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Melissa Mason Stands Out at Debate: Sole Candidate to Call for Superintendent’s Termination

by Staff

October 10, 2022

Mason No Holds Barred: Calls for Foust’s Termination

Wednesday night at the School Board Candidate Debate hosted by WHQR, Melissa Mason once again distinguished herself as the most forthright candidate out of the field of eight. When asked,

“How do you plan to work with Superintendent Foust?”

seven candidates described what their style of collaboration would look like. Several candidates made it clear that they would raise the standard of holding Foust accountable.

Mason, however, silenced the crowd at the CFCC auditorium with two words:

“I don’t.”

She was the sole board of education candidate to call for Foust’s immediate termination.

Below: watch this clip when New Hanover County Schools board candidate Melissa Mason explains why Superintendent Dr. Charles Foust should be relieved from his position.

Crowd Cheers for Mason

Mason proceeded to lay out a brief case for why Foust needs to be fired: repeated statute and policy violations regarding seclusion room use. When she finished, despite repeated instructions to the contrary, the thin crowd burst into applause, sounding much larger than it was.

Mason was not surprised by this, noting,

“I’ve said it before, this community is united on this. We want to fire Foust for cause. First of all, it saves us the money of having to pay off his contract.”

Local Control of New Hanover County Schools is Vital

Mason later added to her answer,

“We want to be able to hold failing administrators accountable. If we can’t do it through our elected officials on the School Board, then we have no local control in our schools, and no recourse for grievances. We need to set a higher standard for accountability. Our kids deserve it, and it’s our right to demand it.”

Mason Stays the Course

When elections draw near, candidates often back off even their most cherished policy positions. However, as Mason reminded the crowd Wednesday evening, “I’m not a politician, I’m a mom, and a fighter.” During the debate, she stayed firm on all her stances, including her opposition to the Gender Support Plan, and the presence of obscene literature in the schools. “It’s a class 1 felony,” she said.

As we head into the elections, it’s clear that on November 8, one candidate stands above all others in her commitment to confronting the difficult issues, and refusing to compromise when the well-being of our students is at stake. That candidate is Melissa Mason.

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The New Hanover County Board of Education election is very competitive this year and she’ll need all the resources she can get. Please consider supporting her efforts to bring positive change to our public education system by donating to her campaign.