From: the Campaign to Elect Melissa Mason
For Immediate Release….
New Hanover County has found its most conservative candidate: Melissa Mason.
Above: Melissa Mason (right) seated with Alveda King (left).
Saturday, March 14th, the New Hanover County Republican Liberty Caucus (RLC) voted unanimously to endorse Melissa Mason, a candidate for Board of Education. Mason is the only candidate in the county to receive a unanimous endorsement, and she scored the highest “liberty rating” amongst all local candidates surveyed. Candidates participating in the endorsement process went through two in-person Q&A interviews and answered an extensive questionnaire.
The North Carolina RLC chapter ratified the choice on Wednesday, a decision that is never automatic. In fact, another New Hanover County Board of Education candidate who was selected on the same day, later had his endorsement rejected by the RLC’s state body.
This is Mason’s third endorsement so far this election. The other two come from Education First Alliance, conservative activist Sloan Rachmuth’s organization, and Tide Turners NC, an organization dedicated to electing conservatives at the local level, with specific focus on education candidates in New Hanover County this election.
Candidate Melissa Mason’s Reaction
Mason is a teacher, a mom, and a military wife. Like many conservative candidates this year, Mason is a political outsider who never considered elected office until she “saw the crisis in our schools.”
“I’m running because our children are suffering. I’m running to make our schools safe, restore trust in the school system, and give parents their rights back,” says Melissa Mason.
Mason cites the disastrous handling of COVID, the teaching of CRT, and the flagrant abuse of seclusion rooms in NHCS as the main issues, “among many others,” that spurred her to run for office.
She elaborates,
“The science never supported quarantining the healthy or the universal use of cloth masks; and the mandates were a shocking violation of civil liberties.
“In the name of ‘protecting the children,’ the Governor and this school board have done irreparable harm to a whole generation of kids. Not only did our kids lose almost two years of education. Now, many are suffering from profound developmental issues, like not being able to read faces, along with a host of other psychological and emotional issues.
“Meanwhile, gangs have infiltrated the schools. We have drugs, we have shootings, and the schools lack the most basic security — out of 43 schools in the county, 17 don’t have any School Resource Officers!” (SRO’s provide security in schools.)
“Rather, the Board of Education has resources to spend creating the Committee for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, and other bureaucratic tools for pushing ‘Woke’ agendas like CRT and transgenderism.
“Then when the parents complain, the board lies about CRT being taught in the schools; and when parents show up to public meetings, the board ignores them or has the Sheriff’s office throw them out for demanding to have a say in their childrens’ education.
“The current leadership has contempt for parents and their rights, and is more interested in protecting budgets than serving our children. They think the goal of our schools is to indoctrinate, not educate. Parents have had enough of overreaching bureaucrats.
“I’m a mom with two boys in county schools. I’ve got skin in the game. I’ve been an educator for 17 years, 13 of those spent with special needs students. I will be an advocate for parents and teachers because I am one. I will be an advocate for students because I have spent my life serving them.”
When asked how her conservatives principles will specifically influence her policy choices, Mason is blunt:
“I’m a constitutionalist through and through. But when it comes to schools we’re really just talking about common sense.
“Our kids have a right to be safe. Parents have a right to know what their children are being taught and how they’re being treated. And parents have the right to have a say in how their children are being educated. I pledge to always defend these rights.”
Find out more about Melissa Mason’s positions at her blog. Be sure to register and vote in the May 17 primary!
About Melissa Mason
Melissa is a Republican candidate for the Board of Education. She has been teaching for 17 years, the last 4 at Cape Fear Community College. She moved to Wilmington in 2015 with her husband Scott, a marine veteran of two deployments to Afghanistan, and her two boys, who are currently enrolled in NHCS. In addition to volunteering at Lifepoint Church, Melissa has been an active participant in several Board of Education meetings.
Learn more about where Melissa Mason stands on issues at her blog.
About Republican Liberty Caucus (RLC)
A national 527 voluntary grassroots membership organization dedicated to working within the Republican Party to advance the principles of individual rights, limited government, and free markets. Founded in 1991, it is the oldest continuously-operating organization within the Liberty Republican movement, with 38 state chapters. Learn more about Republican Liberty Caucus at their website.
About Education First Alliance (EFA)
Education First Alliance was founded in January 2021, as a group dedicated to restoring merit and morality to North Carolina’s education system. Besides opposing critical race theory programs at the state level, the group pushes to remove social-emotional policies, psychiatric screenings, and pornography from schools through journalism and grassroots activism. Learn more about Education First Alliance at their website.
About Tide Turners NC
A PAC whose mission is to educate and stand with the people of North Carolina to protect and restore our God-given rights within local, state, and federal governments. Learn more about Tide Turners NC at their website.