CHARLOTTE, N.C. — U.S. Deputy Secretary of Education Cindy Marten visited Charlotte Tuesday to discuss how school districts can promote academic excellence and prepare students for global competitiveness.
Marten's visit was part of the "Raise the Bar: Lead the World" initiative that kicked off in January when Education Secretary Miguel Cardona laid out the White House's plan to support school districts nationwide. The Biden administration aims to provide schools with enough resources to prepare students for the 21st-century global economy. Marten started the tour by visiting schools in Arizona before making her way across the country.
As part of her visit, Marten toured three Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools campuses. First, she stopped at Oaklawn Language Academy to review the school's Spanish language immersion program. She was also scheduled to visit Pineville Elementary School and Matthews Elementary School, where educators are helping young students achieve high-level reading comprehension and promoting academic excellence through a tutoring program.
“Education opens doors. As a student, as a teacher, school principal, and as a parent, I’ve seen firsthand the way it transforms lives. That’s why, when we talk about the future of education, I could not believe more strongly that we have to Raise the Bar,” Cardona previously said about the program. “We have what it takes to lead the world in education, but it will take the collective will to challenge complacency and status quo in education and focus on substance, not sensationalism. Working together, I know we can do it.”
CMS Superintendent Crystal Hill joined Marten and other CMS leaders on the school visits in Charlotte on Tuesday. The district hoped to use the opportunity to showcase its programs and help ensure federal funds to support student success.
“The target of Title I dollars is to increase student achievement and, so, today there's just multiple examples of how those Title I dollars are being used to make sure that we're impacting positive student outcomes," Hill said.
Hill was also hopeful the meeting would support their efforts in securing extended visas for international teachers. These educators could lead bilingual education programs like the one at Oaklawn.
"When our teachers do have to leave and go back to their native country, obviously, that leaves a gap," Hill said, "and so being able to hire international teachers for our dual-immersion programs, as well as our hard-to-reach content areas, is definitely a plus."
Marten said it's something lawmakers should consider.
“We have a teacher shortage across the country and if this is a pathway to eliminate that teacher shortage, that's something for Washington D.C. to think about taking action on," Marten said.
Contact Kayland Hagwood at khagwood@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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