Paper Trail

CMS/Project LIFT partnership plans

2012-01-21T15:49:00.000-05:00

Project LIFT, the year-old philanthropic quest to pump $55 million into eight west Charlotte schools, got an enthusiastic reception from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board Saturday when it unveiled its plans for a groundbreaking partnership to transform the schools.

Read the plan here.

On Tuesday, the school board is scheduled to vote on a contract with Project LIFT. Read a draft of that contract here.

CMS: Help us find teachers

2011-11-30T10:42:00.001-05:00

Here's the memo Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools sent employees this week, seeking their help recruiting candidates for a program that prepares people without formal teacher training to become licensed teachers.

From: cmscommunications
Sent: Monday, November 28, 2011 12:10
To: cmsmailall
Subject: Do you know someone who would make a great teacher? Refer them to TEACH Charlotte.

Do you know someone who would make a great teacher? Refer them to TEACH Charlotte today: www.teachcharlotte.org.

You made the choice to dedicate each day to supporting education in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. You probably know other outstanding individuals who are also looking for an opportunity to make a difference by becoming teachers. While CMS currently has an accomplished group of professional educators, the need for additional high-quality teachers is always great. The TEACH Charlotte program is an aggressive campaign to recruit local and committed professionals, community members, and recent college graduates who have the potential to become effective teachers, joining us in our efforts to increase student achievement in CMS classrooms.

TEACH Charlotte is a highly selective, innovative path for talented mid-career professionals and recent college graduates to become teachers and make a measurable difference in the most critical subject areas of math, science, EC, and Spanish as well as elementary, English, and language arts. The goal of TEACH Charlotte is to recruit, select, and train only the most outstanding candidates who have the potential to effectively increase student achievement in their classrooms. Candidates do not need to have taken courses in education or have prior teaching experience, but they should be committed to ensuring the academic success of our students and our schools.

TEACH Charlotte participants will:

Complete a rigorous summer training to develop their ability to affect student achievement as a new teacher in a high-need school;
Achieve significant academic growth with all of their students and hold themselves accountable by measuring student outcomes in their classrooms;
Complete lateral entry requirements through the TEACH Charlotte TNTP Academy during their first year teaching to earn North Carolina licensure.
Committed educators attract other committed educators; therefore, principals and current teachers are the key to helping us attract the community’s brightest leaders to become teachers.

As soon as possible, refer any high quality professionals who you think would make great teachers to our website, www.teachcharlotte.org to apply to teach or help share information about this opportunity to others who might be interested in applying. The early application deadline is Dec.19.

We know that teacher quality is the most critical factor in raising student achievement for all students, regardless of background or socioeconomic status. TEACH Charlotte is committed to recruiting and preparing high-quality, effective teachers who will raise student achievement in the classrooms that need them most.

Feel free to contact Mallory O’Connell, TEACH Charlotte site manager, with any questions or suggestions.

TEACH Charlotte contact information:
980-343-5886 | info@teachcharlotte.org | www.teachcharlotte.org
Become a fan of TEACH Charlotte on Facebook.

CMS report: No safety data

2011-11-14T15:50:00.000-05:00

Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board member Kaye McGarry provided the Observer a copy of the school-closing report interim Superintendent Hugh Hattabaugh decided not to distribute last week.

It contains no information about safety or discipline at Harding High or any of the other 35 schools that saw change because of school closings and mergers. Instead, it lists enrollment, mobile classrooms and teacher vacancies at the affected schools. View it here.

McGarry and two other board members had asked Hattabaugh to report on issues connected with the closings; they all cited concerns about safety and order at Harding, which almost doubled in enrollment after taking students from the closed Waddell High. When the board voted 8-1 to wait until December to hold that discussion, Hattabaugh had his staff keep the written report. The Observer requested it, noting that is is a public document, and spokeswoman LaTarzja Henry said CMS will provide it. McGarry forwarded the copy sent to board members Friday night.

McGarry replied to Hattabaugh that "it does not address tension and safety issues at any of those schools ... please advise."

Roberts: "I am ready for the road ahead"

2011-11-14T11:08:00.010-05:00

Mecklenburg commissioners Chair Jennifer Roberts announced today she won't seek re-election next year. Click here to read her prepared remarks.

Roberts first joined the board in 2004, and said she'd planned to serve in the role for no more than eight years.

In her announcement, Roberts said it has been a difficult tenure with deep cutbacks to services and jobs since the recession. But she said the county has "turned the corner on this crisis," noting the county has kept its triple-A bond rating with credit agencies.

She pledged to make the coming year "my most dedicated year ever."

"I look forward to continue working on the issues that make our county strong: education, environment, responsible fiscal management and most importantly job creation. And I am eager to help showcase Charlotte and Mecklenburg County to the rest of the world during the DNC."

Roberts' said she isn't stepping away from public service and "is exploring new pathways to serve our region and our state, as we strive to be the best in which to live, work and recreate ... I am ready for the road ahead, for we still have far to go .. together." -- APRIL BETHEA

New pitch to CMS teachers

2011-09-26T13:51:00.000-04:00

After last spring's surge of distrust and discontent over performance pay, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools leaders are trying again to get teachers on board for changing the way educators are hired, trained, evaluated and paid. This year's effort is dubbed the Talent Effectiveness Project.

Details will be publicly unveiled at Tuesday's school board meeting, but CMS has circulated some information sheets outlining parts of the plan. Here's the outline of the teacher working teams they're recruiting for, and here's a look at some of the measures that might be used to evaluate and pay teachers.

A lot of this sounds like what officials and teachers were working on last year. The introduction to the Talent Effectiveness Project says officials listened and learned: "The initiative was first known as Pay for Performance, but it has grown and renewed its focus after more than a year of research, discussions and input from staff members across the district."

Berry responds

2011-09-03T16:00:00.000-04:00

Twenty years after North Carolina's deadliest workplace disaster, state officials overhauled N.C. OSHA and expanded it into one of the nation's largest workplace safety programs.

Now, however, there are signs that the safety focus has waned. Safety inspections and citations are at their lowest level in years.

In response to the Observer's questions, N.C. Labor Commissioner Cherie Berry provided this written statement.

- Ames Alexander

Sterilization documents can be shocking

2011-08-21T01:00:00.005-04:00

"You wouldn't expect a moron to run a train, or a feebleminded woman to teach school," begins a 1950 pamphlet from the Human Betterment League of North Carolina. The brochure, illustrated with Dick-and-Jane style drawings, pitches the notion that it's a favor to all concerned to stop "feebleminded" people from having children.

That's among the many public documents to be found at the N.C. Justice for Sterilization Victims web site, along with data about North Carolina's eugenic sterilization program, information about how to verify whether you or loved ones were operated on as part of the program and a preliminary report from the task force created to advise the governor on possible compensation.

Reps. Larry Womble and Earline Parmon have introduced a bill that would provide $20,000 each for living victims, though Womble has said he thinks the payments should be higher. That bill has yet to make it out of committee for a vote.

This summer, the John Locke Foundation released a paper arguing for compensation as a means of reminding government not to interfere in the private lives of citizens.

North Carolina has been grappling with its history of ordering tubal ligations, hysterectomies, vasectomies and castrations on children and adults deemed unfit to reproduce since a 2002 series in the Winston-Salem Journal exposed the story. In 2005, researcher Johanna Schoen, who uncovered the records that led to that series, published "Choice & Coercion," which provides even more details about eugenic sterilization, birth control and abortion in North Carolina.

And if you're still looking for more, the University of Vermont has summarized the eugenic sterilization movement in all states.

GOP statement on commissioner districts

2011-07-27T22:40:00.004-04:00

Republican members of a citizens' committee created to help Mecklenburg commissioners reset county election lines issued a statement today explaining why they asked state lawmakers to step into the redistricting debate.

The statement was signed jointly by Bryan Holladay, Larry Shaheen, Lee Teague and Mike Walker. -- APRIL BETHEA

A Statement from the Republican members of the Ad Hoc County Commission Redistricting Committee:

After a great deal of soul-searching , the Republican members of the Ad Hoc Redistricting Committee decided to inform local members of the state delegation from the Matthews and Mint Hill of a proposed plan by Democrats on the committee that would severely harm the interests of those towns. A plan we feared would be railroaded through the County Commission.

The Democrats had proposed a plan that created a new, radically different District 6 that winds from Matthews and Mint Hill through central Charlotte then all the way over to South Blvd. The Republicans repeatedly asked for either an explanation or a revision to the plan. At our final meeting and after subsequent requests, neither was forthcoming. It became obvious there would be none.

Our primary concern centers around the impact on the southern towns. Dividing them between two separate districts and tying them to significant areas of Charlotte far from them would dilute their voice on the County Commission and potentially deny them their due from County services such as schools and parks.

Over the course of last week, it has become apparent from email discussions on the four plans agreed to be sent to the Commissioners for consideration that the Democrats real intention was to use their majority on the Committee and the Commission to influence the type of Republican elected from this district. Phrases such as “change for change’s sake” and “an opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice” were bandied about. Their hope seems to be to see someone more to their liking at the expense of the southern towns.

We decided we had to take some action so we discussed the issue with the state House and Senate members from Matthews and Mint Hill. They shared our concerns. At their request, we combined the best aspects of all four plans into one fair, legal, and logical plan that minimizes the change from the current districts, produces compact districts that allow all for better interaction between commissioners and their constituents, meets all the guidelines from the County Commission, and keeps communities together. It is a good-faith effort to create six fair districts, not just three or four of them.

This plan has been introduced in the House of Representatives by Representative Brawley with the support of Senators Rucho and Tucker. We applaud the actions of these representatives to protect the interests of the southern towns and the southern part of Mecklenburg County against the redistricting plan proposed by the Democrats.

Bryan Holladay
Larry Shaheen
Lee Teague
Mike Walker

CRVA: National search for new CEO

2011-07-21T16:44:00.002-04:00

The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority will conduct a national search for a new chief executive in its plan to move current CEO Tim Newman to a new job overseeing business development, sales and marketing.

Click here to read the CRVA statement.

While the search is under way, "Tim will remain in his current position as chief executive," the statement says.

CRVA's goal is to finish the search by year's end.

- Doug Miller

CHS: county, not hospital, breached pact

2011-07-15T10:19:00.004-04:00

Carolinas HealthCare System alleges that Mecklenburg County has failed to honor its longtime contract with the hospital authority by eliminating indigent care funding and reducing money for the health department in its 2011-12 budget without proper notice. It also said the county has improperly withheld money to CHS in recent weeks.

In court papers filed Thursday, the hospital system asked the courts to compel the county to honor the terms of its agreement with CHS "unless and until such time as the contract is properly terminated with appropriate notice." Or, Carolinas HealthCare said, the court could order the county to pay damages.

Read the suit by clicking here. The filing comes two days after Mecklenburg commissioners voted to end the county's contract with Carolinas HealthCare effective June 30, 2013.

The hospital authority also wants a court to declare the CHS has fulfilled its obligations under the contract.

In June, county commissioners approved a budget that cut a subsidy to CHS and Novant Health toward indigent care. The spending plan also cuts $500,000 from a contract the hospital system has to manage services at the county's health department.

In its suit, Carolinas HealthCare says the county has the right to make changes to its agreement, but can't without appropriate notice. The suit also states that the withholding of payments to the hospital "terminates certain aspects of the 2000 Joint Undertaking, without providing CHS appropriate notice."

The county has withheld payments to the hospital systems since early June when County Manager Harry Jones and other administrators said CHS was in breach of its agreement. The county says the hospital has not provided certain patient data and other information required under the contract. This week, the county also claimed the hospital hasn't conducted psychiatric evaluations for disabled adults served by the Department of Social Services.

The hospital has denied both allegations. It says it has worked diligently to provide required data and in accordance with state and federal law. -- APRIL BETHEA

Emails show Wachovia's lobbying on bailout

2011-07-14T15:44:00.001-04:00

The U.S. Treasury recently provided the Observer with 17 pages of emails and other documents as part of a nearly three-year-old Freedom of Information Act request.

The documents show Wachovia's lobbying related to the bank bailout bill in September 2008 and other interactions with Treasury.

Click here to read the documents.

- Rick Rothacker

Projections soared during race for NASCAR Hall

2011-06-27T15:42:00.007-04:00

Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority officials rejected early, more modest attendance projections for the NASCAR Hall of Fame as competition to host the facility intensified between Charlotte, Atlanta and Daytona.

"It is not clear what, if any, due diligence was conducted in support of these upward revisions," concluded a report released today from a consultant who studied the authority.

Click here to read the Pricewaterhouse Coopers report.

The report said it is possible that the hall's failure to hit its projected first-year attendance of 800,000 - 274,000 visited in its first year - resulted from the weak economy.

But the CRVA chief executive and its board of directors should have clearly identified the potential lack of supporting evidence for the projections at the tax-supported project, the report said.

- Doug Miller

CMS: Middle school sports are back

2011-06-23T15:22:00.000-04:00

Here's the memo CMS officials sent to principals and board members today announcing that middle school sports won't vanish next year, as originally planned.

MEMORANDUM

TO: All Middle School Principals

THRU: Hugh Hattabaugh, Chief Operating Officer

Sue Doran, Interim Athletic Director

FROM: LaTarzja Henry, Executive Director, Communications

DATE: June 23, 2011

RE: Update on Middle School Athletics

ACTION: Communicate middle school sports changes

Funding for middle school athletics was cut from the 2010-2011 budget. However, we were able to fund it in 2010-2011 using high school and middle school participation fees, a $1 surcharge on high school ticket sales and community donations. In the spring, it again appeared that middle school athletics would be eliminated because a portion of the participation fees in high schools were needed to pay for high school sports. This did not leave enough money to fully fund middle school sports.

Since then, the district has identified a way to fund selected middle school sports for the 2011-2012 school year. We will share our plans with the CMS community on Wednesday, June 29. The hybrid model offerings are:

o Fall Season 2011:

§ Boys football

§ Girls cheerleading

§ Girls volleyball

o Winter Season 2011-2012:

§ Boys basketball

§ Girls basketball

§ Girls cheerleading

o Spring Season 2012:

§ Boys track & field

§ Girls track & field

These sports were selected based on high participation in recent years. They also meet Title IX requirements. For the 2011-2012 school year, softball, baseball, soccer and golf will not be offered. In order to ensure that principals and executive staff are informed, attached to this memo you will find:

Frequently Asked Questions: Please share this document with your athletic directors.

Sample Parent Letter from Principal: This letter may be tailored and distributed by principals to alert parents to the changes with back-to-school communications materials. Parents should not be informed of this change until the announcement is made on June 29.

Sample ConnectED Message: Principals are responsible for sending a ConnectED message at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 29. A sample ConnectED message is attached.

In addition, principals need to:

· Hire athletic directors and coaches, who are generally 10-month teachers receiving stipends but may also be non-faculty members receiving stipends only

· Update the school website no later than July 14 to list only the sports to be offered

· Send a ConnectED message to families at 7 p.m. on June 29

· Include a parent letter detailing changes to athletics in back-to-school communications material

This information will be released to the public at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, June 29.

Thank you.

c: Executive staff

CMS: Two weeks to transfer

2011-06-14T17:56:00.000-04:00

The latest twist in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools job shakeup is a new chance for employees to seek available positions starting Friday. According to a memo sent today, openings will trickle out throughout June, as CMS figures out what jobs will survive in the 2011-12 budget. District leaders planned for about 1,500 jobs to be cut and notified hundreds of people that their jobs could disappear, but then restored many of them after county commissioners bumped up the budget last week.

Here's the update:

From: cmscommunications
Sent: Tuesday, June 14, 2011 11:07 AM
To: cmsmailall
Subject: Transfer Opportunities

As of Friday, June 17, CMS employees will have an opportunity to apply for new positions throughout the district when we begin to post available positions and accept applications.

This opportunity is different from earlier years. The application process is not a general transfer fair. There are new procedures for applying for a position, and we will share details about the procedures later this week. One important change: Not all available jobs will be posted at once. Some will be posted on Friday, and daily updates of the postings will follow.

As part of the posting process, employees will be given priority in application but not necessarily in hiring decisions. We will give employees the opportunity to apply first for these jobs, and then we will choose the strongest candidates to fill them.

The decision to begin posting jobs was made following the announcement that Mecklenburg County would give CMS $26 million more than the district originally expected. The $26 million will cover two items in Tier 4 of the proposed cuts, and will provide partial funding for a third item.

The $26 million will cover the funding needed to keep our weighted student staffing formula at the current level, and to keep class sizes at current levels. Those two items add up to about $24 million. The remaining $2 million will be applied toward the $11 million needed to avoid cutting one support position at each school.

The status of funds to cover the proposed cuts in Bright Beginnings classes and teacher assistant positions has not been determined because we do not have the final state budget numbers. When we get that information, we will share it.

The application process is scheduled to close on June 30. If you are interested in applying for a job in one of the postings, please be sure to check your CMS email regularly throughout the rest of June for updates and more information.

Thank you.

CMS: Who's saved, who's not

2011-06-10T16:46:00.000-04:00

Even before Superintendent Peter Gorman dropped his bombshell, Wednesday's special school board meeting had reporters in turmoil, trying to figure out exactly what the "no layoffs" announcement meant. Normally the public relations staff would have been all over that, but the news that the boss is leaving does tend to divert time and energy.

Plenty of people have been trying to parse out exactly what the county's extra $26 million means for schools. Here's an explanation sent this afternoon. -- Ann Doss Helms

MEDIA RELEASE

For Immediate Release: June 10, 2011

County funding will avoid some layoffs at CMS, but not all

CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 10, 2011 – Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will be able to keep 570 educators, including 406 classroom teachers, because of an additional $26 million in county funding. However, district officials cautioned that layoffs may still be needed, depending on the final state budget.

The $26 million will be applied to three items in Tier 4 of the district’s proposed budget, which included about $101 million in proposed cuts. The items included teachers related to weighted student staffing, class size and instructional support staff in schools. By design, the fourth tier includes the reductions most likely to affect student achievement. District leadership told the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners during budget talks in June that any additional funding would be applied to Tier 4, starting at the bottom of the tier and working up.

“We will use the $26 million just as we told the county that we would,” said Chief Operating Officer Hugh Hattabaugh. “The $26 million will mean we don’t have to increase class sizes and we don’t have to change our weighted-student staffing formula. Together those two items add up to $24 million – and we’ll apply the remaining $2 million to the next item in the tier, which is support staff in schools.”

The remaining items in Tier 4 that the county money did not cover are a reduction of 328 teacher assistants and a reduction in the number of Bright Beginnings classes offered by CMS.

“We do not know whether we will have to make the additional reductions in Tier 4 yet,” Hattabaugh said. “It will depend on the state funding and we won’t know that until the state budget is final.”

District officials expect to have final state numbers by the end of June. The state budget appears likely to be resolved sooner than it has been in earlier years, so CMS could have those numbers earlier than usual.

The district’s proposed budget included eliminating 1,687 positions. The county funding has allowed the district to preserve 406 teacher positions and some support staff. If funding allows the district to keep its current number of Bright Beginnings pre-kindergarten classes with associated staffing and the 328 teacher assistants scheduled for reduction in Tier 4, that would bring the number of positions cut to about 600, Hattabaugh said. Final numbers won’t be available until the state funding is certain, which will be later in the summer.

The district has decided to close the pre-kindergarten centers where Bright Beginnings has been offered. If Bright Beginnings is not cut, then the classes will move to other district schools, he said. Teachers will not lose their jobs if that occurs, but other school staff may.

“While we’re relieved not to have to cut more teachers, we’ve still had to cut hundreds of positions from the budget,” Hattabaugh said. “We have had a reduction in force for the past three years and that has meant some very effective district employees have lost their jobs.”

###

Read Jones' letter, CHS's response

2011-06-10T12:01:00.001-04:00

A potentially damaging rift between Mecklenburg County and its largest hospital system has just grown wider.

Claiming Carolinas HealthCare System has breached its contract, Mecklenburg Manager Harry Jones said in a letter to hospital system CEO Michael Tarwater that the county will halt its payments to the multi-billion-dollar hospital system until it provides requested data. Read the Jones letter by clicking here

But CHS officials say they have not breached the agreement - and are disappointed that the county appears to be throwing its longstanding relationship with the hospital system "to the curb." Click here to read a statement from the hospital -- AMES ALEXANDER AND APRIL BETHEA

Davis: "An opportunity to build upon our current success"

2011-06-08T18:43:00.006-04:00

Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board Chair Eric Davis said the search for a new superintendent to succeed Peter Gorman will be "an opportunity to build upon our current success towards a better future."

In a message to CMS employees, Davis said the school board will meet June 15 to start the process for naming an interim leader and to discuss how they'll find a new superintendent. Read the full message below.

"We will find an interim superintendent and then begin the search for our next superintendent. I am proud of the progress our students have made because of your efforts the past five years," Davis wrote. "I also believe that we have much more to do. I am confident that all of us – teachers, support staff, executive staff, other district employees and Board members – will continue to work toward our shared vision of academic achievement for all CMS students."

=======================
From: cmscommunications
Date: June 8, 2011 5:32:13 PM EDT
To: cmsmailall
Subject: A message from Eric Davis

Dear CMS teammates,

Superintendent Peter C. Gorman announced his resignation during a Board meeting earlier today. In addition to the change in our district because of the financial downturn, we now face a change of leadership with Dr. Gorman’s departure. I see this as an opportunity to build upon our current success towards a better future.

We will find an interim superintendent and then begin the search for our next superintendent. I am proud of the progress our students have made because of your efforts the past five years. I also believe that we have much more to do. I am confident that all of us – teachers, support staff, executive staff, other district employees and Board members – will continue to work toward our shared vision of academic achievement for all CMS students.

I know that we will succeed, despite the change in leadership, because our school district has so many tremendous assets that are enduring. We have teachers who are dedicated and hardworking. We have principals who are strong, high-performing leaders. We have parents who are committed to CMS and passionate about their children’s education. We have an executive staff with great expertise and knowledge. These are the assets that will help us meet whatever challenges lie ahead.

Like any public school district, CMS is a collective effort. CMS succeeds because of its broad, diverse base of participants and support – students, parents, teachers, principals, leaders and the community. The Board of Education will tap into that commitment to help us find the right leader to succeed Dr. Gorman. The Board leadership is committed to thoughtful, informed and inclusive community discussion about our schools, to include our CMS staff, and we will take the time needed to be sure those conversations take place.

All of us on the Board remain committed to the CMS mission to maximize achievement for every student in every school. We have great faith in you, the employees of the district and we admire the steadfast service you have given our students, particularly during the recent hard times. We know that our teachers are the reason for our academic success and we commit to engage and collaborate with you as we chart our future. We know that our principals are the frontline leaders, the backbone of our district and the force that holds our schools together. We know that our executive staff will provide steady, reassuring leadership during this time of transition.

