Donald Hughes, candidate for Durham school board
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Candidates for Durham County School Board, District 2
Candidates in the nonpartisan Durham County School Board race will be elected to four district seats and two consolidated district seats, based on where they live in the county. District 2 candidates include incumbent Bettina Umstead and challengers Christopher Burns and Donald Hughes. Get to know the candidates in our 2022 Voter Guide.
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Name: Donald Hughes
Email: contact@donaldahughes.com
Political party: Democratic
Date of birth: 35
Campaign website: www.donaldahughes.com
Occupation and employer: Director of Community Voice, Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation
Education: Master of Public Administration, NCCU 2012, B.A. Economics, UNC-Greensboro 2009
Have you run for elected office before? Durham School Board - District 2 (2014)
Please list highlights of your civic involvement:
North Carolina Democratic Party State Executive Committee (NCDP SEC) Member (Current), Durham County Democratic Party, Precinct Vice-Chair (Current), Durham Citizens Advisory Committee (Current), Mayor Elaine O’Neal Transition/Advisory Team Member (Current), Democratic National Convention Obama Delegate, 2008 and 2012, Durham Workforce Development Board, Youth Council Vice-Chair, Durham Juvenile Crime Prevention Council (JCPC)
Who are your top three campaign contributors?
Dr. Mary Braithwaite, pediatrician and DPS parent Jason Williams, nonprofit leader and DPS pParent Nicholas Jones, engineer/DPS graduate
What are your top three priorities for Durham Public Schools?
1. Students first. The COVID-19 pandemic has hurt our students, especially Black and Brown students. As we begin to recover from the losses of the last two years, our policies must be equitable and prioritize student achievement above politics. 2. Strengthen Relationships with Parents & Community. When schools, parents, families, and communities are engaged, our students achieve more. I will work to shift power to parents and the community, ensuring that they are key partners in the decisions of our school system. 3. Support Our Teachers & Staff. We must pay our teachers and staff more than a survival wage. $15/hr is a start, but our teachers & staff deserve to be able to live and provide for their families in the community in which they serve. We must also provide a safe working environment for all DPS employees. And we must provide for the well-being of our teachers & staff, ensuring that they have the necessary physical and mental health resources and support.
What does DPS do well? In what areas does it need to improve?
DPS has worked to increase and improve communication with parents and the community. There has been some positive progress in this area while also acknowledging that there is much work still to be done to ensure that we are equitably communicating and engaging with our parents and community. DPS, particularly the Board of Education, must improve its relationship with the Durham County Board of Commissioners and members of our state legislature. While we may disagree on some fundamental matters/issues of public education, the ability to effectively communicate with members of these elected bodies is integral to our ability to secure much-needed funding to teacher and staff raises, classroom resources, and innovative programming.
What about your life experience makes you the best person for the school board?
I am product of Durham Public Schools and understand the power that public education has to transform lives and communities. I have spent much of my professional career as a public administrator— managing community engagement, communications, strategic planning, and budgets for nonprofit and government organizations. In addition to my years of public service, I spent five years working in the private sector and understand the unique needs our business community has in recruiting and retaining top talent. We are at a critical moment in our community and our schools must prepare and support our students and parents on their journeys to success.
How should the school board evaluate the superintendent and make that process more transparent to the community?
The school board’s evaluation of the superintendent should be based on key metrics such as student performance on required tests, staff satisfaction surveys, management of the school system’s budget, and achievement of strategic plan goals. Most importantly, there must be a community evaluation component of the evaluation process that allows for participation and feedback from parents and community. This community evaluation component will ensure that parent and community engagement is a required part of the superintendent’s duties and that their evaluation is more transparent to the community.
Should anti-racism education be taught in the schools, and is DPS doing an adequate job teaching Black history?
Anti-racism should be taught in our schools and a required training for staff. DPS has created an Office of Equity Affairs that is doing great work in this space. We must continue working to ensure that all schools and students are teaching and learning Black history, which is American and world history.
What strategies would you advocate to raise the academic achievement of Black boys in the school system?
As a Black male, the academic achievement of Black boys in Durham Public Schools is personal. My experience as a DPS student allows me to approach this challenge with lived experiences that can effectively inform our efforts. I will work with the administration to recruit and retain Black teachers and staff, especially Black male teachers. Representation matters and Black boys must have Black teachers who understand cultural nuances and have similar lived experiences. Multiple studies have shown that when Black students have at least one Black teacher by third grade, they’re 13% more likely to enroll in college. With two Black teachers, they are 32% more likely to go to college. For low-income Black boys, their on-time high school graduation rate climbs by nearly 40%. Additionally, we have to build meaningful relationships with community leaders and organizations that can provide resources to support the whole child (e.g., food, housing, mental health, mentoring).
How can DPS reverse enrollment losses and de facto segregation in its schools?
If we do not address the rising cost of housing in Durham, we will continue to experience enrollment losses in our schools. Many families have had to move to surrounding counties because they were not able to access quality and affordable housing in Durham. The Board of Education has to come to the table and work in partnership with the Durham County Board of Commissioners and Durham City Council to develop a comprehensive affordable housing strategy that leverages the rich resources of our community to help residents stay in Durham. While it is important to acknowledge the de facto segregation that exists in Durham schools, we must focus our resources on serving the students and families that are currently in Durham Public Schools, 77% of whom are Black and Hispanic, with the tools and support needed to close the racial and socioeconomic achievement gaps.
How can DPS better support teachers and other staff and reduce turnover?
The answer that most candidates will likely provide is more pay. While this is one component of how we can better support teachers and other staff and reduce turnover, there are additional tools and strategies that are just as important as more pay. We must ensure that teachers have adequate classroom and school support staff (e.g., more teacher/instructional assistants, nurses, behavioral health specialists). Alleviating the burden teachers have to manage physical and mental health challenges along with academic challenges will provide teachers with the space and time needed to protect their own mental health while preparing the best strategies for teaching the students in the classrooms. Classified staff such as cafeteria workers, bus drivers, custodians, administrative assistants, and other support staff must be paid wages that allow them to live in Durham and the communities in which they serve. I will work to ensure that there is pathway to at least $20/hour.
Describe one idea you would like the school board to consider even though it might not be universally popular.
COVID-19 has caused unimaginable damage to our school system. Teachers are experiencing burnout and challenges that were unforeseen prior to this pandemic. Students have suffered academic losses, especially those students that were struggling before COVID-19. If elected, my top priority will be addressing the achievement gap that exists between Black and Hispanic students and their peers. In order to recover from the academic losses sustained over the last few years, additional instructional time is necessary. I will advocate for weekend “recovery academies” that will provide students with additional instructional time to catch up in areas/subjects where they have fallen behind. These recovery academies may be staffed by retired teachers, staff from local colleges and universities, college students preparing for careers in education, and community members.
How can DPS partner with charter schools or learn from their examples?
Our relationships and partnerships with charter schools must be modeled by our Board of Education. For too long, some members of the school board have created an adversarial relationship with our charter schools instead of seeking opportunities to collaborate and ensure that all students in Durham are receiving a high quality education. There are opportunities for joint trainings for traditional public school and charter school administrators, teachers, and support staff. There are opportunities to leverage economies of scale (e.g., transportation, breakfast/lunch, textbook and technology orders) to ensure that all students have access to the tools and resources needed to succeed.
This story was originally published April 25, 2022 at 2:31 PM with the headline "Donald Hughes, candidate for Durham school board."