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Caldwell County Schools elections (2016)

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Caldwell County Schools Elections
General election date:
November 8, 2016
Enrollment (13–14):
12,103 students

Three of the seven seats on the Caldwell County Schools school board were up for at-large general election on November 8, 2016. Incumbents Darrell Pennell, Linda Coffey, and Tim Hawkins filed for re-election and were joined on the ballot by one newcomer: Ann Edwards. Pennell, Edwards, and Hawkins won the election. There was no primary.[1][2]

Elections

Voter and candidate information

Caldwell County Schools.JPG

Caldwell County schools are overseen by a seven-member board elected at large to four-year terms. Four seats were up for election in 2014 and three seats were up for general election on November 8, 2016. Candidates had to file by August 8, 2016, to get on the ballot. In order to run in the election, candidates had to collect petition signatures equal to four percent of the number of the county's registered voters as of January 1, 2016.[3]

Candidates and results

At-Large

Results

Caldwell County Schools,
At-Large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.png Darrell Pennell Incumbent 27.54% 22,115
Green check mark transparent.png Ann Edwards 24.06% 19,316
Green check mark transparent.png Tim Hawkins Incumbent 24.02% 19,287
Linda Coffey Incumbent 23.64% 18,985
Write-in votes 0.74% 592
Total Votes (100) 80,295
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Official General Election Results-Caldwell," accessed December 6, 2016

Candidates

Darrell Pennell Green check mark transparent.png Linda Coffey

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  • Board member 2012-Present

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  • Board member 2004-Present
Tim Hawkins Green check mark transparent.png Ann Edwards Green check mark transparent.png

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  • Board member 2008-Present

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Additional elections on the ballot

See also: North Carolina elections, 2016

The following offices shared primary, general or both election dates with the school board elections in Caldwell County:

Note: The date for North Carolina's congressional primary was June 7, 2016. This primary was originally scheduled for March 15, 2016.

Key deadlines

The following dates were key deadlines for this North Carolina school board election:[4]

Deadline Event
March 7, 2016 First quarter campaign finance deadline
March 15, 2016 Primary Election Day, if necessary
July 12, 2016 Second quarter campaign finance deadline
August 8, 2016 Candidate filing deadline
October 31, 2016 Third quarter campaign finance deadline
November 8, 2016 General Election Day
January 11, 2017 Fourth quarter campaign finance deadline

Endorsements

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.

Campaign finance

See also: List of school board campaign finance deadlines in 2016
Campaign Finance Ballotpedia.png

School board candidates in North Carolina were required to file campaign finance reports to their county's board of elections unless the candidate:

(1) Did not receive more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in contributions, and

(2) Did not receive more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in loans, and

(3) Did not spend more than one thousand dollars ($1,000).[5]

The third quarter campaign finance deadline was October 31, 2016, and the fourth quarter deadline was January 11, 2017.[6]

Past elections

What was at stake?

2016

Issues in the district

District's graduation rate exceeded state's

The graduation rate for Caldwell County Schools climbed again, and more students made advances in learning, with 95 percent of the district's schools receiving a C grade or better for the third year since North Carolina's A-F grading system was implemented, according to the State Board of Education. The district's four-year cohort graduation rate was 90.8 percent, which exceeded the state's average for the eighth consecutive year.[7]

“The school grade is generally a reflection of a state administered test at the end of the school year in elementary and middle school classrooms,” Superintendent Dr. Steve Stone said. “The high schools have several other indicators factored into their grade, but essentially student test scores on end-of-grade and end-of-course assessments make the determination whether a school is marked A, B, C, D or F.”[7]

According to the Caldwell Journal, a school's grade was based on two measurements: student achievement and graduation rate. Student achievement was defined as "the percent of students at Level 3 and above on end-of-grade and end-of-course tests as well as the percent of high school students meeting the benchmarks for the ACT, ACT WorkKeys, and math course rigor, and 20 percent school accountability growth."[7]

Transgender bathroom law
North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory (R)

North Carolina passed the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act (HB2) stating that individuals in government-operated facilities must use the bathroom that corresponds with the gender stated on their birth certificate on March 23, 2016. The law was passed by the legislature in a one-day specially-called session, and was signed into law that night by Governor Pat McCrory (R). The bill reversed an earlier ruling that allowed transgender individuals to use the restroom of their preference, and it offset local ordinances in the state that let transgender citizens do so.[8]

HB2's effect on NC school districts

Since HB2 was signed into law, many school districts in the state have struggled to formulate a response. Not only does Title IX prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex, but the state law's validity is being disputed in court. North Carolina school districts are unsure of how to balance these two laws. In the Wake County Public School System, Wake County sheriff Donnie Harrison said he would consider pulling deputies out of schools if the district does not decide on a consistent transgender bathroom policy. Harrison said the district did not have a uniform policy on the use of bathrooms by transgender students, which was causing confusion and unease among parents.[9][10]