The Board of Education will meet June 15 to begin the process of choosing an interim superintendent and to shape how we will select the next superintendent of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.

Eric C. Davis
Chairperson, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education

News Corp: CMS' Gorman to join education division

2011-06-08T15:15:00.003-04:00

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Peter Gorman this afternoon announced his resignation effective Aug. 15. Gorman will become the senior vice president of the education division of News Corp. in New York.

According to a news release -- which you can read in its entirety below -- Gorman will "work with school districts to implement the division’s programs, as well as review their integrity and effectiveness." The education division is led by Joel Klein, the former chancellor of the New York City Department of Education.

“I’m thrilled to join News Corporation, and to work with someone of Joel’s caliber, and the rest of his team, to transform the educational system through digital technology and other means,” Gorman says in the release. “News Corporation has a reputation for leading significant change across many industries, and I look forward to what lies ahead for the education sector.” -- APRIL BETHEA

================

News Corporation Makes Key Management Appointments
to its Education Division

Former Chief Operating Officer, New York City Department of Education, Kristen Kane named COO; Former Superintendent, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Dr. Peter Gorman named Senior Vice President

______________________

NEW YORK, NY, June 8, 2011 – News Corporation today announced that Kristen Kane, former Chief Operating Officer, New York City Department of Education and Dr. Peter Gorman, former Superintendent, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools will take on leadership roles at its newly formed Education Division.

Ms. Kane will become Chief Operating Officer of the group, responsible for driving operations and strategy. Dr. Gorman will be named Senior Vice President and work with school districts to implement the division’s programs, as well as review their integrity and effectiveness.

News Corporation’s Education Division is focused on individualized, technology-based content and learning opportunities that support world class student and teacher performance, as well as digital assessment tools for K-12 students in the United States that help eliminate the achievement gap. News Corporation recently acquired Brooklyn-based education technology company, Wireless Generation.

“Pete and Kristen are recognized leaders in their field and each brings particular strengths to bear on our growing business,” said Joel Klein, CEO of News Corporation’s Education Division. “Pete’s success running one of the largest schools systems in the United States, combined with his commitment to educational innovation are the perfect complement to our mission. Furthermore, Kristen’s proven leadership in shaping and running many of the New York City Department of Education’s best programs will benefit us greatly over the years to come.”

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with Joel and his team in this capacity,” said Ms. Kane. “I strongly believe there are more efficient and effective ways to improve the system, and I’m eager to get started.”

“I’m thrilled to join News Corporation, and to work with someone of Joel’s caliber, and the rest of his team, to transform the educational system through digital technology and other means,” said Dr. Gorman. “News Corporation has a reputation for leading significant change across many industries, and I look forward to what lies ahead for the education sector.”

Ms. Kane brings a range of experience in both the public and private sectors. At the New York City Department of Education, she served as Chief Operating Officer and was responsible for the development and implementation of the Bloomberg administration’s reform strategy as well as oversight of daily operations.

She also served as Chief Executive of the Office of New Schools, which opened 178 new schools and charters in New York City under her leadership. At the Federal Communications Commission, she served as a Director of the National Broadband Plan developing strategies for applying broadband technologies in the education, healthcare, and energy sectors. Earlier in her career, Kristen worked in equity research at JPMorgan covering the education sector. She holds an MBA and Certificate in Public Management from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a BA from Yale.

As Charlotte-Mecklenburg Superintendent for the past five years, Dr. Gorman led one of the nation’s largest school districts with more than 138,000 Pre-K through 12th grade students, 17,700 staff members and a budget of more than $1.15 billion. This year, the school district has been selected as one of four finalists for the Broad Prize for Urban Education. Dr. Gorman has also served as Superintendent of the Tustin (CA) Unified School District and as both Chief Information Officer and Chief Operating Officer/Business and Finance of the Orange County Public Schools in Orlando, Florida. He holds a Doctorate of Education from the University of Central Florida and an MBA from Rollins College.

News Corporation (NASDAQ: NWS, NWSA; ASX: NWS, NWSLV) had total assets as of March 31, 2011 of approximately US$60 billion and total annual revenues of approximately US$33 billion. News Corporation is a diversified global media company with operations in six industry segments: cable network programming; filmed entertainment; television; direct broadcast satellite television; publishing; and other. The activities of News Corporation are conducted principally in the United States, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Australia, Asia and Latin America.

Gorman: Trying to avoid layoff angst

2011-06-06T18:52:00.000-04:00

Superintendent Peter Gorman emailed Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools employees today to explain why a layoff vote has been delayed two days, to a special meeting at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Government Center (it's open to the public).

If county commissioners approve an additional $26 million, as expected, the job cuts won't be as drastic as what Gorman and the board have been talking about. "We don’t want to notify employees that they are losing their jobs, then have to rescind that," Gorman writes. "We don’t want to put our employees through any more anxiety than is necessary and we’re glad our Board is deferring this vote."

Here's the whole memo:

From: "Peter C. Gorman" <peter.gorman@cms.k12.nc.us>
Date: June 6, 2011 4:48:19 PM EDT
To: cmsmailall <cmsmailall@cms.k12.nc.us>
Subject: Budget update

Dear CMS employees,
As we move closer to the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners’ vote on county funding for CMS, the situation continues to be very fluid. The county commissioners will vote tomorrow on our funding and this has led to a change in our schedule.
Our Board of Education was scheduled to vote tonight on the reduction in force, giving us the authority to move forward on it. But last week’s straw votes by the Board of County Commissioners suggest that we may get an additional $26 million over what we originally planned.
We don’t want to notify employees that they are losing their jobs, then have to rescind that. So instead of voting for the reduction in force at its meeting today, our Board will defer the vote on the reduction in force until Wednesday. By then, we expect to know for certain what our county funding will be.
We don’t want to put our employees through any more anxiety than is necessary and we’re glad our Board is deferring this vote. The past three years have been so difficult for all CMS employees, our students and their families -- and this year in particular has been hard because we’re closing some schools. So it seems wise to wait and see what our county funding will be. Our Board will meet in a special open session at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The county vote will resolve some of the uncertainty for all of us. We are still waiting on a budget from the state, of course, so we don’t know our full budget yet. But we are hoping that we’ll get some good news from the county tomorrow night.
We’ll continue to keep you posted as events occur.
Pete
Peter C. Gorman
Superintendent
Government Center
600 East 4th Street
Charlotte, NC 28202
980-343-6270 -- phone
980-343-7135 -- fax
http://www.cms.k12.nc.us/

Read the indictment against John Edwards

2011-06-03T10:25:00.002-04:00

The indictment is the culmination of a secretive federal probe that has been going on for more than two years. The investigation has centered on allegations that donations to John Edwards were used to support Rielle Hunter, his former mistress and mother of his now-3-year-old daughter.

--------------

Defendant: JOHNNY REID EDWARDS

Pending Counts: Conspiracy, False Statements

Highest Offense Level: Felony

Read the indictment

Read the arrest warrant

GOP plan cuts tax rate, sends more to CMS

2011-06-01T00:21:00.003-04:00

Mecklenburg's four Republican county commissioners rolled out a plan late Tuesday evening to cut spending far enough to lower the property tax rate by five cents. Read the proposal below

The proposal from commissioners Karen Bentley, Neil Cooksey, Bill James and Jim Pendergraph came hours before the county board is set to begin taking tentative votes on the 2011-12 budget. Bentley emailed the plan to the Observer late Tuesday.

The plan includes some $55.9 million in proposed cuts, but also would send an additional $15.4 million to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. That could help the district save 260 teaching positions.

Republican commissioners have long said they would not support a budget with a tax rate higher than the so-called revenue-neutral levy. That would let the county raise about the same amount of money through property taxes next year. The GOP proposal sets the tax rate at 78.45 cents per $100 of assessed valuation, which is just below the neutral level. -- APRIL BETHEA

=================================================================

GOP Propose ‘Revenue Negative’ Rate

Right –sized budget cuts tax rate 5.42 cents

Charlotte, NC (5-31-2011) – The Republican Caucus of the Mecklenburg Countybelow the ‘revenue neutral’ rate of 78.83 set by law. Here is a summary of the various proposed budgets: Board of Commissioners is proposing a budget that helps fund CMS teacher positions during the Great Recession while reducing the tax rate 5.42 cents below the current rate and lowering the burden of revaluation. The Republican Commissioners “revenue negative” rate can be achieved with right-sized budget cuts. The GOP budget increases funding for CMS $15,401,620 from the FY2011 budget to fund 260 high priority teaching positions while decreasing the Manager’s Budget overall by $43,523,119. The resulting tax rate is

Prior Year (2011) County Budget 83.87 tax rate $ 954,844,690
Manager’s Proposed (2012) Budget 82.49 tax rate Incr of $77,323,005 $1,032,167,695
Cogdell’s Proposed (2012) Budget 82.97 tax rate Incr of $75,997,406 $1,030,942,096
GOP’s Proposed (2012) Budget 78.45 tax rate Incr of $33,799,886 $ 988,644,576

So, how does this proposal balance the Mecklenburg County Budget, cut costs and increase funding to schools, while at the same time achieving a revenue negative tax rate? Here’s a summary:

Manager’s Proposed Budget (without CMS increase) $1,006,078,584
Increase in staff estimate for Sales Tax $ 3,000,000
Increase for CMS $ 15,401,620
Increase for DV and Sheriff $ 145,000
Decreases in other areas (see below) ($ 55,924,844)
GOP Proposed Budget $ 988,644,576

Highlights of the cost savings from the Manager’s proposed budget are as follows (speadsheet details to follow shortly):

Decrease funding for DSS as proposed by Commissioner Codgell, $2,000,000
Reduce proposed increase for OPEB’s (from $8 million), $2,500,000
Reduce proposed increase for employee 401k matches, $2,500,000
Reduce County funding for ‘retiree’ health costs, $2,350,000
Reduce “pay for performance” (raises) by ½, $2,100,000
Reduce proposed increase in “Capital Reserve,” $2,350,000
Reduce “CMC healthcare Contract,” $1,499,016
Reduce proposed increase for “Libraries,” $1,000,000
Reduce ”Substance Abuse” prohibiting taxpayer funding of multiple detox/yr, $3,000,000
Eliminate funding for new Outside Agencies (approx. total), $ 1,220,949
Eliminate proposed increase in Public Assistance, $2,656,839
Reduce proposed increase in County Training budget, $550,000
Reduce proposed increase in Technology Reserve, $500,000
Eliminate proposed increase in “Homeless Support Services,"$426,936

Items in red are those proposed by Commissioner Cogdell at varying amounts (except the first which the GOP and Commissioner Cogdell agree on – a cut of $2 million to DSS).

Cogdell offers new Meck budget proposal

2011-05-26T00:30:00.000-04:00

Mecklenburg commissioners now have another budget proposal to consider as Democrat Harold Cogdell rolled out his own plan Wednesday for how the county should spend money next year.

His proposal would lower the tax rate to 82.37 cents per $100 of assessed value -- 1.5 cents below the current levy and slightly lower than the one recommended by County Manager Harry Jones.

Meanwhile, Cogdell wants to give $34.4 million in additional money to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, including a $10 million grant to be used specifically for the Bright Beginnings pre-K program. The program could be downsized under the district's budget depending on how much CMS gets from the county and state.

Other commissioners likely will craft their own budget plans in the coming days. Cogdell's appears to be one of at least four currently under consideration -- Jones', as well as one from Democrat and Chair Jennifer Roberts who wants to give CMS an extra $40 million partly by keeping the tax rate.

Meanwhile, board Republicans have long said they would not support a tax rate higher than the revenue-neutral levy of 78.83 cents.

Cogdell shared details of his budget proposal in an email to commissioners, county staff and the Observer. Here is the full text:

"Fellow Commissioners,

Please find attached my proposed county budget for all to consider. This proposed budget is above-revenue neutral and below rate neutral. The property tax rate needed to support this budget is .8237. It provides $34.4M to CMS above last year’s funded amount; maintains funding for the Bright Beginnings program; provides $1M extra to CPCC; reinstates merit pay raises and 401K matches for county employees; and reduces the current tax rate by 1 ½ cents (1/2 cents below what the manager has proposed). Please find attached a line item by line item spreadsheet of the entire county budget with my proposed changes.

Now that all relevant facts have been provided to our Board, I would encourage each of us to do the same with the straw vote spreadsheets provided by county staff. We are past the point of speaking in general terms about budget goals but each of us needs to be very specific about what line items we would fund, reduce or what revenue modifications or projections each of us would change in order to develop a balanced budget.

Please note that I have no intention of supporting either a tax rate neutral or revenue neutral budget. I am inclined to consider how we could identify further sound and thoughtful reductions that could result in an even lower tax rate. I am willing to meet with any Commissioner that is willing to not draw a line in the sand on revenue or rate neutral understanding that both positions border on the extreme.

It is so easy to say to community stakeholders and partners, if I had four more votes I would support your request. In the alternative, it is so easy to say I am only supporting a revenue neutral budget without identifying where reductions would be made. I am confident that we will all be transparent in this process, make clear where each of us stands on the many budget considerations and remain focused on adopting a responsible budget for Mecklenburg County.

The highlights of my proposed budget include the following:

1% increase in sales tax revenue for FY12 above the manager’s recommended amount ($1.2M).
$1.6M reduction in CMS operating from the manager’s recommended amount.
$10M Grant to CMS to be used exclusively for the Bright Beginnings program. Please note that the $10M for the BB Grant is placed in line item #2 under CMS debt and does not reflect any desire on my part to add $10M to CMS debt service.
$1M increase in funding to CPCC above the manager’s recommended amount ($1.2M).
$300K reduction in funding to for the ASC Center for Arts & Technology from the manager’s recommended amount.
$2M reduction from the overall DSS budget to be determined by the manager’s office which equals a 3.5% departmental reduction. The proposed budget still results in a $400K increase in the DSS budget from FY11.
$2M reduction in the recommended OPED funding level.
$515K reduction in employee training – almost $1.5M remains in employee training funds.
$290K reduction in the Human Services Finance Division that funds 8 instead of 12 new finance positions.
$1.75M reduction from the manager’s recommended capital reserve ($8.5M remains in the reserve).
$350K reduction from the manager’s recommended technology reserve ($4.4M remains in the reserve).
$450K reduction from the manager’s recommended budget to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office (reductions to be determined at the discretion of the Sheriff). This equates to a ½ of 1% of the departmental budget.
$499K of the $1.5M Carolinas Healthcare System Contract for services provided through the Mecklenburg County Health Department.
No changes to the manager’s recommended funding level to the PLCMC (Library).

Please note that the above listed modifications are the highlights and is not a comprehensive list of every proposed change to the manger’s recommended budget.

Harold Cogdell, Jr.
Mecklenburg County Commissioner At-Large

How high could some Meck tax bills rise?

2011-05-24T05:00:00.000-04:00

More than half of the Mecklenburg households facing higher taxes under County Manager Harry Jones' recommended 2011-12 budget would see their bills increase by up to 20 percent, newly-released figures show.

Four percent could see their tax bills more than double, the county analysis shows. See the chart by clicking here.

(Search the Observer's database to find out how much your tax bill could increase by clicking here )

Jones' budget proposes a tax rate of 82.49 cents per $100 of assessed value. That's just over a penny less than the current rate, but would be applied to the new -- and in many cases, higher -- property tax values mailed earlier this year.

Mecklenburg officials previously said 185,127 households, or about 57 percent in the county, would pay more under Jones' proposal.

Of those, about 57 percent, or 105,178 households, would see their bills increase by up to 19.99 percent, according to information sent to county commissioners on Monday.

Another 30,329 households would see their bills increase between 20- and 20.99 percent.

Meanwhile, 4.1 percent could see their bills go up by more than 100 percent. -- APRIL BETHEA

Roberts: $40m more to CMS, flat tax rate

2011-05-19T01:00:00.002-04:00

Mecklenburg County Commissioners Chair Jennifer Roberts issued a statement late Wednesday saying she wants to keep the same property tax rate next year and send an extra $40 million to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in 2011-12.

Read the full statement, which Roberts sent to the Observer, below.

Roberts said she also wants to give Central Piedmont Community College $2.5 million, and backed a plan to give more to the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library to avoid more branch closings.

County Manager Harry Jones unveiled a budget recommendation on Tuesday that would give CMS $26 million more for operations, which is just over half what the school board requested. His plan would lower the tax rate by just over one penny, but most taxpayers would pay more next year because most home values rose in the county's reappraisal. - APRIL BETHEA

----------------------------------------------

STATEMENT BY JENNIFER ROBERTS IN RESPONSE TO THE COUNTY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDED BUDGET

MAY 18, 2011

I advocate a County budget that keeps our tax rate where it is (83.87 cents per $100 value) to help close a budget gap created by a severe loss in state education funding. I know this will create a higher tax cost for many in our county because of the recent revaluation, but I simply cannot support cutting 1,000 more teachers from our schools, eroding the academic gains we have made, and setting back our education system by decades. I believe that further cuts to CMS will cost our community more in the long run and it is for this reason that the budget I support is strong in education, including increased support for CMS, CPCC, and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

Even by keeping the current tax rate we cannot fully stave off reductions in teachers and personnel, especially in pre-school, but we can at least bring County funding for CMS back to the level it was in 2008, when the system had 6,000 fewer students.

This is an extraordinary time for our community. We have weathered the worst recession since World War II, and for the past three years have made deep cuts to county government and CMS as well as our nationally known community college, Central Piedmont, and our once nationally known public library system.

In the entire time that I have been a commissioner, the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners has always placed education at the top of its priorities. In every public forum I have participated in this year, our citizens have told me that education is a priority for them as well. This is because education is essential to the future success of our entire community. It prepares workers for those companies that continue to move and expand here; it provides self sufficiency for residents who can support themselves with employment and avoid government assistance; and it provides the very basis of our democracy and our ability to have strong, accountable, and accessible government.

I propose a budget that funds these three elements at the following levels:

CMS: $340 million ($40 m increase, $14 million over Manager’s budget)
CPCC: $26.4 million ($2.5 m increase, $1 m over Manager’s budget)
Libraries: $ 23.4 million ($2.3 m increase, equal to Manager’s budget)

In addition to the rate neutral tax rate, which will bring in almost $14 million over the manager’s recommended budget, there are other adjustments that can be made to support this CMS amount. For example, we could help fund this education budget by waiting at least one more year to restore the 401(k) match for County employees (up to $5 million saved) or by funding County employee raises at 2% instead of 3% ($1 million saved).

We have made steady gains in academic achievement in our school system over the past 3 years, and have reduced the achievement gap at the same time. Yet we risk losing all that and more if we sustain the depth of cuts that CMS faces with level County funding for the next fiscal year, or even with $26 million more as recently recommended by our manager. A strong public education system benefits everyone, and a weak and declining system will hurt everyone, drive away potential employers, and jeopardize our future. I hope my colleagues and this community will stand with me as I support a strong education budget that puts our children and future first.

Jennifer Watson Roberts
Chairman, Mecklenburg County

Merchant/James email battle: Trying again

2011-05-13T13:51:00.001-04:00

Some of you no doubt wonder what's going on with yesterday's blog on the fiesty email exchange between Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board member Trent Merchant and Mecklenburg County Commissioner Bill James. About the time that readers were getting interested and weighing in, comments shut down, then the blog itself disappeared.

No, we didn't censor the item. There have been massive problems at blogger.com that started late yesterday afternoon and are just getting resolved. The site status report promises that yesterday's blogs will reappear at some point. (Update: the original blog has been restored without comments; I hope those will be recovered, too.) For now, here's the background on the issues that sparked the exchange.

And here are the emails, with a response by James that landed in my inbox shortly after blogger.com shut down. -- Ann Doss Helms

From: Bill James [wjames@carolina.rr.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 11:44 AM
To: Trent Merchant
Subject: CMS nightmare tax increase
CMS Nightmare tax increase

5-4 school board vote would force tax increases on 144,000 additional Meck citizens
Citizens already receiving tax increase at 'revenue neutral' will be hammered harder

CMS district 6 rep Tim Morgan is swing vote for tax increase
District 6 receives most tax increases of all County Commission districts

For some time, there has been a push to 'leave the tax rate the same' at 83.87 cents).

Chairman Roberts and other D's have pushed for it but for the most part there has not been any hard evidence of the pain it would inflict on citizens here in Mecklenburg.

Yesterday, at my request from several months back, County staff outlined how many people would be hammered if the tax rate stayed the same (sometimes called 'rate' neutral).

To begin with, even at 'revenue neutral' 157,966 households would have a tax increase ('revenue neutral' is dropping the rate to 78.83 cents). I think that rate is too high and believe we need a 'revenue negative budget'.

As bad as raising taxes on 157,966 households (630,000 people approx), IF the rate stayed the same (at 83.87 cents) an additional 36,128 households (aboutr 144,000 more people) would receive a tax increase.

On top of that, the folks who received a 'moderate' tax increase (if there is such an animal) at 'revenue neutral' would be hammered into Mecklenburg's red clay dirt.

A 5% tax hike would turn into a 27% tax hike. If at revenue neutral your tax hike is already 30%.... well, you can do the math.

It would be brutal. Revenue Neutral is already a brutal tax increase which is why I believe the Commission needs a revenue negative budget to lower the extreme tax increases within that pool of 157,966 households (630,000 people).

I am still waiting on that report to come in.

The school board voted to ask for $50 million with the District 6 Republican Tim Morgan (brother of Charlotte Chamber head honcho Bob Morgan) casting the deciding vote for this tsunami of a tax increase.

I note that in terms of the number households with a tax increase by District the order is (at revenue neutral):

District 6 38,074 REPUBLICAN
District 5 36,599 REPUBLICAN
District 1 34,813 REPUBLICAN

District 2 17,594 DEMOCRAT
District 3 15,909 DEMOCRAT
District 4 14,953 DEMOCRAT

It makes me wonder why the Republican from District 6 (which already will have the MOST tax increases in the whole county) would vote to make the matter worse for those in his district when almost all of the money raised by giving CMS $50 million more would benefit people in other districts.

There will be those that say he is looking at the bigger picture or helping out the less fortunate. All good qualities but in the end I think it is because the Chamber wants the increase.

Ultimately, Mecklenburg County citizens can not afford what Tim Morgan, the CMS school board majority and the power elite in Charlotte are dishing out.

If you sit on your hands next week at the public hearing (19th) don't be surprised if your property taxes go up 50%.

The link below is a PDF posted on my web site of the info from the County.

