RALEIGH — The new superintendent of North Carolina’s largest school district was sworn in last month.
In a ceremony before the Wake County Public Schools (WCPSS) board, 56-year-old Dr. Robert P. Taylor took the oath of office. He replaces former Superintendent Catty Moore, who retired June 30.
Since July 1, retired former WCPSS Superintendent Randy Bridges had been acting superintendent.
“I am grateful for the opportunity that the Lord has bestowed upon me,” said Taylor in his remarks following his swearing-in. He also thanked his family and wife for their support during the process.
Taylor addressed the board and said relations with them were important and that “we have nine people in which we must respond because you work for the constituents that put you here.”
“I want to make sure my focus is getting out and learning this community,” Taylor said. “I’ve lived in North Carolina for 30 years – actually, 31 years, and I’ve worked in Raleigh for two years so I know this community from a distance but I know I’ve got to learn it up close, so for the next six months I’m going to spend time being out in the community, talking with parents, talking with teachers, talking with board members, talking with everybody who will listen to help me understand what’s important about this community.”
“I know tons about education. I know tons about how we educate children,” said Taylor. “But there’s tons I need to learn about this community and I know with your help you’re going to help me meet those goals.”
A native of Mississippi, Taylor has 30 years of education experience in the Tarheel state, including 10 years as superintendent of Bladen County Schools (2011-2021). Taylor was also a middle school teacher, assistant principal, and principal in the Cumberland County Schools District as well as an educator and administrator in Clinton City Schools.
The past two years, he has been a deputy state superintendent under Catherine Truitt.
“I am so excited about your goal of student achievement,” Truitt said to Taylor at the swearing-in while adding that a highly qualified teacher is imperative for student success. “The fact that you know on your first day of work, today, that that is what you are going to focus on is exactly why this group [the school board] selected you. Because you know this is about students and you know how to put students first.”
Taylor has a master’s degree in school administration and a doctorate in educational leadership from Fayetteville State University.
The contract with WCPSS will pay Taylor a base starting salary of $327,000.
WCPSS wasn’t the only district interested in hiring Taylor. Earlier this year he was up for the state superintendent spot in his home state of Mississippi. That job fell through after the legislature failed to confirm him, citing past commentary in a 2020 article describing Mississippi as “the most racist state in the union.” Taylor characterized the controversy over his article as being “out of context,” and “political fodder.”
WCPSS has posted to its website Taylor’s “100 Day Plan,” which includes five main goals: Establish strong relationships, create a transition team, examine fiscal and organizational health, analyze instructional practices and curricular programs, and learn how the district supports all student groups.
The new superintendent will have his work cut out for him, especially with parents who have been showing up to every board meeting since the pandemic with complaints about the district’s focus on social justice issues over academics and Critical Race Theory training for teachers, as well as inappropriate books and materials in classrooms.
Over the last decade, the district has struggled to deal with major issues such as almost annual student reassignments due to lack of construction planning, failure to address the sea of aging temporary trailers behind every school in the district, chronic absenteeism, and school violence/safety issues.
Post-pandemic, WCPSS, like other districts in the state and nationwide, is dealing with a busing crisis.
Year after year, the school board has continually been unable to remain within its own budget. WCPSS’ operating budget for the current year is $2.16 billion with a per-pupil expenditure rate of $13,194.
The district also had an issue with fluctuating student populations both before and after the pandemic.
The marker for measuring student populations is the Average Daily Membership (ADM) for month 2 of a school year. In 2019-20 that number came in at 161,907 and the following school year it was 157,673 – a loss of over 4,200 students. The district’s website says it was expecting 159,000 students for the 2022-23 school year but the month 2 ADM came in at 158,412. This year’s month 2 ADM won’t be available until November.
