1. Voter turnout has been low.
2. The electoral process for Board of Education positions is district-based.

District-based elections mean that Wake County citizens may only vote for only one of the nine Board of Education positions.  In other words, 89% of the board members who determine the educational fate of our children are not accountable to the community at large.

This must change.  Wake County citizens deserve voting rights for all Board of Education positions.  Only then can we elect responsible leaders who have full accountability.

The Board of Education electoral process is controlled by the North Carolina General Assembly.  In 2007, bills were introduced in the NC Senate and House of Representatives that would establish at-large elections for the Wake County Board of Education.  The bills failed because some of our own state representatives from Wake County would not provide their support.  Think about it, our own representatives in the NC State government voted to limit our voting rights regarding the education of our children.

What we are seeking, most of North Carolina already has.  Today, 86% of North Carolina counties have at-large elections for School Board members, or allow citizens to vote for more than one board position.  72% of North Carolina counties allow citizens to vote for a majority of School Board positions.  In fact, 67% of counties in North Carolina conduct elections in which citizens vote for every position on the School Board.

Our Mission:

We need state legislative support to enable at-large elections for Board of Education positions.  This must be raised as the central issue in the 2008 elections for NC State representatives.  Our primary objective is voter outreach and education.  Citizens need to participate in the 2008 elections.  They need to know which candidates support at-large Board of Education elections, and which candidates will continue to deny us our just voting rights.  Through this Web site and community outreach programs, we will:

• Assist voters in identifying their districts and candidates
• Profile candidates, including their position on at-large elections
• Provide a portal for the numerous citizen-based advocacy groups across Wake County, all of whom include school reform in their agendas
• Explain the state legislative process, and the two bills introduced in the House and Senate

TakeOurSchoolsBack.org is sponsoring a Web-based petition (see link on site navbar).  This document outlines our request for full voting rights via at-large elections for the Board of Education, and all Wake County citizens are invited to sign on.  This petition will be presented to each candidate for state legislative office, to ensure they know that broad-based citizen support exists for election reform.

Thousands of Wake County parents have attended protest meetings, rallies and Board of Education hearings.  In the overwhelming majority of cases, the board dismisses these individual groups of parents as representing a 'vocal minority,' and as such dismisses their concerns.  Reforming the electoral process for the Wake County Board of Education will not change things overnight.  It is a long-term engagement that represents the best hope for Wake County citizens to reclaim our school system from the Educrats.  Please join us.