________________________________________
From: Trent Merchant
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 10:38 PM
To: wjames@carolina.rr.com; Tim Morgan
Cc: Eric C. Davis; jennifer.roberts@mecklenburgcountync.gov
Subject: RE: CMS nightmare tax increase

Bill - I want to thank you for your hard work and for yet another installment of your hard-hitting analyses on vital topics via e-blast.

And thank you for reminding me to focus on those things that are most dangerous to my quality of life, rather than simply enjoying said quality of life. Based on your previous missives, I have spent many hours in recent years watching my back, lest African-Americans emerging from the depths of the moral sewer might try to harm me - and watching my backside when I take my children to local parks, certain that I will accosted by marauding packs of gays.

Now I realize that our greatest threat has been right under our noses all along - and its name is Tim Morgan. To think that I believed all of his corn-pone talk about fishing, camping, Boy Scouts, his faith, and his children... Morgan the Megalomaniac has deceived us all as he has found a way to single-handedly raise my taxes, despite the fact that the School Board has no taxing authority. How dare he!

My feeble memory of last night's meeting was that, after 7 months of discussion, a majority of the board voted on an initial budget request to reduce overall funding to CMS by about $64 million. And I could have sworn that when he made the budget motion, Tim Morgan specifically called on state legislators to do their part in protecting funding for public education. And I thought that when he called on the county to restore a significant amount of funding, he was thinking about the schools in the district that you share with him - you know the one where class sizes are already large and will get even larger next year - where your constituents will lose 2/3 of the elementary teaching assistants, many of whom have masters degrees, who have all the qualifications to be teachers except for formal certification - and where 1 key staff member will be cut from every school.

But after reading your clarifying missive, I realize that everything was up in the air until Tim cast his dramatic vote. And I see that Tim has been little more than a sinister puppet controlled by elitists like his big brother. How could I have missed all the signs of the intra-family psychological beat-down that has surely been decades in the making? When Bob Morgan went to head the Gastonia Chamber of Commerce some years ago, we should have recognized that he was going big-time on us... why didn't you warn us then, Bill?

Bill - I understand that before becoming a full-time local politician whose livelihood depends on being re-elected every 2 years, you were a CPA with a reputable firm - so maybe you can help me with a potential cash flow problem that I see developing at home. The recent reval increased the tax value of my modest middle class home by 36%. If the County Commission leaves the tax rate the same, I will pay $108.86 more per year in property taxes than I would if you went to a revenue neutral rate - that is more than $9.07 per month! Sir, this is an outrage! How will we make ends meet in my home? I understand that my children and their peers are important, and that strong public schools lead to a more viable workforce, stronger tax base, and lower crime rate over time - but at what cost? Surely not $108.86.

I look forward to your continuing insight on this and related matters.

And if you do not have insight to share, I remain confident that you will continue to weigh in on other topics on which you feel the urge to incite and inflame. We are all counting on you.

In humble gratitude,
Trent Merchant
CMS Board of Education, At Large

-----Original Message-----
From: William F. James, Jr [
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 10:52 PM
To: 'Trent Merchant'; 'Tim Morgan'
Cc: 'Eric C. Davis'; 'jennifer.roberts@mecklenburgcountync.gov'; 'Don Reid'; 'tashcraft@bellsouth.net'; 'Jeff Taylor'; mark pellin; Dan Bishop
Subject: RE: CMS nightmare tax increase

Trent -
I think if the guy representing the folks bearing the brunt of most of the tax increases in Mecklenburg wants to vote for that tax increase it is between him and the voters. Who am I to get in the middle of that except to point out that it occurred and he was the lone Republican doing so.

As for your $108.86 potential tax increase - glad you think it is paltry.

I wonder if the public agrees. Using your logic all 194,000 should be pleased with your decision last night.

I got a call from someone in Plaza-Midwood. They had a 117% increase in the value of their house. They are not the only ones.

I think your deficit problem is not with your cash flow.

Tim can defend himself even if his vote isn't particularly defensible.

mailto:wjames@carolina.rr.com]

Merchant v. James: Email smackdown

2011-05-12T12:04:00.000-04:00

After Mecklenburg County Commissioner Bill James accused Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board member Tim Morgan of casting the swing vote for a "tsunami of a tax increase," board member Trent Merchant rallied to his colleague's side with a tidal wave of sarcasm directed at James.

The background: The school board has no taxing authority. It relies on state legislators, county commissioners, the federal government and grantmakers for its $1 billion-plus budget. The board voted 5-4 Tuesday to ask commissioners for an additional $50 million to avert layoffs and program cuts, with Morgan and Merchant on the winning side.

On the county side, James has been a vocal opponent of the additional spending, citing the cost to taxpayers. County officials will take up their budget planning next week.

Merchant not only took issue with James' views on taxes and his description of Morgan's vote, but tackled James on a couple of his perennial issues, race and homosexuality.

"Based on your previous missives," writes Merchant, "I have spent many hours in recent years watching my back, lest African-Americans emerging from the depths of the moral sewer might try to harm me -- and watching my backside when I take my children to local parks, certain that I will accosted by marauding packs of gays."

Here's James' email, followed by Merchant's response:

________________________________________
From: Bill James [wjames@carolina.rr.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 11:44 AM
To: Trent Merchant
Subject: CMS nightmare tax increase
CMS Nightmare tax increase

5-4 school board vote would force tax increases on 144,000 additional Meck citizens
Citizens already receiving tax increase at 'revenue neutral' will be hammered harder

CMS district 6 rep Tim Morgan is swing vote for tax increase
District 6 receives most tax increases of all County Commission districts

For some time, there has been a push to 'leave the tax rate the same' (at 83.87 cents).

Chairman Roberts and other D's have pushed for it but for the most part there has not been any hard evidence of the pain it would inflict on citizens here in Mecklenburg.

Yesterday, at my request from several months back, County staff outlined how many people would be hammered if the tax rate stayed the same (sometimes called 'rate' neutral).

To begin with, even at 'revenue neutral' 157,966 households would have a tax increase ('revenue neutral' is dropping the rate to 78.83 cents). I think that rate is too high and believe we need a 'revenue negative budget'.

As bad as raising taxes on 157,966 households (630,000 people approx), IF the rate stayed the same (at 83.87 cents) an additional 36,128 households (aboutr 144,000 more people) would receive a tax increase.

On top of that, the folks who received a 'moderate' tax increase (if there is such an animal) at 'revenue neutral' would be hammered into Mecklenburg's red clay dirt.

A 5% tax hike would turn into a 27% tax hike. If at revenue neutral your tax hike is already 30%.... well, you can do the math.

It would be brutal. Revenue Neutral is already a brutal tax increase which is why I believe the Commission needs a revenue negative budget to lower the extreme tax increases within that pool of 157,966 households (630,000 people).

I am still waiting on that report to come in.

The school board voted to ask for $50 million with the District 6 Republican Tim Morgan (brother of Charlotte Chamber head honcho Bob Morgan) casting the deciding vote for this tsunami of a tax increase.

I note that in terms of the number households with a tax increase by District the order is (at revenue neutral):

District 6 38,074 REPUBLICAN
District 5 36,599 REPUBLICAN
District 1 34,813 REPUBLICAN

District 2 17,594 DEMOCRAT
District 3 15,909 DEMOCRAT
District 4 14,953 DEMOCRAT

It makes me wonder why the Republican from District 6 (which already will have the MOST tax increases in the whole county) would vote to make the matter worse for those in his district when almost all of the money raised by giving CMS $50 million more would benefit people in other districts.

There will be those that say he is looking at the bigger picture or helping out the less fortunate. All good qualities but in the end I think it is because the Chamber wants the increase.

Ultimately, Mecklenburg County citizens can not afford what Tim Morgan, the CMS school board majority and the power elite in Charlotte are dishing out.

If you sit on your hands next week at the public hearing (19th) don't be surprised if your property taxes go up 50%.

The link below is a PDF posted on my web site of the info from the County. ________________________________________
From: Trent Merchant
Sent: Wednesday, May 11, 2011 10:38 PM
To: wjames@carolina.rr.com; Tim Morgan
Cc: Eric C. Davis; jennifer.roberts@mecklenburgcountync.gov
Subject: RE: CMS nightmare tax increase

Bill - I want to thank you for your hard work and for yet another installment of your hard-hitting analyses on vital topics via e-blast. And thank you for reminding me to focus on those things that are most dangerous to my quality of life, rather than simply enjoying said quality of life. Based on your previous missives, I have spent many hours in recent years watching my back, lest African-Americans emerging from the depths of the moral sewer might try to harm me - and watching my backside when I take my children to local parks, certain that I will accosted by marauding packs of gays.

Now I realize that our greatest threat has been right under our noses all along - and its name is Tim Morgan. To think that I believed all of his corn-pone talk about fishing, camping, Boy Scouts, his faith, and his children... Morgan the Megalomaniac has deceived us all as he has found a way to single-handedly raise my taxes, despite the fact that the School Board has no taxing authority. How dare he!

My feeble memory of last night's meeting was that, after 7 months of discussion, a majority of the board voted on an initial budget request to reduce overall funding to CMS by about $64 million. And I could have sworn that when he made the budget motion, Tim Morgan specifically called on state legislators to do their part in protecting funding for public education. And I thought that when he called on the county to restore a significant amount of funding, he was thinking about the schools in the district that you share with him - you know the one where class sizes are already large and will get even larger next year - where your constituents will lose 2/3 of the elementary teaching assistants, many of whom have masters degrees, who have all the qualifications to be teachers except for formal certification - and where 1 key staff member will be cut from every school.

But after reading your clarifying missive, I realize that everything was up in the air until Tim cast his dramatic vote. And I see that Tim has been little more than a sinister puppet controlled by elitists like his big brother. How could I have missed all the signs of the intra-family psychological beat-down that has surely been decades in the making? When Bob Morgan went to head the Gastonia Chamber of Commerce some years ago, we should have recognized that he was going big-time on us... why didn't you warn us then, Bill?

Bill - I understand that before becoming a full-time local politician whose livelihood depends on being re-elected every 2 years, you were a CPA with a reputable firm - so maybe you can help me with a potential cash flow problem that I see developing at home. The recent reval increased the tax value of my modest middle class home by 36%. If the County Commission leaves the tax rate the same, I will pay $108.86 more per year in property taxes than I would if you went to a revenue neutral rate - that is more than $9.07 per month! Sir, this is an outrage! How will we make ends meet in my home? I understand that my children and their peers are important, and that strong public schools lead to a more viable workforce, stronger tax base, and lower crime rate over time - but at what cost? Surely not $108.86.

I look forward to your continuing insight on this and related matters. And if you do not have insight to share, I remain confident that you will continue to weigh in on other topics on which you feel the urge to incite and inflame. We are all counting on you.

In humble gratitude,
Trent Merchant
CMS Board of Education, At Large

Eric Davis: Why CMS needs more

2011-04-26T21:12:00.000-04:00

Here's a copy of the remarks Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools board chair Eric Davis made Tuesday night on why he believes CMS needs an additional $55 million to avoid laying off teachers, assistants and other educational staff. Although there was no formal vote, six of the eight other members said they support Davis's proposal and one, Rhonda Lennon, partially supported it. Only Kaye McGarry opposed asking for additional money.

You can view the whole discussion here.

Notes for those trying to follow the math: Davis talks about $55 million more from the county and state. He says that's $45 million more than Gorman's request, which adds $10 million to this year's allotment. It's not yet clear whether any of that will come from the state. The job total in the Observer article includes the positions itemized below, plus 80 assistants in the Bright Beginnings classrooms that would be saved. The actual job total would likely be higher, as the pre-K centers now slated to close have administrators and other support staff. -- Ann Doss Helms

BOE Budget request April 26, 2011

Dr. Gorman, has your budget recommendation changed over the past 2 weeks? (Note from the Observer: Gorman said no.) With that the Budget is now fully in the hands of the Board of Education.

A fundamental financial problem confronting our school system is that we have to develop our budget before we have an understanding of the potential funding from the State and County. Moreover by State law, we have to start layoff notices before we request funding, much less know how much funding we will receive. It is a completely backwards and destructive process that in no way contributes to educating students in CMS or North Carolina. Even this late in the process, the projected State cuts range from $45 to $88mm. As a result, we have a process full of assumption and rework at best, a process full of misperception, mistrust and highly political at worst. Instead our students and teachers need a budget process in which the State, as the primary funder, determines its budget in the early spring which would enable the County, as an extension of State government, to pass its budget in time for the School district to inform our students and teachers of our plans by the end of the school year.

Nevertheless in the absence of a logical process, this Board must still determine what our students’ need. Our Superintendent has made a thoughtful recommendation given the realities that we face, a recommendation that assumes a 10% cut in State funding and a request of $10mm in additional local funding. That recommendation still requires $100mm in cuts that will be devastating and will create long term damage.

I believe that public education is the foremost responsibility of our State and local government and that the education of our students is not only the primary economic development engine for our economy, but the essential element of our safety and security as a democracy. And I believe that our public school students require greater funding than they currently receive which leads me to call upon my colleagues on the Board to join in asking from our fellow citizens in Mecklenburg County to begin restoring the $50mm in funding for our school system that was been cut over the past two years. I acknowledge the challenges of this request, that it may require a multiyear effort, that many citizens particularly those who live on fixed incomes will have a difficult time supporting this call. It will take sacrifice, but it is imperative that we begin now to reverse the steady retreat of reduced support for public education before we lose the gains that our students have made.

Over the past four years, thanks to heroic efforts of many of our teachers and the nurturing care of so many parents, our students have closed the achievement gap more than any other large urban district. In the 25 areas that our students are assessed, they have increased their proficiency in all 25. Five years ago we were accused of academic genocide when only 55% of our schools were achieving a year’s growth, today 95% of our schools are achieving a year’s growth and 108 are achieving high growth. It takes years of shoulder to the wheel, hard work to build this momentum; it can all be wiped out in one more year of damaging cuts. To preserve these gains, to continue to move forward, we need from our State and County education partners in 2011-2012, $55mm in additional funding to preserve the most critical elements of our system.

How will we invest this $55mm from the State and County?

· The first $15.4mm will preserve 260 classroom teachers in grades 4-12 in schools such as Albemarle Road, Myers Park, Ardrey Kell, Mint Hill and Bailey Road.

· The next $8.6mm will preserve 146 classroom teachers through our WSS (Note: That's Weighted Student Staffing, a formula for assigning additional teachers based on student poverty) strategy helping students at West Mecklenburg, Independence, West Charlotte, Myers Park, Sterling, and Hidden Valley.

· The next $11.1mm will save 164 instructional support, literacy and math specialists, helping students at schools such as Westerly Hills, Druid Hills, Shamrock Gardens, Sharon, Community House, in every school in the system.

· The next $9.2mm will sustain 328 teacher assistants in elementary schools across the district like Selwyn, Idlewild, Piney Grove, Landsdowne, and Winding Springs.

· Finally $10.4mm will preserve teachers for 80 preK classrooms and insure that not only will more of are our most vulnerable kindergarten students be prepared, but that their classmates who come kindergarten ready have a prepared student by their side.

Whether you live on Statesville Road, Albemarle Road, Providence Road, or Beatties Ford Road, this additional funding will benefit you.

Why am I convinced that our students need this support from our fellow citizens in Mecklenburg County? I need not remind our students of how their class sizes have exploded the past 3 years, or parents of how you have had to pay for AP exams and sports programs, and had to deal with the reduction in transportation services. Likewise, our principals and teachers have felt the loss of colleagues, teachers, teacher assistants, and assistant principals. But mostly our teachers have felt the loss of stability in their profession. While not all of these are completely attributable to a reduction in County funding, most are and all have been worsened by the decrease in local support.

For the past 11 months, we have been preparing for this day. We started in June reviewing our real estate portfolio, we set aside $20mm to reduce the Federal funding cliff, we were forced to fill schools to the brim and consolidate out of under filled and high cost buildings, we have reduced the number of our highest salaried executives as reported in last Sunday’s Observer, we directed our Superintendent to begin detailed budget planning 2 months early in January in order to give our community the opportunity to weigh in on solutions and we delayed some early decisions to afford more community participation. Recently, we took the controversial step of exploring managed competition as further evidence of our financial discipline and fiscal stewardship of your dollars. Over all, we have stretched our system to its full capacity and we can go no further without long term harm.

Every CMS student, teacher, parent, and citizen of Mecklenburg County will have their own individual reason to either refute or support our request. The one reason to support our request that ties us together as one is that it is in our own best self interest to have a strong public school system that is moving forward. I hope that you will join our cause for the students of today, tomorrow, and for those who 50 years from now will look back and thank us for taking a stand.

Jones: Jefferson post offers "unique opportunity"

2011-04-25T22:33:00.006-04:00

Mecklenburg County Harry Jones says he initially declined an opportunity to apply for a new county manager post in Alabama, but said he thinks the job represents a unique opportunity to transform the troubled county.

Jones was named on Monday one of three finalists for the manager job in Jefferson County, Ala., which includes the city of Birmingham. Read the news release by clicking here. State lawmakers ordered the county to hire a professional manager to help pull the county out of a fiscal crisis tied, in part, to a multi-billion-dollar sewer deal.

The Observer asked Jones, 61, what interests him about the Alabama position, particularly given the struggles Jefferson has faced in recent years.

In an e-mail, Jones wrote: "The search firm pursued me aggressively to become a candidate. Although, I declined initially, I decided after consultation with my family to submit an application. My family reminded me that I have a great deal to be proud of here in Mecklenburg County and that I have a very compelling story about organizational change to tell. The position in Jefferson County represents a unique opportunity, as the first county manager, to transform an organization on the brink of bankruptcy to a high performing, results-oriented, fiscally-disciplined entity. I am interested in interviewing them- more than being interviewed by them- on their vision for the future and their plans, thoughts, and commitment to create long-term sustainable change and their willingness to make the extremely tough decisions necessary help them out of this very deep fiscal hole they are in."

Jones has worked for Mecklenburg County government for two decades and has served as manager since 2000. -- APRIL BETHEA

CRVA: Payments also made in Raleigh, Winston-Salem, Richmond

2011-04-13T11:07:00.009-04:00

In a memo emailed today to the mayor and Charlotte City Council members, the CRVA said it was standard operating procedure for the CIAA host city to appoint a local tournament coordinator to manage the week-long event.

The memo also says that previous host cities, including Raleigh, Winston-Salem and Richmond, had specific contractual agreements similar to Charlotte's, where the CIAA paid a bonus for the coordinator's services.

"The amounts paid also were different in each city for the services of the coordinator," the memo says.

Click here to read the memo.

Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx this week asked the authority to shed more light on how and why manager Ereka Crawford-Brim received $100,000 in bonus payments earmarked from the CIAA basketball tournament, an arrangement the Observer reported on Sunday.

The CRVA's ethics policy states that employees can't accept cash or gifts from outside the CRVA payroll, but CRVA chief executive Tim Newman told the Observer last week the bonuses were OK because they were "salary" and not gifts.

- Doug Miller

Read city's new noise plan

2011-04-11T18:01:00.002-04:00

The city of Charlotte is considering a $1,000 fine for bars and restaurants that refuse to turn down the volume on live outdoor music. Before getting hit with a fine, chronic noise producers would get a chance to change the way they present live outdoor shows and stop disturbing people in surrounding residential areas, under changes proposed for the city’s noise ordinance. Click here to read changes to the proposed ordinance. After two violations, a business that continues to generate noise complaints could be banned for one year from having live music outdoors. The City Council’s Community Safety Committee will hear public comments April 20 on the newest plan. - Karen Sullivan

How we estimated the revenue-neutral rate

2011-04-10T23:00:00.003-04:00

Mecklenburg County administrators aren't expected to release the revenue-neutral estimate until Tuesday. But the Observer estimates the county could lower its property tax rate by about 6 cents and raise the same amount in revenue as before, plus a bit of growth as allowed by state law.

How did we get to that number? See our work by clicking here

A bit of background: the state Treasurer's Office provides a spreadsheet on its web site to help counties and local governments calculate what the revenue-neutral rate will be. It asks for the total assessed value for the years in between revaluations, along with the current tax rate and estimate of the new post-reval tax base.

The Observer completed the spreadsheet using assessed valuation figures compiled in the county's annual financial audits, the estimated tax base and tax rate for 2010-11 as included in the budget adopted by commissioners last June, and the current projections of what the new tax base will be.

The result was an estimated revenue-neutral rate of 77.95 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. The current rate is 83.87 cents.

State law requires local governments to publish a revenue-neutral rate after each revaluation. Elected boards can either use the rate in their new budgets, or set a different one.

The key to figuring out the rate is knowing the size of the new tax base. Currently, that estimate is $110.8 billion, which assumes about a 6 percent drop in the value of real estate as appeals to the recent revaluation are heard.

But the tax base includes more than just the value of real estate. It also includes the assessed values of personal property, state certified property and registered motor vehicles.

The tax base estimate is bound to change in the coming weeks, and so will estimates of the revenue-neutral rate.

Still want to learn more? The School of Government has a report that further spells out how revenue-neutral rates are calculated. Read it by clicking here. -- APRIL BETHEA, abethea@charlotteobserver.com

Gorman to teachers: We won't cut your pay

2011-04-06T10:10:00.000-04:00

As Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools leaders work toward crafting teacher performance pay for 2014, they're dealing with resistance and questions from teachers who worry that the new plan will cut pay, pit teachers against each other competing for rewards, and overburden classrooms with testing. Here's an email Superintendent Peter Gorman sent to CMS employees this morning, after telling Observer staff Tuesday that he'll avoid cutting pay.

From: Peter C. Gorman
Sent: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 7:31 AM
To: cmsmailall
Subject: Update on teacher effectiveness

Dear CMS employees,

We first began talking about teacher effectiveness three years ago. But the last three months, most of the questions we’ve gotten have been about teacher pay, which is only one part of the reforms we want to make.

The questions, and much of the public conversation about this issue, have made clear that many of our teachers are anxious, even fearful, that we’re going to cut their salaries. It’s understandable. We’ve had reductions in force, frozen salaries, budget cuts and school closures in the past two years. All of this is unsettling and it has made our jobs harder to do.

We do not intend to cut teacher pay. Teacher salaries will not go down as a result of our work to improve the way we evaluate teachers. Instead, we will focus on measuring effective teaching using multiple measures and reward our top teachers with additional money.

How we will do that, and what form it will take in our budget, has not been decided. That, along with much of the evaluation work, remains to be done. The anxiety and the fear around salary reduction has begun to get in the way of our work. But we cannot be distracted. Our work must be about improving student achievement – and the only way we’ll get there is to teach our way there.

Every child deserves a great teacher. We must do a better job in the classroom and we can do a better job. That is what we want to accomplish. It’s not about punishing teachers. It’s about helping kids – and we have to always focus on that first.

