John Locke Update / Impact Newsletter

Incentives, community college remediation among reasons for JLF interviews

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When WRAL.com reported on the latest version of a study showing the limited impact of targeted tax incentives, the reporter sought insight and analysis from John Locke Foundation Director of Fiscal Policy Studies Sarah Curry. Curry also discussed incentives this week in a conversation with Lockwood Phillips for WTKF’s “Viewpoints Radio.” NCPoliticalNews.com and N.C. Senate Republicans promoted Curry’s column on state government spending growth.

Phillips welcomed Director of Research and Education Studies Terry Stoops to the “Viewpoints” program to discuss Stoops’ analysis of the state’s community college remediation rate. The N.C. Spin website promoted Stoops’ work on community college remediation. The Raleigh News and Observer interviewed him for an article about the Wake County school superintendent’s latest pay raise.

A “fact check” from the N.C. Republican Party cited Stoops’ work six times while rebutting myths about North Carolina teacher pay and turnover. The Statesville Record and Landmark quoted Stoops for a story about North Carolina’s latest teacher turnover report. (Terry Stoops, director of education studies for the N.C.-based conservative think tank John Locke Foundation, advised in an online post to “ignore the inevitable spin.” “Media, politicians, and advocacy organizations argue that attrition rates are a direct reflection of the majority party’s treatment of teachers,” Stoops wrote. “The truth is that teacher recruitment and retention is a complex phenomenon that often centers more on personal circumstances than statewide policies.”)

In addition to print and broadcast media, Stoops traveled to Roanoke Rapids for a speech on school district merger and consolidation. Vice President for Outreach Becki Gray also hit the road this week to deliver a recap of this year’s legislative session for the Mecklenburg County Evening Republican Women’s Club. Gray discussed legislative issues at the Americans for Prosperity field operators retreat, and she continues her regular politics and public policy updates for WTSB Radio listeners. NCPoliticalNews.com promoted Gray’s recent column noting high points from the new state budget.

Rick Henderson and Vice President for Marketing and Communications Donna Martinez dissect the week’s top political news for this weekend’s edition of Curtis Media Group’s syndicated “People In Politics” program. Martinez spent most of the week filling in as the morning show host on WPTF Radio. N.C. History Project Founding Director Troy Kickler discussed the U.S. Constitution in a presentation for the Chapel Hill Republican Women’s Club.

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About John Locke Foundation

We are North Carolina’s Most Trusted and Influential Source of Common Sense. The John Locke Foundation was created in 1990 as an independent, nonprofit think tank that would work “for truth, for freedom, and for the future of North Carolina.” The Foundation is named for John Locke (1632-1704), an English philosopher whose writings inspired Thomas Jefferson and the other Founders.

The John Locke Foundation is a 501(c)(3) research institute and is funded solely from voluntary contributions from individuals, corporations, and charitable foundations.