To the Editor:

Since the beginning of the new year, I have seen several photos of Sen. Kevin Corbin (R-Macon) handing out oversized checks in some of Western North Carolina’s counties.

The memorandum of understanding between Jackson County Public Schools and the Catamount School is up for annual review, and this year, JCPS is reconsidering the agreement that permits the Catamount School to operate on the campus of Smoky Mountain High School, where it occupies valuable classroom space in a system that needs all the room it can get. 

There’s no use crying over spilt milk, but a shocking report suggests that Pactiv Evergreen failed in its analysis of market demand for the paperboard produced in its Canton mill, contributing to a nationwide shortage of milk cartons in schools and leading some to believe the company needn’t have halted operations in Canton earlier this year, throwing hundreds out of work. 

Last week, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction released performance and growth data for the 2022-23 school year, and none of the four school districts in the Smoky Mountain News coverage area received a low-performing state designation. 

After Macon County declared its intent to purchase the Higdon property earlier this year, there was some confusion  as to how the property would be used.

A recent collaboration between Junaluska Elementary fifth graders, Haywood Community College students and Haywood County Solid Waste and Recycling will keep about 90,000 juice and milk cartons out of the county landfill each school year.

T The Cherokee Tribal Council has approved $7.6 million for water damage repairs at Cherokee Central Schools, but that’s expected to be a small part of the overall cost, according to a resolution  the body passed unanimously June 1.

As Americans, we’re banning a lot of books these days, perhaps 1,650 in the past year, censoring others, and coming after librarians and teachers. In North Carolina, too, at least six attempts have occurred statewide and here in the mountains, one in Waynesville and another in Macon County.

School boards across Western North Carolina are signing resolutions in support of flexibility and local control when it comes to school calendars. While this has been an issue for North Carolina public schools for many years, it is gaining traction again with new legislation introduced in the state senate.

It seems to me that when we talk about the spaces in our community for our children, we should be talking about what is safe, supportive and loving.