Pete

Keep up with CMS performance-pay controversy

2011-03-31T19:36:00.000-04:00

The twists and turns of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools' push for teacher performance pay are generating questions from employees, parents and taxpayers. Here's a primer on keeping up.

To read the bill N.C. Rep. Ruth Samuelson introduced this week to give the CMS board authority to revise teacher pay and evaluations, click here. Note: The part about money is confusing. Superintendent Peter Gorman said it's supposed to indicate that CMS does not expect extra money but also does not expect to be penalized financially for taking this approach. He said it may need clarification.

To read the 2007 law that authorized performance-pay pilots, along with details of the CMS plan that won approval, click here for a state report.

To read questions about testing and performance pay submitted by Gorman's Teacher Advisory Commmittee, with adminstration responses in red type, click here.

To see a new CMS publication explaining all the tests students take, click here.

To see Gorman's video report on testing and teacher effectiveness sent to CMS employees this week, click here.

CMS has extensive reports on its own pay plan and performance pay elsewhere archived here.

The changing face of Charlotte

2011-03-19T18:20:00.006-04:00

The 2010 Census highlights the growth and diversity of North Carolina and Charlotte over the last decade, the Observer's Jim Morrill reports in Sunday's paper. Among the findings:

Charlotte's nonwhite population rose above 50 percent for the first time. The same happened in Greensboro and Winston-Salem.
Once-small suburban towns have exploded in population. Huntersville now has more people than Hickory.
Indian Trail in Union County and Mooresville in Iredell County, both fast-growing suburbs, eclipsed their respective county seats in population.

UNC Charlotte's Urban Institute looked at population changes in the 11 N.C. counties in the Charlotte region. (South Carolina's numbers haven't come out.) See the Urban Institute's findings here.

New demands on CMS teacher assistants

2011-03-09T14:22:00.000-05:00

Teachers aren't the only ones facing layoffs in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. The preliminary 2011-12 budget plan calls for getting rid of teacher assistants in grades one and two, a loss of about 350 jobs.

Some assistants say a letter they received in February created a near-impossible barrier to keeping their jobs. The letter notifies principals that credentials that had previously been required only for assistants in high-poverty schools that get federal Title I money will now be required for all assistants, with documentation required by April 1.

Read the letter here.

Superintendent Peter Gorman and Chief Operating Officer Hugh Hattabaugh said today they've been urging all assistants to get these credentials for years. Failure to have the credentials by the deadline won't result in automatic dismissal, they said, and decisions about who's laid off will be based on performance ratings. But they said even assistants with top ratings could have a tough time competing for the remaining jobs if they lack credentials required to work in the Title I schools.

CMS approves layoff criteria; 559 could lose jobs

2011-03-08T22:11:00.003-05:00

About 560 educators -- including teachers, librarians and counselors -- face layoffs next year under criteria the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board approved Tuesday night, the Observer's Ann Doss Helms reports.
Approval of layoff criteria is the first step step toward a worst-case scenario that would cut jobs to trim $100 million from the CMS budget. Here's the full CMS memo outlining the layoff criteria.

Judge Manning and CMS on testing

2011-03-06T01:00:00.001-05:00

As Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and stats officials try to sort out how many tests kids should take, Judge Howard Manning has weighed in on a legislative plan to reduce the number of high-school End of Course exams. Manning presides over the long-running Leandro case over constitutional rights to a sound basic education. In Manning's view, eliminating tests jeopardizes students; read his 22-page memo here.

And as CMS officials are gearing up to add tests, here's the memo officials recently sent to schools to explain the process.

Key dates and Information for Upcoming District Field Tests and Summative Assessments

CMS will be using district summative assessments as part of an effort to align all courses to the NC Standard Course of Study or CMS objectives in the case of a local course. This will help to calculate student growth and provide data needed to execute Strategic Plan 2014. Additionally, the summative tests support a recent recommendation made during our AdvancED accreditation visit. In order to prepare for these tests, the office of accountability will administer a field test the week of April 4^th. After successfully administering the field tests, a pilot administration of the district summative assessments will occur at the end of the 2010-2011 school year.

Items for these assessments have been developed by a professional item vendor and reviewed by CMS staff from the office of accountability and curriculum and instruction. The field tests allow us to test the questions and use the data to make informed decisions about the final version of district summative assessments for the 2011-2012 school year. The tests for the 2010-2011 school year are listed in this document.

Field Test Background: Field tests are part of the normal protocol in developing tests to ensure that the test questions will measure what they are supposed to measure. No feedback from the field tests will be available to teachers or schools since the purpose is to ensure the quality of test field questions not to measure individual student knowledge. The field testing will allow us to administer a pilot summative test this spring to give feedback to teachers and schools on the performance of their class. This feedback from the pilot tests is important to empower schools to adjust their instruction for the 2011-12 school year in light of these new standards.

K-2:

· Subjects tested: Reading/Math/Science/Social Studies

o Performance related tasks only

o Healthful living and visual and performing arts summative testing will be added in the 2011-2012 school year

o Field test window – April 4–8, 2011

o Summative test window – May 9-27, 2011

o Do not count as part of a student’s grade this year

o Results from pilot tests are only to be used for planning purposes

Elementary (3-5)/Middle:

· Science/Social Studies

o Science administered to students in grades 3, 4, 6, and 7. Social studies administered to all students in grades 3-8.

o 40 Multiple Choice

o Field test window – April 6, 2011

o Summative test window – May 9-20, 2011

o Do not count as part of a student’s grade this year

o Results from pilot tests are only to be used for planning purposes

High School:

· Some subjects will have district summative assessments beginning in the 2011-2012 school year

· Subjects tested in spring of 2011: World History, African-American studies, Contemporary Law and Justice, Contemporary Issues in North Carolina, Sociology, Psychology, Greenhouse Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Earth Science, Forensic Science, Honors Physics, Honors Chemistry, Foundations of English I, Literacy I, English Composition, English 3, English 4, Journalism 1-4, Film as Literature, Student Media Assistant, Foundations of Algebra, Algebra IA, Foundations of Geometry, Intro to Math, Advanced Functions and Modeling, Discrete Mathematics

o In most cases 40 Multiple Choice Questions

o Field test administration window

§ April 6, 2011

o Summative test window

§ June 1-10, 2011

o Any student enrolled in the above courses will take a pilot test in June 2011

o Do not count as 25 percent of a student’s final grade this year

o Results from pilot tests are only to be used for planning purposes

Blog pranks Wisconsin governor (audio)

2011-02-23T15:48:00.000-05:00

On a prank call that quickly spread across the Internet, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker was duped into discussing his strategy to cripple public employee unions, promising never to give in and joking that he would use a baseball bat in his office to go after political opponents.

Walker believed the caller was a conservative billionaire named David Koch, but it was actually a blogger from the online news site Buffalo Beast. The two talked for at least 20 minutes -– a conversation in which the governor described several ways to pressure Democrats to return to the Statehouse and revealed that his supporters had considered secretly planting people in pro-union protest crowds to stir up trouble.

The call also revealed Walker's cozy relationship with two billionaire brothers who have poured millions of dollars into conservative political causes, including Walker's campaign last year.

Listen to a copy of the call uploaded to YouTube:

Part 2:

CMS' new list of high-poverty FOCUS schools

2011-02-18T16:17:00.002-05:00

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has for years targeted some of its poorest schools to receive extra resources to help their students overcome their disadvantages. Periodically, CMS reshuffles the list of so-called FOCUS schools. (It stands for Finding Opportunities: Creating Unparalleled Success). With eight of those schools slated for closure this year due to budget cuts, CMS is moving new schools onto the list. Here's the full revised list of CMS new FOCUS schools.

Jones: "I have not and will not consider resigning"

2011-02-18T13:33:00.006-05:00

In a new video to employees, Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones says that he looks forward to his continued service with the county and has not considered stepping down.

The message -- which you can also view by clicking here -- was sent to county workers Thursday afternoon, and requested by the Observer today.

Jones states that he remains "as committed as ever" to helping the county meet its 2015 goals, and his immediate focus is working on putting together the 2011-12 budget.

"I look forward to my continued service as county manager," Jones said, "and have not and will not consider resigning, and have no plans to retire in the immediate future."

The new video comes in the heels of a closed-door meeting earlier this week between Jones and county commissioners on his performance and other issues stemming from a payout to the county's former mental health director. Read the statement issued by commissioners after the talk by clicking here. -- APRIL BETHEA

Commissioners' statement on Jones, payouts

2011-02-15T23:48:00.003-05:00

Mecklenburg County Commissioners spent more than three hours behind closed doors on Tuesday to discuss the handling of a $60,000 settlement to former county mental health director Grayce Crockett.

Commissioners had questioned whether County Manager Harry Jones exceeded his authority in reaching the deal and said they were troubled that they did not learn of the settlement right away. Some also criticized staff for initially describing the money as just payout for Crockett's vacation and accrued sick time.

After emerging from closed session, Jones apologized for not communicating the deal well enough with the board. He also said he made a "lapse in judgement" in sending a weekend email with information on money Commissioner Jim Pendergraph received when he retired as the sheriff.

Commissioners issued the following statement late Tuesday:

"The Board has reviewed the actions of County Manager Harry Jones regarding the terms and conditions of former Area Mental Health Grayce Crockett’s resignation, including the payment of a negotiated amount to Ms. Crockett totaling $99,329.18. This involved a thorough review of County policy and the authority provided by the Board of County Commissioners to the County Manager. The Board also received and reviewed information on other negotiated resignations of County employees in recent years.

Based on this review, the Board believes the following:

1. The County Manager made a reasoned and sound decision in the best interests of Mecklenburg County taxpayers and had the authority to do so without prior Board approval.

2. The County Manager should have informed the Board in advance or immediately thereafter about the terms and conditions of Ms. Crockett’s negotiated resignation, including the amount paid to her in excess of what she was entitled to receive in accrued vacation and sick benefits, and the reasons he decided the payment was in the best interests of the County and taxpayers.

3. The County is limited by privacy laws regarding the amount and type of information that can be released to the public.

4. Although the information publicly released involving Grayce Crockett’s negotiated resignation was technically correct and was released in a good faith attempt to comply with North Carolina law, it provided a misleading impression to the Board and the public.

5. The County Manager erred by not timely correcting this misimpression.

6. The County Manager made a mistake by not informing the Board in advance or immediately afterwards about the terms and conditions of Grayce Crockett’s resignation. The County Manager understands and acknowledges this mistake.

7. The County Manager seriously erred when he released information from Commissioner Pendergraph’s personnel file that included some information protected by North Carolina privacy laws, although he did so without malice.

8. The County Manager understands and acknowledges he made a mistake when he released the protected information from Commissioner Pendergraph’s personnel file. The County Manager has apologized to Commissioner Pendergraph and Commissioner Pendergraph has accepted his apology.

9. The additional amounts of accrued vacation paid to Commissioner Pendergraph at the time of his retirement were for benefits he earned during his service as Mecklenburg County Sheriff.

10. The County Manager must improve communication with the Board on personnel and matters of public interest.

11. The Board will work with the County Manager to establish clear expectations for how similar matters will be handled in the future.

The Board will put this statement in the County Manager’s personnel file and intends to take all of the above into consideration when conducting the County Manager’s annual performance evaluation later this calendar year."

Statement on Crockett's final payment

2011-02-08T20:14:00.005-05:00

Mecklenburg County Commission chair Jennifer Roberts today released a statement detailing the county's final payment to former Area Mental Health Director Grayce Crockett.

It included $31,095 of accrued vacation and sick leave. The county also paid her salary through Jan. 11, the effective date of her resignation. The remainder of the $99,330 was a negotiated amount of additional vacation and sick leave.

"I believe the decision to pay the negotiated amount of additional vacation and sick leave was appropriately made to protect Mecklenburg County's legal interest and allow the County Manager to effect an immediate change in the leadership of Area Mental Health," Roberts said.

Click here to read the statement.

- Ames Alexander

Fed analyst's case study on Wachovia's implosion

2011-02-03T11:45:00.003-05:00

This PowerPoint presentation was cited in the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission report issued last week, providing a window into the normally non-public thinking of bank examiners.

http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2011/02/03/12/2008-11-

January 29, 1986 - Challenger Disaster | Charlotte Observer Special Section

2011-01-27T23:25:00.000-05:00

Every newsroom simultaneously dreads and thrives on the prospect of big breaking news. Across the United States and around the world, news organizations went into high gear on the morning of Wednesday, January 29, 1986 when the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded 74 seconds after liftoff, killing the crew of seven, including Christa McAuliffe, America's first teacher in space.
View the section here, extracted from The Observer's microfiche archive.
-- Gary O'Brien

Mecklenburg commissioners talk priorities

2011-01-27T18:28:00.006-05:00

Mecklenburg County commissioners on Thursday starting outlining what programs and services should receive top priority as they're planning the 2011-12 budget.

Commissioners will vote on their final priorities for the year at a later meeting.

But a preliminary list -- which you can view by clicking here -- was presented Thursday at the board's annual strategic planning conference at the Charlotte Museum of History. It is based on the results of a community survey as well as county management's list of "critical success factors" they believe the county needs to focus on in the next few years.

(Learn about the critical success factors on page 36 to 47 of this link)

Landing at the top in priority one of seven were Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, debt service, economic development, education support services and job training/employment assistance.

The priority list helps influence how much money certain programs or services could be in line for in the new budget. Being ranked at the bottom, or in level 7, doesn't mean a program will receive no money.

Likewise, being listed at the top won't prevent a service from facing cuts.

On Thursday, commissioners noted several categories they'd like to see moved to different priorities.

Seven board members wanted to raise the ranking for Central Piedmont Community College, which is at level 4 in the preliminary list. Three commissioners also said they'd like to raise the ranking for the parks, fields and recreation centers category (5).

Other categories at least one commissioner wanted to move higher on the list included
child & adolescent mental illness prevention and treatment; adult abuse/neglect prevention and protection; child abuse/neglect prevention and protection; homelessness services; jail and detention facilities; morgue and medical examiner and regional planning.

Areas that at least one commissioner wanted moved to a lower ranking included: economic development, non-communicable illness/disease prevention and treatment; land quality; greenway development and management; and transportation. APRIL BETHEA

Audit: County mismanaged housing program

2011-01-25T18:14:00.009-05:00

Federal auditors have released a report detailing

Mecklenburg County's lax oversight of the Shelter Plus Care housing program.

The initiative was one of several programs previously managed by troubled nonprofit Mecklenburg Open Door, which until last October was one of the county’s largest mental health contractors.

Click here to read the report.

The Department of Housing & Urban Development said the county “mismanaged its program,” paying many expenses without adequate supporting documentation.

The county also housed mentally ill participants “in units that were not decent, safe and sanitary.”

“These deficiencies occurred because the County failed to develop and implement a system of internal controls.”

HUD said it will require the county to provide documentation showing that about $441,000 in expenses was eligible for reimbursement – or to repay that amount from non-Federal funds.

- Ames Alexander

Another library departure

2011-01-20T23:05:00.002-05:00

One day after Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Director Charles Brown announced his resignation, a published report detailed the departure of a second library executive.

According to Library Journal on Thursday, the merger of some library services with Mecklenburg County departments eliminated the position of director of organization resources held by Brian Beavers.

A library spokesperson told the publication Beavers, who earns $84,978 in salary and $27,872 in benefits, would leave Feb. 5.

Beavers' departure helps offset the cost of retaining Brown through June and the immediate hire of an interim chief executive officer, library officials say.

Brown will work the next five months at 80 percent of his current $170,974 salary. Interim CEO Vick Phillips will receive $13,000 a month.

Brown also gets an $800 monthly auto allowance and a benefits package worth $56,097, the report says.

- Doug Miller

Obama's state dinner menu

2011-01-19T18:45:00.004-05:00

A Whtie House place setting for the state dinner in honor of China's president, Hu Jintao. (AP photo)

The White House released the meat-and-potatoes menu for tonight's state dinner honoring the visiting president of China, Hu Jintao.

Guests will be served a "quintessentially American" meal, including "old fashioned apple pie with vanilla ice cream."

The main course for the third state dinner hosted by the president and Michelle Obama will feature poached Maine lobster, dry-aged rib eye with double stuffed potatoes and creamed spinach.

Dinner Menu

D’Anjou Pear Salad with Farmstead Goat Cheese
Fennel, Black Walnuts, and White Balsamic

Poached Maine Lobster
Orange Glazed Carrots and Black Trumpet Mushrooms
Dumol Chardonnay “Russian River” 2008

Lemon Sorbet

Dry Aged Rib Eye with Buttermilk Crisp Onions
Double Stuffed Potatoes and Creamed Spinach
Quilceda Creek Cabernet “Columbia Valley” 2005

Old Fashioned Apple Pie with
Vanilla Ice Cream
Poet’s Leap Riesling “Botrytis” 2008

View the state dinner program:
China_State_Visit

Read Obama's remarks in Tucson

2011-01-12T23:13:00.008-05:00

Following is a text of President Obama’s prepared address on Wednesday to honor those killed and wounded in a shooting Saturday, as released by the White House.

President Barack Obama hugs Mark Kelly, the husband of U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, on Wednesday.
(Kevork Djansezian - Getty)

To the families of those we've lost; to all who called them friends; to the students of this university, the public servants gathered tonight, and the people of Tucson and Arizona: I have come here tonight as an American who, like all Americans, kneels to pray with you today, and will stand by you tomorrow.

There is nothing I can say that will fill the sudden hole torn in your hearts. But know this: the hopes of a nation are here tonight. We mourn with you for the fallen. We join you in your grief. And we add our faith to yours that Representative Gabrielle Giffords and the other living victims of this tragedy pull through.

As Scripture tells us:
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.

On Saturday morning, Gabby, her staff, and many of her constituents gathered outside a supermarket to exercise their right to peaceful assembly and free speech. They were fulfilling a central tenet of the democracy envisioned by our founders – representatives of the people answering to their constituents, so as to carry their concerns to our nation's capital. Gabby called it "Congress on Your Corner" – just an updated version of government of and by and for the people.

That is the quintessentially American scene that was shattered by a gunman's bullets. And the six people who lost their lives on Saturday – they too represented what is best in America.

Judge John Roll served our legal system for nearly 40 years. A graduate of this university and its law school, Judge Roll was recommended for the federal bench by John McCain twenty years ago, appointed by President George H.W. Bush, and rose to become Arizona's chief federal judge. His colleagues described him as the hardest-working judge within the Ninth Circuit. He was on his way back from attending Mass, as he did every day, when he decided to stop by and say hi to his Representative. John is survived by his loving wife, Maureen, his three sons, and his five grandchildren.

George and Dorothy Morris – "Dot" to her friends – were high school sweethearts who got married and had two daughters. They did everything together, traveling the open road in their RV, enjoying what their friends called a 50-year honeymoon. Saturday morning, they went by the Safeway to hear what their Congresswoman had to say. When gunfire rang out, George, a former Marine, instinctively tried to shield his wife. Both were shot. Dot passed away.

A New Jersey native, Phyllis Schneck retired to Tucson to beat the snow. But in the summer, she would return East, where her world revolved around her 3 children, 7 grandchildren, and 2 year-old great-granddaughter. A gifted quilter, she'd often work under her favorite tree, or sometimes sew aprons with the logos of the Jets and the Giants to give out at the church where she volunteered. A Republican, she took a liking to Gabby, and wanted to get to know her better.

Dorwan and Mavy Stoddard grew up in Tucson together – about seventy years ago. They moved apart and started their own respective families, but after both were widowed they found their way back here, to, as one of Mavy's daughters put it, "be boyfriend and girlfriend again." When they weren't out on the road in their motor home, you could find them just up the road, helping folks in need at the Mountain Avenue Church of Christ. A retired construction worker, Dorwan spent his spare time fixing up the church along with their dog, Tux. His final act of selflessness was to dive on top of his wife, sacrificing his life for hers.

Everything Gabe Zimmerman did, he did with passion – but his true passion was people. As Gabby's outreach director, he made the cares of thousands of her constituents his own, seeing to it that seniors got the Medicare benefits they had earned, that veterans got the medals and care they deserved, that government was working for ordinary folks. He died doing what he loved – talking with people and seeing how he could help. Gabe is survived by his parents, Ross and Emily, his brother, Ben, and his fiancée, Kelly, who he planned to marry next year.

And then there is nine year-old Christina Taylor Green. Christina was an A student, a dancer, a gymnast, and a swimmer. She often proclaimed that she wanted to be the first woman to play in the major leagues, and as the only girl on her Little League team, no one put it past her. She showed an appreciation for life uncommon for a girl her age, and would remind her mother, "We are so blessed. We have the best life." And she'd pay those blessings back by participating in a charity that helped children who were less fortunate.

Our hearts are broken by their sudden passing. Our hearts are broken – and yet, our hearts also have reason for fullness.

Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman many of them went to see on Saturday. I have just come from the University Medical Center, just a mile from here, where our friend Gabby courageously fights to recover even as we speak. And I can tell you this – she knows we're here and she knows we love her and she knows that we will be rooting for her throughout what will be a difficult journey.

And our hearts are full of gratitude for those who saved others. We are grateful for Daniel Hernandez, a volunteer in Gabby's office who ran through the chaos to minister to his boss, tending to her wounds to keep her alive. We are grateful for the men who tackled the gunman as he stopped to reload. We are grateful for a petite 61 year-old, Patricia Maisch, who wrestled away the killer's ammunition, undoubtedly saving some lives. And we are grateful for the doctors and nurses and emergency medics who worked wonders to heal those who'd been hurt.

These men and women remind us that heroism is found not only on the fields of battle. They remind us that heroism does not require special training or physical strength. Heroism is here, all around us, in the hearts of so many of our fellow citizens, just waiting to be summoned – as it was on Saturday morning.

Their actions, their selflessness, also pose a challenge to each of us. It raises the question of what, beyond the prayers and expressions of concern, is required of us going forward. How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?

You see, when a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations – to try to impose some order on the chaos, and make sense out of that which seems senseless. Already we've seen a national conversation commence, not only about the motivations behind these killings, but about everything from the merits of gun safety laws to the adequacy of our mental health systems. Much of this process, of debating what might be done to prevent such tragedies in the future, is an essential ingredient in our exercise of self-government.

But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized – at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do – it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds.

Scripture tells us that there is evil in the world, and that terrible things happen for reasons that defy human understanding. In the words of Job, "when I looked for light, then came darkness." Bad things happen, and we must guard against simple explanations in the aftermath.

For the truth is that none of us can know exactly what triggered this vicious attack. None of us can know with any certainty what might have stopped those shots from being fired, or what thoughts lurked in the inner recesses of a violent man's mind.

So yes, we must examine all the facts behind this tragedy. We cannot and will not be passive in the face of such violence. We should be willing to challenge old assumptions in order to lessen the prospects of violence in the future.

