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POLICY STATEMENT ON ELEMENTARY/SECONDARY EDUCATION Introduction The, Association believes that every child should have equal access tO a high quality basic educa- tion'p~'ogram designed tO prepare students for successful living~ work, and good citizenship in a modern society. Recognizing that the responsibility for public education in our counu'y is that of the states, the Association believes that adequate state resources must insure equal access to the Basic Education Program for all North Carolina children. The Association supports a continued Federal role in the funding of educational services. The Association further believes that citizen Control of public schools is essential to guarantee continued .widespread understanding and support for this major responsibility of government: the education of ~ts people. Joint cooperative action between boards of county commissioners and local school boards is :s- sential to the successful delivery of excellent public education. The free exchange of information and ideas among the North Carolina Association Of County Commissioners, the North Carolina School Boards Association, and the North Carolina Department of Public Education is likewise necessary to promote understanding of the variety and complexity of issues related to public educa- tion. Clarifying State and County Financial Responsibility The division of responsibility between the state and counties for financing public school needs, which was established by the General Assembly in 1933, became blurred during the years which followed. In 1984, the General Assembly adopted the Basic Education Program, which purports that the state provide resources for a high quality basic education for all North Carolina children. State legislation also has called for the clarification of state and local funding responsibilities. The As- sociation supports the trend toward this clarification and encourages efforts to secure legislation which fully reflects this concept and the following realities: The rightful guarantee of equal access to high quality basic educational opportuuities for every child in North Carolina; The limitation of county government revenue sources; The impact~ of changing technologies on basic educational needs and the job market in the future; and The need, if County governments are to remain responsible for school facility needs, for county commissioners to have the authority to assure that funds appropriated to meet these needs 'are used accordingly. Further, the Association believes that county commissioners must be diligent in carrying out their financing responsibilities for school facilities. Adequate capital financing arrangements will necessttate strong attention to long-range financial planning. School building needs, of necessity, must be considered in the context of all facilities which commissioners are required tO finance. County Commissioners and Local Boards As local officials, commissioners and local school board members can be more effective by ac- ting in unity to promote improvements in public education, especially in the area of sufficient state financing for a quality basic education. County Government and State Policy The Association will support efforts by state policy makers which, in the view of county com- missioners, will lead tO substantive imp?ovements in the state supported basic elementary and secoo- dary education programs available to the children of North Carolina. Eiementary and secondary public education should be a clear priority to insure that North Carolina citizens be well served by those schools as they now are by the state's public institutions of higher education. -OVER-