Johnathaun Lee: What Can the School Board Actually Do?

Welcome back to the Carolina Cabinet. Host Peter Pappas sits down with Johnathaun Lee, an Army veteran and 15-year home health care business owner, and one of 16 candidates for three at-large seats on the Cumberland County Board of Education. Lee says his 2024 District 2 run taught him that a passion to serve isn't the same as the knowledge to serve. He explains why vouchers aren't the school board's call, and why he agreed with closing schools: the board has to manage buildings as facilities, not memories, but it owes the community the reasons. He makes the case for measuring growth, not just proficiency, and for bringing Lean Six Sigma thinking to the district. Peter and Lee dig into chronic absenteeism and the hundreds of homeless students behind the empty chairs, what military kids lose with every move, and how far schools should go as the community's Swiss Army knife. Lee closes with a plea to keep politics away from the children and to vote with data, not emotion. Early voting runs through October 31, and Election Day is November 3. Find Johnathaun Lee on Facebook, and find all of our candidate conversations at thecarolinacabinet.com.