But what we can't do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another. As we discuss these issues, let each of us do so with a good dose of humility. Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let us use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy, and remind ourselves of all the ways our hopes and dreams are bound together.

After all, that's what most of us do when we lose someone in our family – especially if the loss is unexpected. We're shaken from our routines, and forced to look inward. We reflect on the past. Did we spend enough time with an aging parent, we wonder. Did we express our gratitude for all the sacrifices they made for us? Did we tell a spouse just how desperately we loved them, not just once in awhile but every single day?

So sudden loss causes us to look backward – but it also forces us to look forward, to reflect on the present and the future, on the manner in which we live our lives and nurture our relationships with those who are still with us. We may ask ourselves if we've shown enough kindness and generosity and compassion to the people in our lives. Perhaps we question whether we are doing right by our children, or our community, and whether our priorities are in order. We recognize our own mortality, and are reminded that in the fleeting time we have on this earth, what matters is not wealth, or status, or power, or fame – but rather, how well we have loved, and what small part we have played in bettering the lives of others.

That process of reflection, of making sure we align our values with our actions – that, I believe, is what a tragedy like this requires. For those who were harmed, those who were killed – they are part of our family, an American family 300 million strong. We may not have known them personally, but we surely see ourselves in them. In George and Dot, in Dorwan and Mavy, we sense the abiding love we have for our own husbands, our own wives, our own life partners. Phyllis – she's our mom or grandma; Gabe our brother or son. In Judge Roll, we recognize not only a man who prized his family and doing his job well, but also a man who embodied America's fidelity to the law. In Gabby, we see a reflection of our public spiritedness, that desire to participate in that sometimes frustrating, sometimes contentious, but always necessary and never-ending process to form a more perfect union.

And in Christina…in Christina we see all of our children. So curious, so trusting, so energetic and full of magic.

So deserving of our love.

And so deserving of our good example. If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate, as it should, let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost. Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point scoring and pettiness that drifts away with the next news cycle.

The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better in our private lives – to be better friends and neighbors, co-workers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their deaths help usher in more civility in our public discourse, let's remember that it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy, but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation, in a way that would make them proud. It should be because we want to live up to the example of public servants like John Roll and Gabby Giffords, who knew first and foremost that we are all Americans, and that we can question each other's ideas without questioning each other's love of country, and that our task, working together, is to constantly widen the circle of our concern so that we bequeath the American dream to future generations.

I believe we can be better. Those who died here, those who saved lives here – they help me believe. We may not be able to stop all evil in the world, but I know that how we treat one another is entirely up to us. I believe that for all our imperfections, we are full of decency and goodness, and that the forces that divide us are not as strong as those that unite us.

That's what I believe, in part because that's what a child like Christina Taylor Green believed. Imagine: here was a young girl who was just becoming aware of our democracy; just beginning to understand the obligations of citizenship; just starting to glimpse the fact that someday she too might play a part in shaping her nation's future. She had been elected to her student council; she saw public service as something exciting, something hopeful. She was off to meet her congresswoman, someone she was sure was good and important and might be a role model. She saw all this through the eyes of a child, undimmed by the cynicism or vitriol that we adults all too often just take for granted.

I want us to live up to her expectations. I want our democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us – we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children's expectations.

Christina was given to us on September 11th, 2001, one of 50 babies born that day to be pictured in a book called "Faces of Hope." On either side of her photo in that book were simple wishes for a child's life. "I hope you help those in need," read one. "I hope you know all of the words to the National Anthem and sing it with your hand over your heart. I hope you jump in rain puddles."

If there are rain puddles in heaven, Christina is jumping in them today. And here on Earth, we place our hands over our hearts, and commit ourselves as Americans to forging a country that is forever worthy of her gentle, happy spirit.

May God bless and keep those we've lost in restful and eternal peace. May He love and watch over the survivors. And may He bless the United States of America.

Watch the Sarah Palin video that's sparked an outcry

2011-01-12T19:31:00.003-05:00

In saying her critics “manufactured a blood libel,” Sarah Palin used a phrase linked to the false accusations made for centuries against Jews, often to malign them as child murderers who coveted the blood of Christian children.

Blood libel has been a central fable of anti-Semitism in which Jews have been accused of using the blood of gentile children for medicinal purposes or to mix in with matzo, or unleavened bread traditionally eaten at Passover.

In a video posted to her Facebook page early Wednesday, the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate accused the U.S. media of inciting hatred and violence after the shooting that gravely wounded U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. Palin has been criticized for marking Giffords' district with the cross hairs of a gun sight during last fall's campaign.

“But, especially within hours of a tragedy unfolding, journalists and pundits should not manufacture a blood libel that serves only to incite the very hatred and violence they purport to condemn. That is reprehensible,” she said. -- Observer News Services

What do you think?

Sarah Palin: "America's Enduring Strength" from Sarah Palin on Vimeo.

Obama's statement on Arizona shooting

2011-01-08T16:02:00.000-05:00

President Barack Obama's statement about the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., in Tucson today:

This morning, in an unspeakable tragedy, a number of Americans were shot in Tucson, Arizona, at a constituent meeting with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. And while we are continuing to receive information, we know that some have passed away, and that Representative Giffords is gravely wounded.

We do not yet have all the answers. What we do know is that such a senseless and terrible act of violence has no place in a free society. I ask all Americans to join me and Michelle in keeping Representative Giffords, the victims of this tragedy, and their families in our prayers.

Elizabeth Edwards leaves nothing to John in her will

2011-01-05T20:23:00.000-05:00

Elizabeth Edwards in 2006.

Elizabeth Edwards' final will and testament was released Wednesday on the Web, and it doesn't mention John Edwards' name once.

Elizabeth Edwards signed the document, obtained by the TV show "Inside Edition," on Dec. 1, just six days before she died after a long battle with breast cancer.

The couple's older daughter, Catherine, 28, was named as executor. Elizabeth Edwards left all of her belongings to Catherine and her other two children, Emma Claire and Jack.

"All of my furniture, furnishings, household goods, jewelry, china, silverware and personal effects and any automobiles owned by me at the time of my death I give and bequeath to my children," the will says. Read the full will here (PDF).

Edwards' death certificate, which was also released Wednesday, listed her cause of death as metastatic breast cancer, "Inside Edition" reported.

Elizabeth and John Edwards separated early last year after he admitted to fathering a child in an extramarital affair with Rielle Hunter.

'Chainsaw massacre role-playing'

2011-01-04T16:51:00.002-05:00

On Nov. 3, 2010 a person who used the social networking site where Adam and Elisa Baker met recounted a conversation she had with the Bakers regarding their involvement in a chainsaw massacre role play.

The user said the conversation involved the Bakers' virtual family "doing a murder with chainsaws with chainsaws" around Sept. 22. Tuesday’s release was the second significant disclosure of search warrants in the Baker case.

Click here to read the documents.

Other records allege that Elisa Baker said Adam Baker dismembered Zahra Baker's limbs before the Bakers disposed of them in various locations.

Click here to read the documents.

- Doug Miller

Former Wal-Mart manager says chain broke laws

2010-12-22T16:49:00.005-05:00

Former Wal-Mart manager Sylvester Johnson alleges civil rights and securities law violations by mega retailer. Read the suit, filed today in federal district court in Charlotte.
http://media.charlotteobserver.com/static/images/pdf/walmart.pdf

Feds seek CMS assignment info

2010-12-16T11:23:00.005-05:00

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools has until Jan. 7 to provide federal civil-rights investigators with student-assignment policies and demographic data related to 2011 school closings and other changes, according to a notice sent by the U.S. Education Department's Office of Civil Rights this week.

Click here to read the notice.

Seven people - the department does not identify them - have filed complaints alleging that CMS's recent decision to close schools and otherwise reassign students discriminates on the basis of race or national origin. CMS officials acknowledge that most students whose schools will close are black, Hispanic and/or low-income, but they say closings were based on low enrollment and/or academic problems, not race.

- Ann Doss Helms

Read the SEC accusations

2010-12-08T14:25:00.002-05:00

Bank of America Corp. agreed to pay $137 million in restitution for its involvement in a conspiracy to rig bids on 88 municipal bond contracts, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Justice Department said.
The Charlotte bank agreed to pay $36 million to settle an SEC case. The bank will pay an additional $101 million to resolve investigations by other federal and state agencies, the SEC said.

http://www.charlotteobserver.com/static/images/pdf/bofasec.pdf

Read emails behind Jim Turner's resignation

2010-12-06T18:49:00.003-05:00

These emails from earlier this year reveal the cozy relationship between then-chairman of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission David Lott Hardy and top Duke Energy executive Jim Turner, who resigned over the emails today. They are among hundreds between the two that were obtained under public records law by the Indianapolis Star.

email one
email two

New Zahra Baker documents

2010-12-01T03:43:00.000-05:00

In stark detail, court documents released Tuesday disclose new allegations in the death of 10-year-old Zahra Baker, the Hickory girl whose plight appears to be more disturbing than previously revealed.

Read the court documents.

Feds: Congressman's staffer cheated constituents

2010-11-29T18:41:00.001-05:00

A staffer for former U.S. Rep. Robin Hayes was sentenced to two years’ probation today on a charge of extorting money from constituents who had turned to her for help.

Click here to read court papers.

Elizabeth Lozada, 43, of Concord, N.C., appeared in U.S. District Court in Greensboro. She pled guilty in May to extortion of less than $1,000, which is a federal misdemeanor.

Her public defender, Thomas Cochran of Greensboro, declined to comment on the case at her request.

Lozada served in Hayes’ Cabarrus County office from 2005 through 2008, the end of Hayes’ term. She earned $41,000 in her last year there, according to the website LegiStorm, which tracks congressional office spending.

According to documents filed in federal court, Lozada’s responsibilities as a constituent liaison included assisting Spanish-speaking residents of the 8th Congressional District on a variety of issues involving the federal bureaucracy. Those included offering help with passports, Social Security and immigration matters.

- Barbara Barrett, Maria David

Big classes, big problems

2010-11-27T17:00:00.003-05:00

CMS officials have compiled a list of all high school classes with more than 35 students, suggesting the problem is especially glaring at suburban campuses.

Click here to see a list of all big classes at CMS high schools.

School board member Kaye McGarry said she requested a campus-by-campus tally because she was concerned about how recent budget cuts are driving up class sizes.

The statistics suggest suburban campuses don't benefit as much as low-income ones from a CMS policy that assigns more teachers to low-income students in hopes of helping them overcome their social disadvantages.

McGarry and others say the policy might need to be revisited in light of a budget gap of up to $100 million CMS faces next year.

- Eric Frazier

Letter: 'Conduct unbecoming an officer'

2010-11-22T17:33:00.001-05:00

The city of Charlotte today released former police officer Marcus Jackson's termination letter after a judge ruled the document is public record under the state's new personnel law.

Click here to read the termination letter.

Jackson's attorneys argued the letter should not be released until criminal charges are resolved, citing state law allowing material in ongoing investigations to be withheld.

But Superior Court Judge Robert Ervin disagreed.

Observer attorney Jon Buchan successfully argued that the dismissal letter is public record and not investigative material.

In the dismissal, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Chief Rodney Monroe cited two December 2009 incidents in which Jackson is accused of conducting traffic stops on women. Six women have accused Jackson of sexually assaulting them while he was on duty.

- Doug Miller

Motion: Baker not a flight risk

2010-11-15T22:04:00.002-05:00

In court papers seeking to reduce bond for Elisa Baker, her lawyers argued that even if Baker tried to flee Caldwell County, she could not hide for long.

Because of "overwhelming and international publicity" surrounding the death of her 10-year-old stepdaughter, court papers filed Monday say, Baker would have difficulty avoiding detection if she was released from jail.

Click here to read the motion.

The body of Baker's stepdaughter, Zahra Baker, was dismembered and the remains were hidden across several rural locations. The motion said Elisa Baker cooperated with law enforcement and told them where to find the remains and other evidence - the only "credible evidence" publicly known.

Baker is jailed on a charge of obstructing justice related to the case.

The motion seeking lower bond also cited Baker's ties to the area. She only left when she moved to Australia briefly and married her current husband Adam Baker, Zahra's father.

She has surrendered her passport to authorities.

- Doug Miller

Trent Merchant's e-mail on CMS closure vote

2010-11-08T00:06:00.004-05:00

Trent Merchant

On Sunday evening, CMS board member Trent Merchant sent an e-mail to his fellow board members urging them to "take no action on the Waddell-Harding-Smith-Berry-South Meck piece of the staff recommendation and the board alternative that has been assembled."

He says he would rather delay the decision until next spring for the 2012-13 school year. Board Chair Eric Davis, however, reiterated Sunday night that he intends to go through with the vote on Tuesday.

Read Merchant's e-mail below:

From: Trent Merchant
Sent: Sunday, November 07, 2010 9:49 PM
To: Eric C. Davis; Tom Tate; Joyce Waddell; Rhonda Lennon; 'Richard McElrath'; Joe White; Kaye Mcgarry; Tim Morgan
Subject: Waddell-Harding-Smith-Berry-South Meck

Colleagues,

I apologize for communicating via email, but our time is running short, and having met with, spoken with, or traded messages with all of you individually over the last week, I thought that for the sake of consistency and simplicity it might be best to communicate with the entire board at once.

On Tuesday night, I would like for us to pull and then take no action on the Waddell-Harding-Smith-Berry-South Meck piece of the staff recommendation and the board alternative that has been assembled. I would like for us to do this in a way that is pro-active, rather than as a consequence of simply voting down the staff rec or the board alternative.

I had tried for several days to push for delay of a month to consider a solution that would pull in 2 elementary zones that had not previously been in the mix, with the reasoning that more pieces = more flexibility and better options. But on our Nov 9 agenda, we will approve Policy JCA, which captures the Guiding Principles, which include a notification date of Nov 15 for student assignment changes, thanks in part to my own shortsighted advocacy in the face of the Superintendent's warning that a hard date was a bad idea. I would personally be willing to be beaten up for breaking the rules, because my own moral compass says that if we reach an outcome that is better for the most students, then the correct play for us as leaders is to pick results over process. But the public is twisting in the wind and I do not believe that a compressed and tense month of debate over 11th-hour options (over Thanksgiving) would inspire public trust.

And so, I hope that we will instead withdraw the Waddell-Harding-Smith-Berry-South Meck piece, expand the geography under consideration, and aim to make a decision in the Spring/Summer 2011 for the 2012-2013 school year. My rationale follows:

FINANCIAL - Both the staff recommendation and the board alternative project approximately $550,000 net savings in Year 1. However, the board alternative will cause the district to lose more than $1.2 million (1/3 of the 3 year $3.7 million School Improvement Grant for Waddell) in that same year, for a minimum net COST of over $650,000. In fairness, if we close Waddell, the net savings could be spent throughout the district, while the SIG money must be spent at Waddell, but with a graduation rate of 52%, aren't those the students who need the additional resources the most?

And if the over-arching problem that must be solved is how to generate as much cost-savings as possible, why would we make a decision that costs more, while angering the community, causing disruption, and taking away resources from students with the greatest needs?

OPERATIONAL - transportation and not having to do this again next year all over again: - The decision in question will touch 3 magnets. We have all acknowledged that transportation will be an area of operations that is discussed early in the budget process. It does not seem like the correct decision-making hierarchy to determine the placement of magnets, hold the magnet lottery, THEN make decisions on transportation. Last year our hand was forced. This year we know that we may have to make adjustments. We should behave accordingly.

In a time that we have framed as financial crisis, how do we save face if we bus students from South Blvd and Sharon Lakes up to Harding? It's 12 miles. For a home school. See for yourself at http://maps.google.com/maps?q=harding+university+high+school&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wl

We are going to eliminate a transportation zone. We need to take a hard look at West Charlotte IB, which has fewer than 100 students and has produced no recent graduates. The math/science program at Harding has 100 fewer freshmen than seniors this year. But the middle school level math/science program at Morehead is just getting going. etc, etc... there are too many things in flux to make an informed decision with predictable outcomes.

ACADEMIC: The board alternative would dismantle the culture of success at Harding, carve out half of its students, drop in 80% of a school with a 52% graduation rate and 79% EDS, and add the most challenged pieces of West Meck - Reid Park (95% EDS), Westerly Hills (94% EDS), and Barringer (69% EDS at a partial magnet - the home zone EDS will be higher).

Do any of you honestly believe that is a recipe for success?

And when we have failing schools, inevitably they cost us more - but now we have no resources. In fact, the board alternative would eliminate some of the resources currently available by killing the SIG grant at Waddell.

A COMBINATION OF EQUITY AND HOME PROXIMITY - they are not always at odds: Find a compass. Stick the point in Waddell HS. Stick the pencil at Harding. Draw a circle. Interesting how the area is much larger than the geographic area that we have discussed. Notice that there are neighborhoods much closer to Myers Park or Olympic than they are to Harding. But there's no room at those schools, right? Well, what if you could MAKE room by moving certain pieces out of Myers Park and Olympic to other schools. What we added West Charlotte to the mix, especially if IB goes away there? What if the pieces you considered moving out could also go to high schools closer to home, creating more compact boundaries and fewer bus miles? Would you consider making those decisions? Or would you fall prey to the notion that "we have to do something," even if it condemns already challenged students to even more challenged learning situations?

I believe that this is not a time for condemnation, but for mercy and grace, and I think we can make those decisions in a way that are more stable and predictable for families over time, and more economically viable for the school district.

I understand that I have ignored recurring savings in this piece. But our current financial situation and 2014 graduation goals trump long range planning needs at this point. We need to survive financially, succeed academically, and live to fight another day. On this particular item, neither the staff rec nor the board alternative help us to accomplish any of those objectives.

Thanks for your consideration, and thanks for your hard work over the past months,

Trent Merchant
CMS Board of Education, At Large

County's response to Open Door project

2010-10-29T19:15:00.005-04:00

More than two years ago, Mecklenburg Open Door unveiled plans to build a center that would help people facing mental health crises. More than $500,000 has been spent on the project. But now its future is uncertain.

Mecklenburg County did not make any of its mental health department officials available for an interview about the project. Instead, the department submitted written answers to the Observer's questions.

Here they are:

Charlotte Observer Questions: Crisis Stabilization Unit

When was the project first proposed?

· During FY06-07 the State Division of MH/DD/SA required each Local Management Entity to develop a Crisis Services Plan. The Plan was to describe all crisis services available within the community and to identify any service needs or gaps.
· A Crisis Planning Committee comprised of representatives from CMC, Presbyterian, service providers and LME staff established September 2006.
· April 2007 the Crisis Plan finalized the recommendation that a centralized, facility-based crisis service unit be developed.

What specifically do the plans call for? (number of beds, total square footage, other amenities, etc.)

· Mecklenburg Open Door proposed in May 2008 for the renovation of approximately 8,253 square feet at Charlottetown Manor to include development, construction and related start up costs for a 16 bed unit.

Who will be served by the unit? How will those clients be identified? And how will the unit help them? How will the project help the community? What needs will it help meet?

· The crisis unit would be an unlocked, residential facility where individuals experiencing a mental health crisis can get services to help them get stabilized in a safe environment.
· This would offer an option other than being incarcerated or institutionalized.
· This would help the community by stabilizing individuals that might otherwise be incarcerated or homeless.

What is happening to those people now?

· Individuals present with different issues. It is difficult to speculate what might or might not be occurring with specific individuals. Some may be in jail or some may be homeless. Some may present at the CMC-R emergency room or inpatient.

When originally was the project scheduled for completion?

· The original completion date was scheduled for January 2009

When were the first plans drawn up?

· The initial concept and plans were developed in February 2008

What work has been completed on the project so far?

· Initial demolition of interior first floor space.

What companies are involved in the planning and construction? How were those companies chosen?

· Arcons Design Studio: architectural and planning aspects of the project
· Jasam Group: contractor/builder
Both were selected by MOD

What has delayed the project so far?

· March 2009: zoning and facility integrity issues
· November 2009: licensure DHSR, final approval from the state licensure pending
· Issues related to fire and sprinkler system
· Structural issues, lead paint, and asbestos recognition and abatement
· April 2010: upgrading main building’s electrical service and HVAC system

How much money has been spent on the project so far?

· Fy’08-’09: $325,248
· FY’09-’10: $194,846
All funds are State funds; Mental Health Trust Fund or Crisis Services Funds

What is the current status of the Crisis Stabilization Unit? Do you still expect it will be built? Which agency will be responsible for ensuring the project is built?

· On hold pending negotiation of a contract with a new provider
· The development of the crisis stabilization unit was included as part of the Request for Information.

If so, when do you anticipate that it will be completed? Where will the project be built?

· It is too soon to speculate on any details at this point.

What hurdles must be cleared before the project is completed? What additional plans or funding must be approved?

· Charlottetown Manor site must be assessed by new provider before further funding is established.

What is the expected total cost of the project? What percentage of that will be state money? What percentage will be county money?

· Total cost of the project will be reassessed with new provider
· All funds for a Crisis Stabilization unit are State funds

What else should the public know about this project?
N/A

- Ames Alexander

Emails between Bob Steel and the Fed

2010-10-07T17:33:00.002-04:00

Click here to read the emails

Final report of Open Door internal probe

2010-10-07T00:30:00.002-04:00

Mecklenburg County on Wednesday released a final report of an internal investigation launched into allegations of misspent money at Mecklenburg Open Door, a contractor that has received millions in government dollars in recent years.

The report said Open Door's former executive director Ed Payton took out more than $147,000 in unauthorized loans from the organization and racked up nearly $53,000 more in unsubstantiated bills on his company credit card.

The report -- which you can read by clicking here -- was prepared by accountant William Barbee by request of the Open Door board of directors.

Payton has repaid about $79,000 of the money he borrowed, but still owes the organization nearly $122,000. -- April Bethea and Ames Alexander

Berry: 'Shocked and outraged'

2010-10-05T19:14:00.004-04:00

In a statement issued Tuesday, N.C. Labor Commissioner Cherie Berry weighed in on the national recordkeeping program.

Here's the statement she emailed to the Observer:

Thank you so much for drawing public attention to this National Emphasis Program’s outrageous waste of taxpayer money. We volunteered to participate in this National Emphasis Program before it was mandated so that we could monitor its implementation and outcome and currently have two open inspections. As the program was put into place, we were shocked and outraged given our current state budget deficit and federal budget deficit at the waste of $2 million in taxpayer money. The ill-conceived program was then mandated by federal OSHA for all state plan states. The Feds then suspended the program July 27, 2010, because it did not produce the desired results. On Sept. 28, federal OSHA sent a new set of instructions.