Wake County logo.png

According to Lisa Luten, a Wake County Public School System spokesperson, transgender student issues with bathrooms and locker rooms are handled on a case-by-case basis. "No child has ever been at risk based on how we have handled this issue,” Luten said. “Because this issue is still being debated in federal courts, the school system is unable to create a formal policy.”[9] The district's superintendent James Merrill said that transgender bathroom questions ought to be addressed by administrators rather than student resource officers. According to Nathan Smith, the director of public policy for the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, the consequence is that many schools decide their transgender bathroom policies on a case-by-case basis, leading to conflicting messages.[9][11]

Lawsuits filed

On May 9, 2016, Gov. McCrory and the Justice Department filed opposing lawsuits, the former in support of the law and the latter against it. On one side, the U.S. Department of Justice's civil rights office said that the law is discriminatory and infringes on civil rights. “This action is about a great deal more than just bathrooms,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch. “This is about the dignity and respect we accord our fellow citizens and the laws that we, as a people and as a country, have enacted to protect them.” Gov. McCrory's lawsuit was against the Justice Department, charging the federal government with “baseless and blatant overreach.” McCrory defended the necessity of the law as a response to a nondiscrimination ordinance in Charlotte.[12]

The ACLU and the Justice Department asked a judge to hold off on HB2 while the lawsuit is being decided. According to federal documents, the trial could take place as early as October or November 2016. The Charlotte Observer stated that it would "not be unreasonable to expect Schroeder's ruling by the summer of 2017, perhaps before."[8]

Backlash

On July 21, 2016, the NBA announced it planned to move its All-Star Game from Charlotte, North Carolina, which was scheduled to be held there in 2017. According to the Charlotte Observer, this decision will cost the city approximately $100 million. On September 12, 2016, the NCAA ousted seven championships that were scheduled to be held in the state during the 2016-2017 school year. Two days later, the Atlantic Coast Conference made a similar decision, revealing it planned to move the men's football championship game scheduled for December 2016 from Charlotte.

Want to see how this election related to state and national trends on this topic? Ballotpedia tracked this issue in the 2016 election cycle so you can see the connections and impact on this race in context.

Click here for The Bite on this topic.


About the district

See also: Caldwell County Schools, North Carolina
Caldwell County Schools is located in Caldwell County, North Carolina.

Caldwell County Schools is located in Caldwell County, North Carolina. The county seat is Concord. Caldwell County was home to 81,287 residents between 2010 and 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[13] Caldwell County Schools is located in North Carolina. The district was the 34th-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 12,103 students.[14]

Demographics

Caldwell County underperformed in comparison to North Carolina as a whole in terms of higher education attainment from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 13.4 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 27.8 percent for state residents. The median household income in the county was $34,853, compared to $46,693 for the state. County residents lived below the poverty level at a rate of 18.8 percent, while that rate was 17.2 percent for state residents.[13]

Racial Demographics, 2015[13]
Race Caldwell County (%) North carolina (%)
White 92.0 71.2
Black or African American 5.1 22.1
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.6 1.6
Asian 0.7 2.8
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0.1 0.1
Two or More Races 1.5 2.1
Hispanic or Latino 5.0 9.1

Caldwell County Party Affiliation, 2014[15]
Party Registered Voters % of Total
Republican 20,759 41.2
Democratic 14,155 28.0
Libertarian 200 0.4
Unaffiliated 15,268 30.3

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Caldwell County Schools' 'North Carolina'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Caldwell County Schools elections (2016) - Google News

See also

Caldwell County Schools North Carolina School Boards
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External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Elisabeth Moore, "Email conversation with Sandra Rich," August 10, 2016
  2. ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Unofficial General Election Results-Caldwell," accessed November 8, 2016
  3. ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Petitions in North Carolina," accessed September 3, 2016
  4. ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Reporting Schedules," accessed November 1, 2016
  5. ↑ General Assembly of North Carolina, "Chapter 163: Elections And Election Laws, Article 22A - Regulating Contributions and Expenditures in Political Campaigns," accessed February 11, 2016
  6. ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Reporting Schedules," accessed October 11, 2016
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Caldwell Journal, "Caldwell County graduation rate well above state; gains in student performance," September 3, 2016
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Charlotte Observer, "Understanding HB2: North Carolina’s newest law solidifies state’s role in defining discrimination," March 26, 2016
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Daily Tarheel, "Wake County sheriff calls for consistent transgender bathroom policy," September 29, 2016
  10. ↑ CBS North Carolina, "Wake sheriff threatens to pull deputies over transgender bathroom policy," September 27, 2016
  11. ↑ The News & Observer, "Four things to remember about House Bill 2," September 13, 2016
  12. ↑ Washington Post, "North Carolina, Justice Dept. file dueling lawsuits over transgender rights," May 9, 2016
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 United States Census Bureau, "Caldwell County, North Carolina," accessed September 3, 2016
  14. ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
  15. ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "NC Voter Statistics Results," accessed August 12, 2014
2016 Caldwell County Schools Elections
Election date:November 8, 2016
Candidates:At-Large: Incumbent, Darrell Pennell • Incumbent, Linda Coffey • Incumbent, Tim Hawkins • Ann Edwards
Important information:What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines
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