In advance of the Wake County School Board meeting scheduled for later today, we went in the field yesterday with a flash poll to gauge Wake County voters’ opinions of the more contentious issues. And the results were pretty surprising. Those issues we thought were supposed contentious really aren’t. The voters are loud and clear — they don’t want mandatory year round and they don’t want busing for diversity.
Do you support the current school board policy of assigning some students to mandatory year round schools or should parents be given a choice between sending their child to a school that is year round or traditional calendar? You will have the choice to be undecided or have no opinion.
Support current policy for year round – 18.1%
Think parents should be given a choice – 74.9%
No opinion – 7.1%
Do you support or oppose the school board’s current policy of assigning students to schools based on achieving diversity, instead of sending students to the school closest to their home? You will also have the choice of being undecided.
Support the policy – 22.0%
Oppose the policy – 68.3%
No opinion – 9.7%
These positions are held across racial, political and every demographic group we polled. In fact, those with children or grandchildren in Wake County Public Schools feel even more strongly in their opposition to the old school board’s status quo.
Do not be fooled by the intensity of the rhetoric coming from the vocal left. They are nothing more than a loud but very small minority on this issue. An overwhelming majority of Wake County voters want the school board to make changes.
Full press release, crosstabs are here.