North Carolina and other state plan states received no funding. I’m glad we didn’t because it has proven to be a total waste of taxpayer money given our current economy. This is why we don’t need Washington trying to micromanage North Carolina’s successful OSH program. They even wanted us to do an NEP on oil refineries. Guess what? We don’t have oil refineries in North Carolina.

The PEER group press release appears to be an effort to gin up support for the over-reaching, job-killing PAWA legislation in Congress.

- Ames Alexander

Letter lays out memories of Open Door

2010-10-04T10:30:00.000-04:00

Daniel Harrison, Mecklenburg Open Door’s former chief financial officer, said he urged former Executive Director Ed Payton to tell the organization’s governing board about the large sums of money he'd been borrowing from the group – and that his failure to do so was the “single biggest threat” to the mental health group.

In a letter to the Observer, he laid out his memories of what happened at the organization under Payton's tenure.

Read the letter (.pdf)

Read the 'forensic review'

2010-09-28T17:37:00.000-04:00

Concerns about misspending at Mecklenburg Open Door arose when an employee gave a written complaint alleging the executive director inappropriately obtained pay advances and used an Open Door credit card and vehicle for personal use.

Former Executive Director Ed Payton admitted to the Observer last week that he violated policy and that it led to his dismissal.

But a financial review released today detailed for the first time what had been described previously as “financial irregularities.”

Click here to read the report.

The report says "all of the above actions were generally admitted by the Executive Director."

- Doug Miller

Jones: mental health director on paid leave

2010-09-24T20:10:00.004-04:00

Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones announced Friday he has placed Area Mental Health Director Grayce Crockett on temporary paid leave.

The news came on the heels of a report in today’s Observer about an investigation by Mecklenburg Open Door, which contracts with the mental health department, into claims that its former director misused agency money. The investigation has found “financial and administrative problems” and violations of agency policies, according to the president of its board of directors. The Observer also reported that a federal lien had been placed on Open Door for failure to pay more than $53,000 in payroll taxes. -- APRIL BETHEA

Below is a news release sent by the county Friday afternoon:

AMH Director Placed On Leave During Assessment
9/24/2010

Mecklenburg County Manager Harry L. Jones Sr. announced today that he has placed Area Mental Health (AMH) Director Grayce Crockett on temporary paid leave effective immediately. AMH Deputy Director Carlos Hernandez has been designated as Acting AMH Director during Ms. Crockett’s leave.

This action allows the Mecklenburg County Manager’s Office to assess all actions taken in connection with Mecklenburg Open Door, as the County terminates its relationship with this organization. This process also will include an assessment of management oversight in AMH regarding its handling of this situation. While on temporary leave, Ms. Crockett is expected to fully cooperate with this assessment, including providing all information she has or knows regarding this matter.

“In addition to my concerns about Area Mental Health’s monitoring oversight of the grant, I have additional concerns that we did not have complete information needed to fully brief the Board,” Jones said Friday. “Therefore, we will dig as deep as we can into Mecklenburg Open Door to determine all the facts and to ensure there is appropriate accountability within Area Mental Health.”

Key facts regarding the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) review of the Shelter Care Plus Program that Mecklenburg Open Door administered for the County are available at www.mecklenburgcountync.gov.

Statements on Mecklenburg Open Door probe

2010-09-24T09:39:00.005-04:00

As a story in today's Observer details, Mecklenburg Open Door launched an investigation four months ago into financial allegations, including whether its former director misused the organization's money.

The non-profit, which has received more than $19 million in government aid during the past five years, came under scrutiny recently after a federal housing agency faulted the organization for failing to keep adequate records of one of its housing programs. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development also said the county failed to provide adequate oversight of its contract with Mecklenburg Open Door.

The county's Area Mental Health department plans to sever all ties with the nonprofit by Nov. 30.

Below, read statements from Mecklenburg County's Area Mental Health department director; Ed Payton, former Mecklenburg Open Door executive director, and Jim Cook, president of the board of Mecklenburg Open Door, in response to questions from the Observer.

Have information to share? Contact reporters Ames Alexander at aalexander@charlotteobserver.com or 704-358-5060, and April Bethea at abethea@charlotteobserver.com or 704-358-6013.

=============
Ed Payton, former executive director of Mecklenburg Open Door:
"The DWI experiences and tax liens were from a difficult period in my life while I dealt with episodic mental health issues. Those experiences, although traumatic, gave me great empathy for people, like me, who are consumers of mental health services in Mecklenburg County.

"I acknowledge that I did violate agency policy and, in the opinion of MOD, this action warranted my termination. Since the details of this are personnel issues, I decline to discuss them.

"During my seven years at MOD the agency defined the words innovation, partner, and peer. We made a point to sit around the table with the County and other agencies to solve problems, discuss differences and, most important, to improve our collective efforts to provide better services to adults with mental health issues. During that time, plain and simple, MOD was willing to partner with Mecklenburg County to advance mental health services when few were willing to do so -- during a time when the State of North Carolina was paralyzed in its own inability to transform the mental health system. It wasn’t about money; it was about service.

"I left Mecklenburg Open Door due to my own shortcomings and mental health issues. Leaving such a fine agency and the product of my hard work was painful, but I was proud to leave an agency of merit; I was proud of its value to Mecklenburg County."

====

Grayce Crockett, director of county's Area Mental Health department

In late June 2010, the Board Chair of Mecklenburg Open Door notified Area Mental Health regarding some financial irregularities that had occurred in their organization and indicated that they were undergoing a thorough financial audit. AMH took immediate remedial action. A Request for Proposals was issued on September 17th in an open process to select another provider in order to ensure continuity of services for consumers.

Editor's Note: Crockett's statement was in response to the following questions e-mailed by Observer reporters on Wednesday:

Dear Ms. Crockett:

We’re planning to publish a story Friday about Mecklenburg Open Door’s recent internal investigation into financial and administrative problems at their agency. The investigation, which began in May, has concluded that MOD policy was violated. Board President Jim Cook has shared with us information about that investigation and its conclusions, but we think it’s important to get your input as well since your department has contracted with MOD – and since so much public money was involved.

We’ve also heard from a number of sources, including current and former MOD employees, that the investigation examined allegations that Ed Payton misused agency money. We also understand that MOD’s internal investigation into these matters contributed to the county’s decision to sever its relationship with MOD.

Here are a few questions:

-What violations at MOD have you been made aware of?

-When were those violations brought to your agency’s attention?

-In a Sept. 10 email, you told area mental health employees that “problems with MOD have surfaced not related to the Shelter Plus Care program. As a result, we will be terminating our contract with them at the end of November.” Please discuss what those problems were.

-What steps are AMH and the county taking in response to the MOD’s internal investigation, aside from severing its relationship with the agency? Does the county plan to investigate whether county was misspent? And does it plan to refer this matter to law enforcement agencies?

-What else can you tell us about this?

As always, we’d prefer to talk to you in person about this because Mecklenburg Open Door was a major provider for Area Mental Health. But if you need to respond in writing, please send an email to me -- aalexander@charlotteobserver.com -- and to April Bethea -- abethea@charlotteobserver.com. We would need to hear from you no later than 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23.

====

Jim Cook, president of board of directors, Mecklenburg Open Door

Early this summer, the Board of Directors (BOD) was informed of an allegation of violations of MOD policies. Staff investigation indicated that these allegations had merit. The BOD immediately began an investigation, and also concluded that MOD policies had been violated. In June, an external accountant conducted additional analyses to which were just completed this week. On June 17, the Executive Director began a leave of absence, and on August 3, the Executive Director left the employment of MOD, with an Interim Executive Director appointed August 4. On August 23, the Chief Financial Officer left MOD; on August 25, a new CFO started work.

In sum, over the past four months, the BOD of MOD became aware of a number of financial and administrative problems. We have investigated and taken appropriate action to address these problems. As a direct result of these investigations, three staff persons are no longer part of MOD. We have taken a number of steps to improve our administrative and fiscal controls. We are cooperating with the county regarding investigation into Shelter Plus Care, and will be working to facilitate the transition of our programs to a new provider, when that provider is chosen. In the meantime, we're working hard to ensure that our consumers continue to be served, with as little disruption as possible.

Despite these serious problems, it is important to note that, throughout this series of events, our staff have continued to serve our clients in the professional manner that has been a standard at Mecklenburg Open Door for over 25 years. We continue to be focused, primarily, on our mission of providing the best services possible. We remain confident that our consumers, citizens of Mecklenburg County with mental health issues, will continue to receive quality care and support.

Read Obama's remarks to the U.N.

2010-09-23T15:42:00.001-04:00

President Barack Obama speaks Thursday at the U.N. General Assembly.

Read the full text of President Barack Obama's remarks to the United Nations General Assembly today, as provided by the White House.

Mr. President, Mr. Secretary-General, my fellow delegates, ladies and gentlemen. It is a great honor to address this assembly for the second time, nearly two years after my election as president of the United States.

We know this is no ordinary time for our people. Each of us comes here with our own problems and priorities. But there are also challenges that we share in common as leaders and as nations.

We meet within an institution built from the rubble of war, designed to unite the world in pursuit of peace. And we meet within a city that for centuries has welcomed people from across the globe, demonstrating that individuals of every color, faith and station can come together to pursue opportunity, build a community, and live with the blessing of human liberty.

Outside the doors of this hall, the blocks and neighborhoods of this great city tell the story of a difficult decade. Nine years ago, the destruction of the World Trade Center signaled a threat that respected no boundary of dignity or decency. Two years ago this month, a financial crisis on Wall Street devastated American families on Main Street. These separate challenges have affected people around the globe. Men and women and children have been murdered by extremists from Casablanca to London; from Jalalabad to Jakarta. The global economy suffered an enormous blow during the financial crisis, crippling markets and deferring the dreams of millions on every continent. Underneath these challenges to our security and prosperity lie deeper fears: that ancient hatreds and religious divides are once again ascendant; that a world which has grown more interconnected has somehow slipped beyond our control.

These are some of the challenges that my administration has confronted since we came into office. And today, I'd like to talk to you about what we've done over the last 20 months to meet these challenges; what our responsibility is to pursue peace in the Middle East; and what kind of world we are trying to build in this 21st century.

Let me begin with what we have done. I have had no greater focus as president than rescuing our economy from potential catastrophe. And in an age when prosperity is shared, we could not do this alone. So America has joined with nations around the world to spur growth, and the renewed demand that could restart job creation.

We are reforming our system of global finance, beginning with Wall Street reform here at home, so that a crisis like this never happens again. And we made the G20 the focal point for international coordination, because in a world where prosperity is more diffuse, we must broaden our circle of cooperation to include emerging economies – economies from every corner of the globe.

There is much to show for our efforts, even as there is much work to be done. The global economy has been pulled back from the brink of a depression, and is growing once more. We have resisted protectionism, and are exploring ways to expand trade and commerce among nations. But we cannot – and will not – rest until these seeds of progress grow into a broader prosperity, not only for all Americans, but for peoples around the globe.

As for our common security, America is waging a more effective fight against al-Qaida, while winding down the war in Iraq. Since I took office, the United States has removed nearly 100,000 troops from Iraq. We have done so responsibly, as Iraqis have transitioned to lead responsibility for the security of their country.

We are now focused on building a lasting partnership with the Iraqi people, while keeping our commitment to remove the rest of our troops by the end of next year.

While drawing down in Iraq, we have refocused on defeating al-Qaida and denying its affiliates a safe haven. In Afghanistan, the United States and our allies are pursuing a strategy to break the Taliban's momentum and build the capacity of Afghanistan's government and security forces, so that a transition to Afghan responsibility can begin next July. And from South Asia to the Horn of Africa, we are moving toward a more targeted approach – one that strengthens our partners and dismantles terrorist networks without deploying large American armies.

As we pursue the world's most dangerous extremists, we're also denying them the world's most dangerous weapons, and pursuing the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.

Earlier this year, 47 nations embraced a work-plan to secure all vulnerable nuclear materials within four years. We have joined with Russia to sign the most comprehensive arms control treaty in decades. We have reduced the role of nuclear weapons in our security strategy. And here, at the United Nations, we came together to strengthen the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

As part of our effort on nonproliferation, I offered the Islamic Republic of Iran an extended hand last year, and underscored that it has both rights and responsibilities as a member of the international community. I also said – in this hall – that Iran must be held accountable if it failed to meet those responsibilities. And that is what we have done.

Iran is the only party to the NPT that cannot demonstrate the peaceful intentions of its nuclear program, and those actions have consequences. Through U.N. Security Council Resolution 1929, we made it clear that international law is not an empty promise.

Now let me be clear once more: The United States and the international community seek a resolution to our differences with Iran, and the door remains open to diplomacy should Iran choose to walk through it. But the Iranian government must demonstrate a clear and credible commitment and confirm to the world the peaceful intent of its nuclear program.

As we combat the spread of deadly weapons, we're also confronting the specter of climate change. After making historic investments in clean energy and efficiency at home, we helped forge an accord in Copenhagen that – for the first time – commits all major economies to reduce their emissions. We are keenly aware this is just a first step. And going forward, we will support a process in which all major economies meet our responsibilities to protect the planet while unleashing the power of clean energy to serve as an engine of growth and development.

America has also embraced unique responsibilities with come – that come with our power. Since the rains came and the floodwaters rose in Pakistan, we have pledged our assistance, and we should all support the Pakistani people as they recover and rebuild. And when the earth shook and Haiti was devastated by loss, we joined a coalition of nations in response. Today, we honor those from the U.N. family who lost their lives in the earthquake, and commit ourselves to stand with the people of Haiti until they can stand on their own two feet.

Amidst this upheaval, we have also been persistent in our pursuit of peace. Last year, I pledged my best efforts to support the goal of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security, as part of a comprehensive peace between Israel and all of its neighbors. We have traveled a winding road over the last 12 months, with few peaks and many valleys. But this month, I am pleased that we have pursued direct negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians in Washington, Sharm el Sheikh and Jerusalem.

Now I recognize many are pessimistic about this process. The cynics say that Israelis and Palestinians are too distrustful of each other, and too divided internally, to forge lasting peace. Rejectionists on both sides will try to disrupt the process, with bitter words and with bombs and with gunfire. Some say that the gaps between the parties are too big; the potential for talks to break down is too great; and that after decades of failure, peace is simply not possible.

I hear those voices of skepticism. But I ask you to consider the alternative. If an agreement is not reached, Palestinians will never know the pride and dignity that comes with their own state. Israelis will never know the certainty and security that comes with sovereign and stable neighbors who are committed to coexistence. The hard realities of demography will take hold. More blood will be shed. This Holy Land will remain a symbol of our differences, instead of our common humanity.

I refuse to accept that future. And we all have a choice to make. Each of us must choose the path of peace. Of course, that responsibility begins with the parties themselves, who must answer the call of history. Earlier this month at the White House, I was struck by the words of both the Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Prime Minister Netanyahu said, “I came here today to find a historic compromise that will enable both people to live in peace, security, and dignity.” And President Abbas said, “We will spare no effort and we will work diligently and tirelessly to ensure these negotiations achieve their cause.”

These words must now be followed by action and I believe that both leaders have the courage to do so. But the road that they have to travel is exceedingly difficult, which is why I call upon Israelis and Palestinians – and the world – to rally behind the goal that these leaders now share. We know that there will be tests along the way and that one test is fast approaching. Israel's settlement moratorium has made a difference on the ground and improved the atmosphere for talks.

And our position on this issue is well known. We believe that the moratorium should be extended. We also believe that talks should press on until completed. Now is the time for the parties to help each other overcome this obstacle. Now is the time to build the trust – and provide the time – for substantial progress to be made. Now is the time for this opportunity to be seized, so that it does not slip away.

Now, peace must be made by Israelis and Palestinians, but each of us has a responsibility to do our part as well. Those of us who are friends of Israel must understand that true security for the Jewish state requires an independent Palestine – one that allows the Palestinian people to live with dignity and opportunity. And those of us who are friends of the Palestinians must understand that the rights of the Palestinian people will be won only through peaceful means – including genuine reconciliation with a secure Israel.

I know many in this hall count themselves as friends of the Palestinians. But these pledges of friendship must now be supported by deeds. Those who have signed on to the Arab Peace Initiative should seize this opportunity to make it real by taking tangible steps towards the normalization that it promises Israel.

And those who speak on behalf of Palestinian self-government should help the Palestinian Authority politically and financially, and in doing so help the Palestinians build the institutions of their state.

Those who long to see an independent Palestine must also stop trying to tear down Israel. After thousands of years, Jews and Arabs are not strangers in a strange land. After 60 years in the community of nations, Israel's existence must not be a subject for debate.

Israel is a sovereign state, and the historic homeland of the Jewish people. It should be clear to all that efforts to chip away at Israel's legitimacy will only be met by the unshakable opposition of the United States. And efforts to threaten or kill Israelis will do nothing to help the Palestinian people. The slaughter of innocent Israelis is not resistance – its injustice. And make no mistake: The courage of a man like President Abbas, who stands up for his people in front of the world under very difficult circumstances, is far greater than those who fire rockets at innocent women and children.

The conflict between Israelis and Arabs is as old as this institution. And we can come back here next year, as we have for the last 60 years, and make long speeches about it. We can read familiar lists of grievances. We can table the same resolutions. We can further empower the forces of rejectionism and hate. And we can waste more time by carrying forward an argument that will not help a single Israeli or Palestinian child achieve a better life. We can do that.

Or, we can say that this time will be different – that this time we will not let terror, or turbulence, or posturing, or petty politics stand in the way. This time, we will think not of ourselves, but of the young girl in Gaza who wants to have no ceiling on her dreams, or the young boy in Sderot who wants to sleep without the nightmare of rocket fire.

This time, we should draw upon the teachings of tolerance that lie at the heart of three great religions that see Jerusalem's soil as sacred. This time we should reach for what's best within ourselves. If we do, when we come back here next year, we can have an agreement that will lead to a new member of the United Nations – an independent, sovereign state of Palestine, living in peace with Israel.

It is our destiny to bear the burdens of the challenges that I've addressed – recession and war and conflict. And there is always a sense of urgency – even emergency – that drives most of our foreign policies. Indeed, after millennia marked by wars, this very institution reflects the desire of human beings to create a forum to deal with emergencies that will inevitably come.

But even as we confront immediate challenges, we must also summon the foresight to look beyond them, and consider what we are trying to build over the long term? What is the world that awaits us when today's battles are brought to an end? And that is what I would like to talk about with the remainder of my time today.

One of the first actions of this General Assembly was to adopt a Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. That Declaration begins by stating that, “recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world.”

The idea is a simple one – that freedom, justice and peace for the world must begin with freedom, justice, and peace in the lives of individual human beings. And for the United States, this is a matter of moral and pragmatic necessity. As Robert Kennedy said, “the individual man, the child of God, is the touchstone of value, and all society, groups, the state, exist for his benefit.” So we stand up for universal values because it's the right thing to do. But we also know from experience that those who defend these values for their people have been our closest friends and allies, while those who have denied those rights – whether terrorist groups or tyrannical governments – have chosen to be our adversaries.

Human rights have never gone unchallenged – not in any of our nations, and not in our world. Tyranny is still with us – whether it manifests itself in the Taliban killing girls who try to go to school, a North Korean regime that enslaves its own people, or an armed group in Congo-Kinshasa that use rape as a weapon of war.

In times of economic unease, there can also be an anxiety about human rights. Today, as in past times of economic downturn, some put human rights aside for the promise of short term stability or the false notion that economic growth can come at the expense of freedom. We see leaders abolishing term limits. We see crackdowns on civil society. We see corruption smothering entrepreneurship and good governance. We see democratic reforms deferred indefinitely.

As I said last year, each country will pursue a path rooted in the culture of its own people. Yet experience shows us that history is on the side of liberty; that the strongest foundation for human progress lies in open economies, open societies, and open governments. To put it simply, democracy, more than any other form of government, delivers for our citizens. And I believe that truth will only grow stronger in a world where the borders between nations are blurred.

America is working to shape a world that fosters this openness, for the rot of a closed or corrupt economy must never eclipse the energy and innovation of human beings. All of us want the right to educate our children, to make a decent wage, to care for the sick, and to be carried as far as our dreams and our deeds will take us. But that depends upon economies that tap the power of our people, including the potential of women and girls. That means letting entrepreneurs start a business without paying a bribe and governments that support opportunity instead of stealing from their people. And that means rewarding hard work, instead of reckless risk-taking.

Yesterday, I put forward a new development policy that will pursue these goals, recognizing that dignity is a human right and global development is in our common interest. America will partner with nations that offer their people a path out of poverty. And together, we must unleash growth that powers by individuals and emerging markets in all parts of the globe.

There is no reason why Africa should not be an exporter of agriculture, which is why our food security initiative is empowering farmers. There is no reason why entrepreneurs shouldn't be able to build new markets in every society, which is why I hosted a summit on entrepreneurship earlier this spring, because the obligation of government is to empower individuals, not to impede them.

The same holds true for civil society. The arc of human progress has been shaped by individuals with the freedom to assemble and by organizations outside of government that insisted upon democratic change and by free media that held the powerful accountable. We have seen that from the South Africans who stood up to apartheid, to the Poles of Solidarity, to the mothers of the disappeared who spoke out against the Dirty War, to Americans who marched for the rights of all races, including my own.

Civil society is the conscience of our communities and America will always extend our engagement abroad with citizens beyond the halls of government. And we will call out those who suppress ideas and serve as a voice for those who are voiceless. We will promote new tools of communication so people are empowered to connect with one another and, in repressive societies, to do so with security. We will support a free and open Internet, so individuals have the information to make up their own minds. And it is time to embrace and effectively monitor norms that advance the rights of civil society and guarantee its expansion within and across borders.

Open society supports open government, but it cannot substitute for it. There is no right more fundamental than the ability to choose your leaders and determine your destiny. Now, make no mistake: The ultimate success of democracy in the world won't come because the United States dictates it; it will come because individual citizens demand a say in how they are governed.

There is no soil where this notion cannot take root, just as every democracy reflects the uniqueness of a nation. Later this fall, I will travel to Asia. And I will visit India, which peacefully threw off colonialism and established a thriving democracy of over a billion people.

I'll continue to Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-majority country, which binds together thousands of islands through the glue of representative government and civil society. I'll join the G20 meeting on the Korean Peninsula, which provides the world's clearest contrast between a society that is dynamic and open and free, and one that is imprisoned and closed. And I will conclude my trip in Japan, an ancient culture that found peace and extraordinary development through democracy.

Each of these countries gives life to democratic principles in their own way. And even as some governments roll back reform, we also celebrate the courage of a president in Colombia who willingly stepped aside, or the promise of a new constitution in Kenya.

The common thread of progress is the principle that government is accountable to its citizens. And the diversity in this room makes clear – no one country has all the answers, but all of us must answer to our own people.

