The following is a letter from a concerned citizen of North Carolina, Anthony Bruno, to Governor Pat McCrory. Those of you following this blog have noted that our Governor has his heart in the right place, but the information he is getting on Common Core is coming from those with a vested interested in making sure it stays put.   Hit the Petition button on the top right side of this page. Tell Governor McCrory to stand up for our kids and end Common Core.

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Good Friends,
Gov. McCrory has been disappointing in his continued support of Common Core.  I believe he has been influenced by people who know little about it, yet continue to promote it.

This is the reason I went to the governor’s website and completed the form to urge him to support legislation to replace Common Core with a state developed standard recently passed by the General Assembly.

If you agree Common Core is not the best education standard for NC students, please take a few minutes and let the governor know why.

You can also share your opinion with the governor as this link.   http://www.governor.state.nc.us/contact/email-pat
The letter I sent. (Below)

Gov. McCrory,
I read your criticism of those who oppose Common Core, and strongly disagree it is conservatives pushing to replace it.  If you believe this either you have not spoken to and of the wide array of critics or have been relying on the editorials in the News and Observer which continues to blame the Tea Party.

Rather than agreeing it is “not a smart move” to reject Common Core, I believe it is not smart to continue implementation of his untested national standard with what has been learned and documented.
I don’t know to what extend you have studied Common Core, followed the work of Study Committee, or even met with professionals who brought to light the
flaws and even the manner in which it was adopted.

I’m sure you know Lt. Gov. Dan Forest took the lead, and worked for over a year trying to bring light information from June Atkinson, who refused to cooperate
at first, and then employed a childish response to his requests. Even, in my own meetings with Dr. Atkinson she refused to address my concerns, only saying such criticism is “propaganda”.

And while Lt. Gov. Forest was having difficulty gathering information, parents throughout the state saw the problems first hand. They were the ones spending evenings with their children who struggled with their homework, while promoters of Common Core remained indifferent and dismissive.

Across the spectrum, not solely conservatives, saw the problems, from nationally respected educators such as Diane Ravitch and Randi Weingarten who identified problems with testing and content.

And while respected individuals, Gov. Hunt and Jim Goodnight, are sounding an alarm Common Core is essential, I doubt either of them sat down with a 3rd grader who is being introduced to ‘critical thinking’, beyond their development as identified by psychologists in both NY and MA.

Common Core is being sold to the American people on fear, no different then the anti-fracking activists are challenging your initiative to strengthen our economy.

Lastly, I think you should see who lines up on which side of the issue.  Most in favor of Common Core are school boards, some county commissioners,
PTA, chambers of commerce and businesses.  While the opposition has been public education’s ‘customers’… parents and students!  Even teachers brave enough to speak out and independent organizations that studied Common Core reached the conclusion it is not what NC students need.

I would welcome the opportunity to meet with your staff to discuss why an untested national education will not achieve the lofty promises.

Regards,
Anthony Bruno
Cary, NC