The Pilot Newspaper Editorial: Calcutt Is the Best For School Board

We all want schools that are safe, disciplined, culturally enriching and academically challenging. And we want a district that stands out for its achievements and students who are adequately prepared for their futures.

That describes the schools we have, but not the board we elected.

Voters in 2020 and 2022 elected a slate of conservative candidates to six of the seven seats. In their time on the board and in leadership, the conservative members have never missed an opportunity to micromanage educators. They’ve approved policies that parrot culture war commentators. They have removed books from schools that depict cultural differences. They have run administrators ragged with competing demands.

We have a chance this year to change the culture. Four of the seven seats are up for election this year. Two new members are guaranteed; incumbent Stacey Caldwell isn’t running; and fellow incumbent Philip Holmes lost in the March primary race.

Of the eight candidates across the four races, there may be no finer, more qualified candidate for the Board of Education than Robin Calcutt.

Broad Experience

Calcutt, a Moore County native, is running a second time for the school board; she narrowly lost a race two years ago. This time, she is seeking election to the District 5 seat against fellow career educator Don Zawlocki. Zawlocki, who taught more than 30 years in Indiana, recently retired after several years as an assistant basketball coach and math teacher at Pinecrest High School.

As career educators, both are sensitive to the needs of students and teachers, and they understand how schools operate. But whereas Zawlocki filters everything through the lens of a former basketball coach, Calcutt’s experience is far deeper and diverse.

Calcutt’s experience in Moore County Schools includes years as a teacher, assistant principal, middle school principal, administrator, college professor and administrator responsible for training young teachers. Whether it’s staff retention, legislative funding, credentialing requirements or being able to distill the latest academic achievement data, she has the experience not just to follow along, but probe for deeper answers.

One of Calcutt’s greatest concerns is that Moore County Schools, once one of the most desirable districts where teachers would aspire to work, is now at risk of losing educators to other districts. That’s why she says teacher recruitment and retention are so key to the next few years.

“I’ve watched that over the last four years,” said Calcutt. “(Teachers) are afraid of what they might say or do that could cause controversy.”

As a teacher and administrator, Calcutt said, she didn’t pay much attention to the school board. “I trusted them to do their job — to get the funding from the county commissioners, to get the funding from the state level. And to stand up for me. And for my students. I trusted them.

“I don’t trust people that are focused on their ideologies.”

A Trusted Change Agent

Too much of the past four years has been spent on the interpersonal dysfunctions of the school board. Members have spent an inordinate amount of time on juvenile arguments: nonsensical presentations that are little more than grandstanding, name-calling and retribution.

Here, too, Calcutt can change the culture. She will be the one we can count on to be the adult in the room, who will try to keep the conversation civil, productive and on track.

What’s the big deal about that, you ask? We don’t have that now. Consultants and senior staff cringe at the thought of presenting to the board, not because of getting tough questions, but of getting talked down to, having their experience and ideas dismissed.

Robin Calcutt will prioritize building a better work environment for staff, a solid budget taxpayers can support, and ensuring the right strategies are in place for our students to excel.

There is no better candidate for the Board of Education this year, which is why we endorse Robin Calcutt for the District V seat.