In all parts of the world, we see the promise of innovation to make government more open and accountable. And now, we must build on that progress. And when we gather back here next year, we should bring specific commitments to promote transparency; to fight corruption; to energize civic engagement; to leverage new technologies so that we strengthen the foundations of freedom in our own countries, while living up to the ideals that can light the world.

This institution can still play an indispensable role in the advance of human rights. It's time to welcome the efforts of U.N. Women to protect the rights of women around the globe.

It's time for every member state to open its elections to international monitors and increase the U.N. Democracy Fund. It's time to reinvigorate U.N. peacekeeping, so that missions have the resources necessary to succeed, and so atrocities like sexual violence are prevented and justice is enforced – because neither dignity nor democracy can thrive without basic security.

And it's time to make this institution more accountable as well, because the challenges of a new century demand new ways of serving our common interests.

The world that America seeks is not one we can build on our own. For human rights to reach those who suffer the boot of oppression, we need your voices to speak out. In particular, I appeal to those nations who emerged from tyranny and inspired the world in the second half of the last century – from South Africa to South Asia; from Eastern Europe to South America. Don't stand idly by, don't be silent, when dissidents elsewhere are imprisoned and protesters are beaten. Recall your own history. Because part of the price of our own freedom is standing up for the freedom of others.

That belief will guide America's leadership in this 21st century. It is a belief that has seen us through more than two centuries of trial, and it will see us through the challenges we face today – be it war or recession; conflict or division.

So even as we have come through a difficult decade, I stand here before you confident in the future – a future where Iraq is governed by neither tyrant nor a foreign power, and Afghanistan is freed from the turmoil of war; a future where the children of Israel and Palestine can build the peace that was not possible for their parents; a world where the promise of development reaches into the prisons of poverty and disease; a future where the cloud of recession gives way to the light of renewal and the dream of opportunity is available to all.

This future will not be easy to reach. It will not come without setbacks, nor will it be quickly claimed. But the founding of the United Nations itself is a testament to human progress. Remember, in times that were far more trying than our own, our predecessors chose the hope of unity over the ease of division and made a promise to future generations that the dignity and equality of human beings would be our common cause.

It falls to us to fulfill that promise. And though we will be met by dark forces that will test our resolve, Americans have always had cause to believe that we can choose a better history; that we need only to look outside the walls around us. For through the citizens of every conceivable ancestry who make this city their own, we see living proof that opportunity can be accessed by all, that what unites us as human beings is far greater than what divides us, and that people from every part of this world can live together in peace.

Thank you very much.

The GOP "Pledge to America"

2010-09-22T19:58:00.000-04:00

On Thursday, Republicans in the House of Representatives plan to offer a blueprint for how they’d dramatically change what they term an "arrogant and out of touch government of self-appointed elites" by pledging to repeal the Obama health care law, continue all Bush-era tax cuts and significantly cut spending.

The agenda, scheduled to be unveiled by GOP leaders at a Virginia lumber and hardware store on Thursday, tries to give voters a clear, pointed choice in November. McClatchy Newspapers obtained a copy Wednesday evening.

Read the "Pledge to America" here PDF.

Further reading:

Transcripts of evidence in Demeatrius Montgomery trial

2010-09-16T09:52:00.001-04:00

On Wednesday the judge presiding over Demeatrius Montgomery's murder trial ruled that copies of some documents submitted to the jury should be made available to the public.

Judge Forrest Bridges ruled a week after attorneys for The Charlotte Observer and WSOC-TV made motions seeking copies of exhibits presented as evidence, including audiotapes and transcripts of 911 calls and police radio traffic.

Prosecutors began playing video and audiotapes in open court last week as evidence. Jurors were given transcripts of the recordings, which are at times hard to understand because they contain static, police jargon and unclear speech.

Transcript of police radio traffic

Transcript of 911 call

E-mails show tension between county and library

2010-09-14T22:17:00.004-04:00

UPDATED 4:55 p.m.: See Observer Editorial Page Editor Taylor Batten's response to commenters at the bottom of this post.

This series of e-mails obtained by the Observer shows tension between Mecklenburg County government leaders and the libraries, which had millions slashed from its budget by county commissioners this year. The cuts forced the closings of three library branches, the reduction of hours at other branches and the layoffs of 187 staff.

Harry Jones is Mecklenburg's County Manager. John McGillicuddy is Jones' aide and Mecklenburg's General Manager. And Robert "Bob" Sink is a Charlotte lawyer and vice chair of the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library.

From: Jones, Harry L. [mailto:Harry.Jones@mecklenburgcountync.gov]
Sent: Tuesday, August 24, 2010 12:33 PM
To: Sink, Robert
Cc: McGillicuddy, John
Subject: Future of the Library Design Team

Bob:

I am writing to convey my concern about the manner in which the Design Team has begun its work. Based on feedback from the County staff who attended the initial meeting of the Design Team, it appears that this effort is proceeding in a manner that is inconsistent with what has been agreed upon by Mecklenburg County. Here are the key concerns:

Jim Woodward intends to participate as a regular attendee at the Design Team meetings. You will recall that we specifically discussed that Jim should not participate in the Design Team meetings because his views can bias the process design.

I am concerned that this bias has already occurred because the feedback provided to me includes Jim’s stated intent that the Task Force will provide the decision makers (i.e., Board of Trustees and Board of County Commissioners) with options rather than recommendations. This is inconsistent with the stated charge of the Task Team. In addition, Jim apparently stated that he will select Task Force members who are strategic thinkers with organizational design experience. It is reported that he stated this qualification will override any other representation on the Task Force, which again biases the Design Team’s ability to establish criteria for selecting Task Force members. This also is inconsistent with the desire to have broad, community-based representation on the Task Force that incorporates numerous viewpoints and perspectives.

I also learned that Vandever Batten did not provide facilitation for the Design Team, as we had agreed. Instead, the representatives from Vandever Batten were largely silent at the meeting while Beth Hardin facilitated the meeting.

I also learned that someone, perhaps Jim, had already decided how the Design Team would be structured into subcommittees and that Beth Hardin began making assignments into these subcommittees. This prescriptive arrangement is inconsistent with having the Design Team pursue its own approach as we had agreed.

I also learned that the Design Team was presented with an application form that would be used to recruit Task Force applicants. It was mentioned that this form needed to be finalized before the Design Team was able to establish the selection criteria. Again, this is forcing a decision on the Design Team (as well as predetermining an aspect of process design) rather than letting this group of people take ownership of their work without interference. I find all these aspects of interference highly offensive in general and a personal affront to me, given the many conversations we have had about the need to avoid prescribing a process.

Today, we were contacted by the Library staff informing us that the Design Team has directed them to announce the application process for Task Force member recruitment. It is inconceivable that this step would be taken without the Design Team completing its work on the recruitment criteria and other key recruitment steps.

Based on this information, I can only conclude that we are experiencing what amounts to a bait and switch effort. Having obtained my support for the process as written, you have switched to the process that Jim originally desired that I would not support.

On this point, I find it interesting that although you, Jim, and Charles Brown attended the Design Team meeting, neither I nor John McGillicuddy were informed about your intentions to attend this inaugural meeting. I believe none of us should be attending these meeting so we can ensure the Design Team members are allowed to come together as a team and use their own abilities (with professional facilitation) to develop a productive design for the Task Team.

By the way, two of the Mecklenburg County staff members who I appointed to the Design Team have done this very work before (e.g., serving on design teams for the School Building Solutions Committee, and the Justice and Public Safety Task Force). These and all the members appointed to the Task Team are highly competent people. We need to leave all these talented people alone and let them do the job for which they are charged and so they can follow the process we have agreed upon. Unfortunately, it is clear to my staff that key elements of the design have been predetermined. Understandably, they are questioning whether their continued participation will be of value. As a result, I am strongly considering removing them from the Design Team and withdrawing my support of this process.

Any further participation in the Design Team process by you, Jim or Charles to manage, influence or manipulate the Design Team or its recommendations will be considered a breach of our agreement regarding this process. Bob, at some point you just have to “let go” and trust the process to work. I believe we are beyond that point.

Harry L. Jones, Sr.

County Manager

Mecklenburg County

On Aug 24, 2010, at 9:33 PM, "Sink, Robert" wrote:

Harry:

Even though I had not received your email when I came to your office earlier today, I believe our conversation touched on many of your specific concerns and, certainly, on the general thrust of them. I hope you found my responses authentic and my distress genuine. The work of the Design Team (in preparation for the work of the Task Force) is too important to fail – for any reason, founded or ill-founded. Thank you for listening to my observations and for your expressed willingness to address anything that might have been construed as a false start or, worse, a “bait and switch.”

At the risk of some repetition, I wanted to give you my thoughts on some of the specific items mentioned in your email.

Jim Woodward was invited to the first meeting of the Design Team, and assigned a 10-minute slot on the agenda, to introduce himself to the team and provide some context for the work of the Design Team and the Task Force. His participation was intended to reflect the interdependency of their work, not as an effort to interfere with the independence of the Design Team. Indeed, before the Design Team’s first meeting, I sent the following email to Dennis Rash:

“Dennis, because of the early concerns expressed by Harry and John about Jim not serving on the Design Team, does he need to be gently reminded that he has been invited to today’s meeting to give his thoughts on the Task Force, but that he is not attending as a member of the Design Team. (He should probably not sit at the table, except when speaking to the team.)”

Unfortunately, someone else set the table and everyone was given an assigned seat. As an observer, I picked up my own place marker and moved to a chair not at the table.

Jim used as his script our agreed plan dated July 21, 2010 (the Plan). Even though he “participated in” the meeting with his general remarks and with a few observations during the meeting, I do not think he intended to impose any bias or perspective that he may have about the process. I hope no one will consider any of his comments to be restrictions on the deliberative work to be done by the Design Team in accordance with the Plan.

Jim clearly believes that the work of the Task Force will require strategic analysis. That perspective is consistent with the Plan, which provides that “the Task Force include members who have experience in the strategic analysis and planning of organizations.” It would be unfortunate if Jim’s statements to that effect were construed as inconsistent with other expectations concerning the variety of skill sets and diversity of perspectives needed on the Task Force. I thought the discussion among members of the Design Team, particularly with respect to the content of the nomination form, reflected a clear understanding of those several, compatible concepts.

As part of his remarks, Jim said that he expected the Task Force to “develop strategic alternatives” for the ultimate decision makers. I do not think that is inconsistent with the Plan, which provides as part of the charge that the Task Force will “report resulting suggestions, options, considerations and/or recommendations for a sustainable public library system.” I don’t believe Jim intended to suggest that “strategic alternatives” would be a laundry list of random, unranked suggestions. I did hear him say that, in his view, the report of the Task Force, including the public input to be garnered by the Task Force, would inform the political process - where the ultimate choice among strategic alternatives must be made.

Vandever Batten did considerable work in preparation for the meeting and contributed during the meeting, in an manner appropriate to the agenda. Beth Hardin, as chair of the Design Team, has exemplary leadership skills and will continue to encourage contributions from every member of the Design Team. Harry, please keep in mind that this these nine people were meeting together for the first time.

Because the Design Team has but five weeks to complete its work, some considerable effort was made (by several people, but not Jim) to assemble materials, suggest a possible subcommittee structure, and provide sample nomination forms. All were clearly offered for further discussion and expansion. No subcommittees were formed, except one to refine the group’s discussion about the time-critical nomination form and publication process.

In advance of the team meeting, I sent Leslie a form that had been used by United Way in its nomination process and invited her to share with the team any forms used by the County. Ultimately, the team had several sample forms for consideration at the meeting. Designing and distributing the form should certainly not preclude future discussion about criteria for selection.

Because the team was eager to begin informing the public about the nominating process, which it hoped to begin within days and complete by mid-September, the Library’s communication director was asked to begin drafting, in consultation with the County’s public information office, proposed press releases describing the nomination process. The involvement of the County’s information office was pointedly mentioned more than once during the meeting.

Harry, this is a much longer message than I intended to write, but not nearly long enough to express my wish to address fully your concerns. I do not want this message to be the final communication on the subjects you raise; and I emphatically don’t want your final action to be the withdrawal of your support for this process.

I have seen no evidence of any effort by Jim or Charles to “manage, influence or manipulate” the Design Team. As for me, I have no interest whatsoever in doing any of those things – and I tried to make clear during the introductions at the meeting that, as a trustee, I was simply eager to have the guidance of the Design Team and Task Force and felt considerable relief in the prospect of having that guidance. On that personal note, forgive me for adding one more. As a member of this community for 45 years, I do not suffer lightly the suggestion that any of my actions might be characterized as “bait and switch.”

Bob

Robert C. Sink

ROBINSON, BRADSHAW & HINSON

From: McGillicuddy, John [mailto:John.McGillicuddy@mecklenburgcountync.gov]
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 7:57 AM
To: Sink, Robert
Cc: Jones, Harry L.
Subject: Re: Future of the Library Design Team

Bob: I appreciate your response below and your willingness to work collaboratively to ensure this part of the process is successful. I will tell you that based on the feedback I received, this was a very poor beginning to the process. From my experience, there now is a great need to essentially begin again because this poor start has resulted in lack of trust and confusion about roles and responsibilities among the design team members. This has to be addressed openly by the team members, without the participation of you, Jim, Charles, Harry or me.

At the risk of seeming immodest, this is one of my areas of expertise. The team can recover from this poor start, so this can be fixed. However, it will be very difficult at this point given the start. I will put together some key points on how this can be fixed and provide these to you later today.

John McGillicuddy

John.McGillicuddy@mecklenburgcountync.gov

From: Sink, Robert
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 8:02 AM
To: McGillicuddy, John
Cc: Jones, Harry L.
Subject: RE: Future of the Library Design Team

Thank you, John. While I may disagree with your dire characterization of the team's first meeting, I genuinely respect the views of anyone who participated in the meeting. I hope that the members of the team will air among themselves any concerns they may have and that they will be informed by your suggestion on how to improve the process.

Bob

Robert C. Sink

ROBINSON, BRADSHAW & HINSON

From: McGillicuddy, John
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 9:20 AM
To: 'Sink, Robert'
Cc: Jones, Harry L.
Subject: RE: Future of the Library Design Team

Bob: I cannot stress enough that this process is in deep trouble right now. We cannot underestimate how quickly an effort like this can disintegrate due to eroded trust. It typically does not manifest itself in the meetings because people are too polite to make a fuss, especially at the first meeting. But the level of independent feedback we received about this is strong evidence that major concerns exist and need to be addressed. Again, I can only tell you that I have ample experience in such matters and am speaking from this direct experience.

Bob: As referenced in my previous email, here are the key steps needed to revive the design process.

1. There should be no further involvement with the Design Team by anyone outside the Design Team or the facilitators unless requested by the Design Team (i.e., the consensus of the team, not simply one member). They need to meet alone to do their work on their own. We can provide library and/or county staff support as needed, but the Design Team needs to chart their own course using their own expertise.

2. Halt Any Actions Decided; Acknowledge the Poor Start: As chair, Beth Hardin needs to begin the next meeting by acknowledging that there was some confusion and concerns about the first meeting. She should say that the group is essentially going to start over and that any actions or decisions that were made based on the last meeting can and will be revisited (particularly the announcement of the Task Force appointment process). Beth should turn over the meeting to the facilitator. The facilitator should plan (in advance of the meeting) and at the meeting lead a discussion among the members to put on the table any confusion, issues, and/or concerns they have. This will take some doing, since there is some level of reduced trust already. If and when this step is completed to the satisfaction of the members, the facilitator should engage the members in a discussion to establish ground rules for how the group will operate in and out of the meetings, including (and especially) how decisions will be made within the group (ideally, this will be by consensus). This discussion should also include revisiting any questions, confusion, etc. about the charge of the Design Team and its deliverables. The bottom line here is that this meeting should be devoted to building trust and begin building confidence among the members that this is their group and intended as a collaborative process.

3. Shared Planning and Leadership: Beth Hardin should volunteer to share leadership with two other members of the group – one from the library staff appointed, and one from the county staff appointed. The idea would be that this three-member group would work with the facilitator outside of the meetings to plan the subsequent meeting agenda, and address any follow up questions or issues that arise from the previous meeting, etc. The Design Team should have the option of accepting this suggestion or developing a different model that suits their objectives. This is not a reflection on Beth’s abilities. However, it is vital that Beth exhibit a willingness to share in the planning and leadership to illustrate that there is a desire to be collaborative rather than prescriptive. This action on her part will go a long way to building trust and collaboration.

Reiterating the first point, I want to respectfully urge you to remove yourself from this process completely. You have done a remarkable job getting things to this point. But, as Harry said, the time has come to let go and trust the process. I know you have concerns about meeting the timetable and doing what you can to move things forward. However, your continued involvement behind the scenes will contribute to the impression that there are decisions being made outside the design team process, which greatly compromises the credibility of the process and the trust that is needed among the Design Team members.

This is one of those instances when the more you try to hold onto something to ensure its success, the more likely it will be that success will elude your grasp. On this point, if you concur that these steps above have merit, I would urge you to delegate the implementation of these steps to someone else. As you indicated in your last email, I would be willing to share these recommended steps with Beth, the facilitators and/or the Design Team members, as appropriate. I also would be willing to meet with Beth and the facilitators to discuss this matter in more detail. I have no desire to participate with the Design Team or to serve in any shadow capacity behind the scenes. However, I do have a lot of experience in this area and am willing to offer advice and counsel to Beth and the facilitators on how to revive this process per above. Other than this, I would remove myself just as I have urged you to do so.

In terms of concerns about meeting the timeline, the more important consideration is getting this done right. Getting it done right AND on time would be the best scenario. However, it is much more important to the long-term credibility of this process (and the future of the library) that this process and the deliverables from the Design Team (and ultimately the Task Force) are done well. Sometimes (usually) the time needed exceeds our initial expectations. But rushing through steps only exacerbates the problem because it leads to poor design and ultimately a failed effort.

Thanks.

John McGillicuddy

General Manager

Mecklenburg County

From: Sink, Robert
Sent: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 11:31 AM
To: McGillicuddy, John
Cc: Jones, Harry L.
Subject: RE: Future of the Library Design Team

John:

I will respect your conclusions about the state of the process and will not debate their accuracy, except to say that I would consider them a significant overreaction, based on what I saw and heard during the first meeting of the team. I certainly respect and will not debate your experience and expertise in forming, designing and conducting task forces. I confess my having little such experience.

On the numbered points in your message:

1. I have absolute confidence in the ability of the Design Team to chart it own course and do its work, with such help as they may request from the Library, the County, the Vandever Batten team, or whomever else they wish to consult. Because I consider to be a core function of both the Design Team and the Task Force the collection of information and ideas about existing practices, best practices and evolving practices, I hope and believe that the two teams will aggressively pursue Library, County and third-party input aggressively.

2. Again, John, based on my observations and recollections, I do not recall any decisions having been made at the first meeting, other than a commitment to complete the form and commence the process for seeking Task Force nominations as promptly as possible.

3. As to your suggestions for next steps and shared leadership, I encourage you to call Beth Hardin and engage in direct discussion with her about them. As you have anticipated in your comments about her, I think you will find Beth an incredible professional and accomplished leader. I would offer only the additional reminder that she was asked to serve as Chair of the Design Team and has generously agreed to do so – now having already devoted significant time and energy to learning about the current circumstances and the tasks that lie ahead. Having already acknowledged my own lack of experience in task force matters, I nevertheless continue to wonder whether there is but one way for a “design team” to be led and whether that one way is a three-person, shared leadership model with a process conducted by a facilitator – which I believe to be more appropriate for the citizen engagement pieces of the process.

Consider me “removed” from participating in the process and no longer “holding on.” I appreciate your counsel about the risks of my doing otherwise. However, at the risk of being trite or sounding self-important, I must add that so long as I serve as a trustee of the Library, I intend to remain fully engaged in learning from others (including the Design Team, the Task Force and the public) and figuring out what might be or should be the future of our libraries.

Bob

Robert C. Sink

ROBINSON, BRADSHAW & HINSON

From Observer Editorial Page Editor Taylor Batten:

Thanks for your concern about any potential conflict of interest surrounding my wife’s firm’s involvement with the library or other clients and my role as editorial page editor. It’s a concern of mine as well. That’s why Publisher Ann Caulkins and I have always had a policy, since I took this job two years ago, that I would studiously avoid any potential conflicts by recusing myself from any editorial board discussions involving clients of Vandever Batten. Integrity and fairness are at the heart of our work, and I have never commented, in an unsigned editorial or in a signed column, about a Vandever Batten client.

In this most recent case, the library has hired Vandever Batten to facilitate the library’s design team process. The editorial board has not written anything about the library's committee meetings and their interaction with the county. If or when it does, I will recuse myself entirely from those discussions, and we will tell readers that I have done so.

Also, the news side and the opinion pages are entirely separate and independent of each other, so I had no involvement with the news story that ran today. That’s the responsibility of Editor Rick Thames. We understand the questions around all this, and want you to know that we’re always working to earn your trust.

Read GOP commissioner hopefuls' pledge

2010-09-14T11:04:00.008-04:00

As a story in today's Observer describes, Republican candidates for the Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners have developed a 14-point "pledge to our citizens" outlining their collective campaign platform. You can read the text of the pledge below.

The pledge was read during a Monday press conference by the GOP candidates for the three at-large commissioner seats: Jim Pendergraph, Dan Ramirez and Corey Thompson. Ramirez said the pledge had been developed over the past few months and was approved by all the Republican commissioner candidates.

Click here to get a full list of candidates on this year's ballot. The election is Nov. 2.

================================

(Republican) Mecklenburg County Commission Candidates

Pledge to Our Citizens

Fiscal Accountability and Governance:
1. We pledge to govern within our means and not abuse the authority to raise and impose taxes.
2. We pledge to reinstate respect and trust in county government by being open with all commission business not restricted by law.
3. We pledge to identify and eliminate wasteful spending in every county department, to outsource any county service that can be done more efficiently and cost effectively by an outside provider, and to cease unnecessary services and duplication of services.
4. We pledge to establish better working relationships with the six municipalities within Mecklenburg County and reduce duplication of services which waste tax dollars.
5. We pledge to ensure that persons receiving non-emergency services and funding from the county are eligible for those services.
6. We pledge not to forget our Mecklenburg County veterans who have given so much to ensure all of us the liberties and freedom we enjoy daily.

Public Safety:
1. We pledge to work diligently to ensure that our citizens not only feel safe in their respective communities, but are safe.
2. We pledge to work closely with the Sheriff, police and our court system to ensure adequate resources to arrest, detain and prosecute offenders.
3. We pledge to work closely with all law enforcement agencies to identify and remove criminal illegal aliens from our county, who are primarily responsible for importing drugs and gang violence into our county.
4. We pledge, as a board, to pressure the N.C. legislature to provide adequate funding for our district attorney and court system.

