Cumberland County’s new schools superintendent promised on Monday he would pursue success for the schools here just as he succeeded in his previous superintendent jobs in Johnston, Sampson and Northampton counties.
“As I step into this role, I step into the role with a clear focus, and focus on student achievement, instructional excellence and partnership,” Superintendent Eric Bracy said during a press conference at the Cumberland County Schools central office. “Those are not just the buzz words to me. They’re what drive me each and every day. They’ve defined my work for more than two decades. And they will guide everything that we do here in this issue, moving forward.”
Bracy became the superintendent of Cumberland County Schools on July 1. He took over following the retirement of Marvin Connelly, who had held the job since 2018. Bracy most recently worked for the Johnston County Public Schools, where he had been superintendent since 2020.
After Bracy became the superintendent in Northampton County in 2008, the students’ end-of-year test scores improved, according to a news release from Cumberland County Schools. Sampson County went from 66th to the 15th highest performing school system in North Carolina during Bracy’s tenure there from 2014 to 2020, the news release says.
On Monday, Bracy touted his work in Johnston County.
“We started out as the 83rd highest performing school system in North Carolina, and after five years, we were 35th in the state,” he said. “So absolutely, success is possible here. It’s our goal to duplicate successes that we’ve had in the past. And we’ll do everything in our power to work with our teachers, school based support staff, our students and our families, to see if we can duplicate some of those successes.”
He commended Connelly and Cumberland County Schools staff for their work that moved 17 schools from the “low performing” rating. “My goal is to build on those successes and see if we can go to the next level,” Bracy said.
Cumberland County Schools had 86 schools and 48,434 students this past school year, with a budget of $673 million.
Bracy wants to persuade parents to send their children to public schools instead of private schools and public charter schools.
“I want CCS [Cumberland County Schools] to be the first choice for all families in this county,” he said. “That is my goal.”
Charter schools receive public funding but are not beholden to the same rules as public schools. Under the state’s Opportunity Scholarship program, families can receive vouchers to attend private schools. Bracy said he would like the money they receive to go to public schools instead.
“It will force us to elevate our games,” he said. “They’re competition. Parents have options. They didn’t have those same options when I was a child back in the day. But now parents have options.
“So what that will … force us to do is just to keep improving each day,” Bracy said.
Cumberland County has two charter schools and a third hopes to open this year.
In the 2024-25 school year, the state as of June 2 provided taxpayer dollars to 26 private schools in Cumberland County via Opportunity Scholarship vouchers for 3,850 students. The state’s data page says at least $23.4 million was issued.
Statewide, $432.2 million was disbursed for 80,470 students, the state’s website says.
“I don’t think there is a superintendent in the state that would not rather have those funds in his district, than going to private schools,” Bracy said. “I think I’ve learned from doing this job for 17 years. You have to control what you can control. I have no control over where those funds are allotted by the General Assembly.
“But what we can control here is the quality of instruction that we have in our school system. We can control the amazing staff that stands in front of our teachers, in front of our students every day. We can control the leadership in our buildings every day. And we can work to improve all of our schools academically. And I think if you have amazing schools, you really don’t give parents a reason to leave you if they’re satisfied with you.”
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
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