allotment pays for.

Whether or not the cuts, which could take the form of everything from layoffs and reductions in teachers’ stipends to making the district’s hiring freeze permanent, will impact next year’s study remains to be seen. However, making up for the deficit by not replacing the positions of those who have resigned or retired would almost certainly impact one of WCPS’ three “green” areas, student to teacher ratio.

In recent days, Rep. John Bell, the State House’s majority whip, and 4th Fighter Wing Commander Col. Kurt Helphinstine, at separate community meetings, noted a need to “fix” the local school system, but did not directly mention the report.

At the Chamber of Commerce’s annual Legislative Breakfast Sept. 25, Bell said one of the most important tasks necessary to move the county forward was to “fix its K-12 education system.” Earlier this week, Helphinstine echoed his sentiments at the Chamber’s State of the Military event — saying he was committed to working with the next superintendent to provide all the support he could, including getting his airmen and leadership team more involved and more visible in classrooms and school buildings across the district.

We have reached out to local and state leaders about the Air Force’s findings and we will share their analysis and thoughts in the coming days.