Education:
1. We pledge to support our Charlotte Mecklenburg School (CMS) system by providing reasonable funding to accomplish what our citizens expect for the education of our children.
2. We pledge to support Central Piedmont Community College (CPCC) in their education efforts to train and re-train our future work force.
3. We pledge, as a board, to hold the CMS Board of Education accountable for resources, provided by taxpayers, and expect positive results for the financial support provided.
4. We pledge, as a board, to continue to encourage the Board of Education to privatize segments of the CMS system, including food services, maintenance, transportation, and health services potentially resulting in huge tax dollar savings.

Is your neighborhood on the decline?

2010-09-13T19:26:00.002-04:00

Charlotte's 2010 quality-of-life study shows the largest-ever jump in below-average neighborhood rankings, from 20 neighborhoods to 27.

The new study, last completed in 2008, reflects the "significant negative impacts on Charlotte" of the national and local economy, the report says.

"The economic engine of growth and wealth creation has been slowed by a restructuring of the local financial sector and high levels of unemployment," the report says. "Fortunately, by the middle of 2010 economic trends are beginning to shift toward recovery and rebounding."

The study also shows if neighborhoods are trending up, showing no change or trending down.

It shows a majority of inner city neighborhoods trending up and large concentrations of southeast Charlotte neighborhoods trending up as well. The two areas with greatest concentrations of no change were east and west Charlotte. Trending down areas were scattered in west and east Charlotte.

Click here to see if your neighborhood is improving or declining.

Click here to read the full city report.

- Doug Miller

Obama commemorates 9-11

2010-09-11T14:04:00.001-04:00

President Barack Obama stands at the Pentagon Memorial, marking the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. (AP photo)

Text of President Barack Obama's remarks at the Pentagon, as released by the White House:

THE PRESIDENT: Secretary Gates. Admiral Mullen and members of the Armed Forces. My fellow Americans. Most of all, to you -- survivors who still carry the scars of tragedy and destruction; to the families who carry in your hearts the memory of the loved ones you lost here.

For our nation, this is a day of remembrance, a day of reflection, and -- with God's grace -- a day of unity and renewal.

We gather to remember, at this sacred hour, on hallowed ground -- at places where we feel such grief and where our healing goes on. We gather here, at the Pentagon, where the names of the lost are forever etched in stone. We gather in a gentle Pennsylvania field, where a plane went down and a "tower of voices" will rise and echo through the ages. And we gather where the Twin Towers fell, a site where the work goes on so that next year, on the 10th anniversary, the waters will flow in steady tribute to the nearly 3,000 innocent lives.

On this day, it's perhaps natural to focus on the images of that awful morning -- images that are seared into our souls. It's tempting to dwell on the final moments of the loved ones whose lives were taken so cruelly. Yet these memorials, and your presence today, remind us to remember the fullness of their time on Earth.

They were fathers and mothers, raising their families; brothers and sisters, pursuing their dreams; sons and daughters, their whole lives before them. They were civilians and service members. Some never saw the danger coming; others saw the peril and rushed to save others -- up those stairwells, into the flames, into the cockpit.

They were white and black and brown -- men and women and some children made up of all races, many faiths. They were Americans and people from far corners of the world. And they were snatched from us senselessly and much too soon -- but they lived well, and they live on in you.

Nine years have now passed. In that time, you have shed more tears than we will ever know. And though it must seem some days as though the world has moved on to other things, I say to you today that your loved ones endure in the heart of our nation, now and forever.

Our remembrance today also requires a certain reflection. As a nation, and as individuals, we must ask ourselves how best to honor them -- those who died, those who sacrificed. How do we preserve their legacy -- not just on this day, but every day?

We need not look far for our answer. The perpetrators of this evil act didn't simply attack America; they attacked the very idea of America itself -- all that we stand for and represent in the world. And so the highest honor we can pay those we lost, indeed our greatest weapon in this ongoing war, is to do what our adversaries fear the most -- to stay true to who we are, as Americans; to renew our sense of common purpose; to say that we define the character of our country, and we will not let the acts of some small band of murderers who slaughter the innocent and cower in caves distort who we are.

They doubted our will, but as Americans we persevere. Today, in Afghanistan and beyond, we have gone on the offensive and struck major blows against al Qaeda and its allies. We will do what is necessary to protect our country, and we honor all those who serve to keep us safe.

They may seek to strike fear in us, but they are no match for our resilience. We do not succumb to fear, nor will we squander the optimism that has always defined us as a people. On a day when others sought to destroy, we have chosen to build, with a National Day of Service and Remembrance that summons the inherent goodness of the American people.

They may seek to exploit our freedoms, but we will not sacrifice the liberties we cherish or hunker down behind walls of suspicion and mistrust. They may wish to drive us apart, but we will not give in to their hatred and prejudice. For Scripture teaches us to "get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice."

They may seek to spark conflict between different faiths, but as Americans we are not -- and never will be -- at war with Islam. It was not a religion that attacked us that September day -- it was al Qaeda, a sorry band of men which perverts religion. And just as we condemn intolerance and extremism abroad, so will we stay true to our traditions here at home as a diverse and tolerant nation. We champion the rights of every American, including the right to worship as one chooses -- as service members and civilians from many faiths do just steps from here, at the very spot where the terrorists struck this building.

Those who attacked us sought to demoralize us, divide us, to deprive us of the very unity, the very ideals, that make America America -- those qualities that have made us a beacon of freedom and hope to billions around the world. Today we declare once more we will never hand them that victory. As Americans, we will keep alive the virtues and values that make us who we are and who we must always be.

For our cause is just. Our spirit is strong. Our resolve is unwavering. Like generations before us, let us come together today and all days to affirm certain inalienable rights, to affirm life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness. On this day and the days to come, we choose to stay true to our best selves -- as one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

This is how we choose to honor the fallen -- your families, your friends, your fellow service members. This is how we will keep alive the legacy of these proud and patriotic Americans. This is how we will prevail in this great test of our time. This is how we will preserve and protect the country that we love and pass it -- safer and stronger -- to future generations.

May God bless you and your families, and may God continue to bless the United States of America.

Donald Trump offers to buy NYC mosque site

2010-09-09T17:52:00.004-04:00

Donald Trump (AP file photo)

Donald Trump has sent an offer to purchase the site of the proposed mosque near ground zero in New York for the price paid plus 25 percent, according to several news outlets.

According to The Associated Press, the offer is falling flat. Wolodymyr Starosolsky, a lawyer for the investor in the real estate partnership that controls the site, said Trump's offer is "just a cheap attempt to get publicity and get in the limelight," according to the AP.

Below is a transcription of the letter from Trump to Hisham Elzanaty, the self-described major principal among the eight investors who bought the site, a copy of which was posted today on Politico.com (PDF).

Sept. 9, 2010

Mr. Hisham Elzanaty
New York Neuro and Rehabilitation Center
930 East Tremont Ave.
Bronx, New York 10460

Dear Mr. Elzanaty,

Please let this letter serve to represent my offer to purchase your site located at 45 Park Place, New York, NY 10007, for what you paid plus 25%. I am making this offer as a resident of New York and citizen of the United States, not because I think the location is a spectacular one (because it is not), but because it will end a very serious, inflammatory, and highly divisive situation that is destined, in my opinion, to only get worse.

As part of the offer, it would be agreed that, if you or your representative were to build a mosque, it would be located at least five blocks further from the World Trade Center site. This offer is for all cash with an immediate closing and is subject only to the finalization and signing of mutually acceptable documents.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. Hopefully, something good can happen!

Sincerely,
Donald J. Trump

Report: County 'failed to require compliance'

2010-09-09T12:43:00.001-04:00

Federal officials cited Mecklenburg County's "lack of oversight" and failure "to require compliance" for how it handled a rental assistance program for the homeless.

Documents released today by the county list numerous criticisms of how the county and the nonprofit Mecklenburg Open Door ran the program. HUD officials conducted an an on-site "management review" in August.

The program was responsible for handling more than $1 million in 2008-9 and more than $700,00 last year, officials said.

Click here to read the document.

Click here to read a letter from a HUD inspector regarding an upcoming survey.

Among the findings:

Mecklenburg Open Door:

"Lack of documentation in housing/client files

Incomplete Housing Quality Standards (HQS) inspections

Annual Re-certifications not processed timely: Income verification, HQS Inspections and Rent

Calculations not processed by the anniversary date

Entry Dates Not Clear

Leases not in file

Rent Calculations not in file

Rent Comparables are missing or not “adequate” comps

Requests for Reimbursement reflect inaccurate Project #’s and Check Registers show incorrect

Reporting Periods – County has to correct

County Issues:

Internal controls

Processing SPC draws timely/Corporate Finance process received to assure timeliness in future

Large amount of funds to be recaptured has decreased due to draws that were not made

Processing draws without adequate supporting documentation

Not complying with Contract for Services

Lack of oversight of contractor

Giving in to demands of contractor and not holding them accountable

- Doug Miller

Read Obama's speech on Iraq

2010-08-31T20:44:00.003-04:00

Updated 8:44 with full text.

President Barack Obama addressed the nation from the Oval Office at 8 p.m. today. He said that ending the U.S. combat mission in Iraq will allow his administration to devote more attention and resources to bolstering the economy.

The text of Obama's remarks, as provided by the White House, follows.

Did you watch the speech? What did you think? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

Good evening. Tonight, I'd like to talk to you about the end of our combat mission in Iraq, the ongoing security challenges we face, and the need to rebuild our nation here at home.

I know this historic moment comes at a time of great uncertainty for many Americans. We have now been through nearly a decade of war. We have endured a long and painful recession. And sometimes in the midst of these storms, the future that we are trying to build for our nation, a future of lasting peace and long-term prosperity, may seem beyond our reach.

But this milestone should serve as a reminder to all Americans that the future is ours to shape if we move forward with confidence and commitment. It should also serve as a message to the world that the United States of America intends to sustain and strengthen our leadership in this young century.

From this desk, seven and a half years ago, President Bush announced the beginning of military operations in Iraq. Much has changed since that night. A war to disarm a state became a fight against an insurgency. Terrorism and sectarian warfare threatened to tear Iraq apart. Thousands of Americans gave their lives; tens of thousands have been wounded. Our relations abroad were strained. Our unity at home was tested.

These are the rough waters encountered during the course of one of America's longest wars. Yet there has been one constant amidst those shifting tides. At every turn, America's men and women in uniform have served with courage and resolve. As commander in chief, I am proud of their service. Like all Americans, I am awed by their sacrifice, and by the sacrifices of their families.

The Americans who have served in Iraq completed every mission they were given. They defeated a regime that had terrorized its people. Together with Iraqis and coalition partners who made huge sacrifices of their own, our troops fought block by block to help Iraq seize the chance for a better future. They shifted tactics to protect the Iraqi people; trained Iraqi Security Forces; and took out terrorist leaders. Because of our troops and civilians – and because of the resilience of the Iraqi people – Iraq has the opportunity to embrace a new destiny, even though many challenges remain.

So tonight, I am announcing that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended. Operation Iraqi Freedom is over, and the Iraqi people now have lead responsibility for the security of their country.

This was my pledge to the American people as a candidate for this office. Last February, I announced a plan that would bring our combat brigades out of Iraq, while redoubling our efforts to strengthen Iraq's Security Forces and support its government and people. That is what we have done. We have removed nearly 100,000 U.S. troops from Iraq. We have closed or transferred hundreds of bases to the Iraqis. And we have moved millions of pieces of equipment out of Iraq.

This completes a transition to Iraqi responsibility for their own security. U.S. troops pulled out of Iraq's cities last summer, and Iraqi forces have moved into the lead with considerable skill and commitment to their fellow citizens. Even as Iraq continues to suffer terrorist attacks, security incidents have been near the lowest on record since the war began. And Iraqi forces have taken the fight to al-Qaida, removing much of its leadership in Iraqi-led operations.

This year also saw Iraq hold credible elections that drew a strong turnout. A caretaker administration is in place as Iraqis form a government based on the results of that election. Tonight, I encourage Iraq's leaders to move forward with a sense of urgency to form an inclusive government that is just, representative, and accountable to the Iraqi people. And when that government is in place, there should be no doubt: the Iraqi people will have a strong partner in the United States. Our combat mission is ending, but our commitment to Iraq's future is not.

Going forward, a transitional force of U.S. troops will remain in Iraq with a different mission: advising and assisting Iraq's Security Forces; supporting Iraqi troops in targeted counterterrorism missions; and protecting our civilians. Consistent with our agreement with the Iraqi government, all U.S. troops will leave by the end of next year. As our military draws down, our dedicated civilians – diplomats, aid workers and advisers – are moving into the lead to support Iraq as it strengthens its government, resolves political disputes, resettles those displaced by war, and builds ties with the region and the world. And that is a message that Vice President Biden is delivering to the Iraqi people through his visit there today.

This new approach reflects our long-term partnership with Iraq, one based upon mutual interests, and mutual respect. Of course, violence will not end with our combat mission. Extremists will continue to set off bombs, attack Iraqi civilians and try to spark sectarian strife. But ultimately, these terrorists will fail to achieve their goals. Iraqis are a proud people. They have rejected sectarian war, and they have no interest in endless destruction. They understand that, in the end, only Iraqis can resolve their differences and police their streets. Only Iraqis can build a democracy within their borders. What America can do, and will do, is provide support for the Iraqi people as both a friend and a partner.

Ending this war is not only in Iraq's interest – it is in our own. The United States has paid a huge price to put the future of Iraq in the hands of its people. We have sent our young men and women to make enormous sacrifices in Iraq, and spent vast resources abroad at a time of tight budgets at home. We have persevered because of a belief we share with the Iraqi people – a belief that out of the ashes of war, a new beginning could be born in this cradle of civilization. Through this remarkable chapter in the history of the United States and Iraq, we have met our responsibility. Now, it is time to turn the page.

As we do, I am mindful that the Iraq War has been a contentious issue at home. Here, too, it is time to turn the page. This afternoon, I spoke to former President George W. Bush. It's well known that he and I disagreed about the war from its outset. Yet no one could doubt President Bush's support for our troops, or his love of country and commitment to our security. As I have said, there were patriots who supported this war, and patriots who opposed it. And all of us are united in appreciation for our servicemen and women, and our hope for Iraq's future.

The greatness of our democracy is grounded in our ability to move beyond our differences, and to learn from our experience as we confront the many challenges ahead. And no challenge is more essential to our security than our fight against al-Qaida.

Americans across the political spectrum supported the use of force against those who attacked us on 9/11. Now, as we approach our 10th year of combat in Afghanistan, there are those who are understandably asking tough questions about our mission there. But we must never lose sight of what's at stake. As we speak, al-Qaida continues to plot against us, and its leadership remains anchored in the border region of Afghanistan and Pakistan. We will disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al-Qaida, while preventing Afghanistan from again serving as a base for terrorists. And because of our drawdown in Iraq, we are now able to apply the resources necessary to go on offense. In fact, over the last 19 months, nearly a dozen al-Qaida leaders – and hundreds of al-Qaida's extremist allies – have been killed or captured around the world.

Within Afghanistan, I have ordered the deployment of additional troops who, under the command of General David Petraeus, are fighting to break the Taliban's momentum. As with the surge in Iraq, these forces will be in place for a limited time to provide space for the Afghans to build their capacity and secure their own future. But, as was the case in Iraq, we cannot do for Afghans what they must ultimately do for themselves. That's why we are training Afghan Security Forces and supporting a political resolution to Afghanistan's problems. And, next August, we will begin a transition to Afghan responsibility. The pace of our troop reductions will be determined by conditions on the ground, and our support for Afghanistan will endure. But make no mistake: This transition will begin because open-ended war serves neither our interests nor the Afghan people's.

Indeed, one of the lessons of our effort in Iraq is that American influence around the world is not a function of military force alone. We must use all elements of our power – including our diplomacy, our economic strength, and the power of America's example to secure our interests and stand by our allies. And we must project a vision of the future that is based not just on our fears, but also on our hopes – a vision that recognizes the real dangers that exist around the world, but also the limitless possibility of our time.

Today, old adversaries are at peace, and emerging democracies are potential partners. New markets for our goods stretch from Asia to the Americas. A new push for peace in the Middle East will begin here tomorrow. Billions of young people want to move beyond the shackles of poverty and conflict. As the leader of the free world, America will do more than just defeat on the battlefield those who offer hatred and destruction – we will also lead among those who are willing to work together to expand freedom and opportunity for all people.

That effort must begin within our own borders. Throughout our history, America has been willing to bear the burden of promoting liberty and human dignity overseas, understanding its link to our own liberty and security. But we have also understood that our nation's strength and influence abroad must be firmly anchored in our prosperity at home. And the bedrock of that prosperity must be a growing middle class.

Unfortunately, over the last decade, we have not done what is necessary to shore up the foundation of our own prosperity. We have spent over a trillion dollars at war, often financed by borrowing from overseas. This, in turn, has shortchanged investments in our own people, and contributed to record deficits. For too long, we have put off tough decisions on everything from our manufacturing base to our energy policy to education reform. As a result, too many middle-class families find themselves working harder for less, while our nation's long-term competitiveness is put at risk.

And so at this moment, as we wind down the war in Iraq, we must tackle those challenges at home with as much energy and grit and sense of common purpose as our men and women in uniform who have served abroad. They have met every test that they faced. Now, it is our turn. Now, it is our responsibility to honor them by coming together, all of us, and working to secure the dream that so many generations have fought for – the dream that a better life awaits anyone who is willing to work for it and reach for it.

Our most urgent task is to restore our economy, and put the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs back to work. To strengthen our middle class, we must give all our children the education they deserve, and all our workers the skills that they need to compete in a global economy. We must jumpstart industries that create jobs, and end our dependence on foreign oil. We must unleash the innovation that allows new products to roll off our assembly lines, and nurture the ideas that spring from our entrepreneurs. This will be difficult. But in the days to come, it must be our central mission as a people, and my central responsibility as president.

Part of that responsibility is making sure that we honor our commitments to those who have served our country with such valor. As long as I am president, we will maintain the finest fighting force that the world has ever known, and do whatever it takes to serve our veterans as well as they have served us. This is a sacred trust. That is why we have already made one of the largest increases in funding for veterans in decades. We are treating the signature wounds of today's wars post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury, while providing the health care and benefits that all of our veterans have earned. And we are funding a post-9/11 GI Bill that helps our veterans and their families pursue the dream of a college education. Just as the GI Bill helped those who fought World War II – including my grandfather – become the backbone of our middle class, so today's servicemen and women must have the chance to apply their gifts to expand the American economy. Because part of ending a war responsibly is standing by those who have fought it.

Two weeks ago, America's final combat brigade in Iraq – the Army's Fourth Stryker Brigade – journeyed home in the pre-dawn darkness. Thousands of soldiers and hundreds of vehicles made the trip from Baghdad, the last of them passing into Kuwait in the early morning hours. Over seven years before, American troops and coalition partners had fought their way across similar highways, but this time no shots were fired. It was just a convoy of brave Americans, making their way home.

Of course, the soldiers left much behind. Some were teenagers when the war began. Many have served multiple tours of duty, far from their families who bore a heroic burden of their own, enduring the absence of a husband's embrace or a mother's kiss. Most painfully, since the war began 55 members of the Fourth Stryker Brigade made the ultimate sacrifice – part of over 4,400 Americans who have given their lives in Iraq. As one staff sergeant said, “I know that to my brothers in arms who fought and died, this day would probably mean a lot.”

Those Americans gave their lives for the values that have lived in the hearts of our people for over two centuries. Along with nearly 1.5 million Americans who have served in Iraq, they fought in a faraway place for people they never knew. They stared into the darkest of human creations – war – and helped the Iraqi people seek the light of peace.

In an age without surrender ceremonies, we must earn victory through the success of our partners and the strength of our own nation. Every American who serves joins an unbroken line of heroes that stretches from Lexington to Gettysburg; from Iwo Jima to Inchon; from Khe Sanh to Kandahar – Americans who have fought to see that the lives of our children are better than our own. Our troops are the steel in our ship of state. And though our nation may be traveling through rough waters, they give us confidence that our course is true, and that beyond the pre-dawn darkness, better days lie ahead.

Thank you. May God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America, and all who serve her.

Bank's 'shocking proposal' over NASCAR tower

2010-08-27T17:38:00.001-04:00

A dramatically low buyout offer tied to the tower looming over NASCAR's shrine reflects the toll office vacancies are taking on the Charlotte market.

According to court papers, Wells Fargo shocked Regions Bank with its offer to buy out Regions' share of the office building's loan.

The proposal?

Wells Fargo would pay for 42 cents on the dollar for the $37 million loan, with an offer in the mid-teens.

Click here to read Regions description of the offer.

The offer is detailed in court papers Regions filed over financing for the 19-story office tower that is part of the NASCAR Hall of Fame complex in uptown Charlotte.

Regions Bank says in papers filed in a federal court last month that it provided half of the loan amount to developers of the NASCAR Plaza in May 2007. The 376,000-square-foot building, which towers over the NASCAR Hall of Fame is reported to be less than 50 percent occupied.

- Doug Miller

Judge slams Belk over child's $5,000 political contribution

2010-08-27T11:18:00.007-04:00

How did a 7-year-old contribute thousands of dollars to elect George W. Bush?

When Bill Belk, the millionaire grandson of the Belk stores founder, wrote a $5,000 check from her account for the RNC Presidential Trust in August 2000 .

Judge Erwin Spainhour criticized the move as a an "inappropriate, egregious use of the minor's funds" on Thursday. Spainhour ordered Belk to repay nearly $131,000 to his daughter's custodial account after citing repeated examples of what he called Belk's misuse of the money.

Click here for details on the RNC contribution.

Belk told the Observer last year that the contribution for his daughter - and similar ones for his sons - was designed to help them by electing George W. Bush, who went on to cut taxes on investment income.

- Doug Miller

Is your nonprofit in danger?

2010-08-20T16:05:00.001-04:00

More than 2,200 Charlotte-area nonprofits are in danger of losing tax-exempt status, under a new tax law that is being enforced this year for the first time.

That means donors won't be able to deduct donations to those charities when itemizing tax returns.

Click here to read the list of nonprofits.

Click here to search the database by zip code.

As the Observer's Mark Price reported this week, the IRS says all failed for three consecutive years to comply with a 2006 law that requires small nonprofits (those with gross receipts of $25,000 or less) to file annual tax returns for the first time.

It stipulates that any such organization failing to file for three consecutive years will automatically lose its federal tax-exempt status and be forced to pay taxes on any income. Some 300,000 groups nationwide appear on the IRS noncompliance list.

- Doug Miller