Thelma Byers-Bailey
Non-Partisan | North Carolina
Candidate Profile
Leans Liberal
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Thelma Byers-Bailey
Party
Non-Partisan
Election Year
2022
Election
General
Race
Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Schools Board of Education, District 2
Incumbent
Yes
Links
EDUCATION
West Charlotte Senior High School, Charlotte, NC, HS Diploma with Honors, 1961
Fisk University, Nashville, TN, BA with Honors, 1965
St. Louis University School of Law, St, Louis, MO, JD, 1977
Sf. Louis University Joint Degree Program, St, Louis, MO, MA in Urban Affairs, 1978
WORK & MILITARY
Candidate did not provide
AFFILIATIONS
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Edducation, Vice-Chair, Board of Education, Lincoln Heights Neighborhood Association
President, Wiley Manuel Bar Association, President
Walter G. Byers Academy, Volunteer Tutor and Book Reader, Precinct 55
Treasurer, Charlotte Chapter of the Links, Inc., Treasurer
Friendship Missionary Baptist Church CDC, Member, Historic West End Neighborhood Association (HWENA)
Member, Northwest Corridor Council of Elders (NWCCOE), Member
California Association of Black Lawyers, Member of the Board of Directors
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, District 2 Representative, 9 years
North Carolina School Boards Association, Board of Directors, 3 years
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
(Candidate did not provide)
ENDORSEMENTS
REPORTED BY CANDIDATE (10)
Attorney James Ferguson
Phil Johnson
Dr. Wilma Emma Mosley Clopton
Dr. Clarence Ellis
Pearl Burris Floyd
SELECTED FINANCIAL SOURCE DOCUMENTS
OTHER INFORMATION
Election Voting History for Thelma Ann Byers-Bailey during time of resident in district and/or at current address:
- 2022 Party Primary Election: Democratic
- 2020 Party Primary Election: Democratic
- Voted in 16 Democratic Primary Elections 2002 - 2019
- Voted in three Primary Elections 1995 - 2001
- Voted in 22 General Elections 1995 - 2020
**Voter history is not considered during panel evaluations.**
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not be a resource for instruction or services in the school.
Agree
Human life begins at conception and deserves legal protection at every stage until natural death.
Agree
However, consideration also needs to be given to the life of the mother if continuing with the pregnancy represents a threat to her life.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
At school, students should be able to speak freely and civilly about matters of conscience and faith, including Christianity.
Agree
School districts should not discriminate against individuals, organizations or small businesses because of their belief that marriage is only a union of one man and one woman.
Agree
Students should not be allowed to pray in school.
Disagree
HEALTHCARE
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
No circumstances
ECONOMY
School districts should be able to use taxpayer money for lobbying the state legislature.
Neutral
What is your position on government funding of public education from Pre-K through college?
It is mandated by the North Carolina constitution that funding K12 public education is the state's responsibility. I believe the federal, state and local governments should be responsible for funding public education from Pre-K through college. I believe that any governmental body that refuses to shoulder their financial responsibility to provide the necessary funding for public education has abdicated that responsibility to the families they say they serve. This places an undue burden on the local government to make up the difference or else the students who are our future end up paying the price.
EDUCATION
When should parents be restricted from speaking in school board meetings?
When they make personal attacks on others, disclosing personal or confidential information about others, or when their language becomes abusive or obscene.
Please list in order the following priorities in relation to the role of a K-12 public school (omitting any that do not apply): Mathematics, Information Technology, Science, Political Activism, Personal Finances, Gender Identity, Physical Fitness, American History, Critical Race Theory, Language Arts, Art & Music, Vocational Learning, Sexuality, Foreign Language, Social Emotional Learning
Social Emotional Learning Language Arts Personal Finances Mathematics Science Physical Fitness Art and Music Information Technology Vocational Learning American History Foreign Language Political Activism Sexuality
American civics education should emphasize our nation's founding principles of liberty and equality.
Agree
Along with an accurate disclosure of the facts regarding slavery and our nation's economic dependence on it, including the abuse and torture of those enslaved as well as the part that racism played in justifying slavery.
Before students are taught courses such as Comprehensive Sex Ed (CSE) or Social Emotional Learning (SEL), they must opt-in with written parental permission.
Disagree
However, parents should be notified prior to the course being taught so they can opt-out if they so choose.
The loss of local control in education is too high a price to pay in exchange for federal dollars.
Agree
I support the teaching of curricula (such as the 1619 Project, No Place for Hate, Second Step, etc.) that emphasizes slavery and racism as the foundation of American history.
Disagree
However, please see my response to question 3 above.
Parents are the ultimate authority in their child’s education and should be able to freely pursue whatever educational options they deem best for their child.
Agree
What is the function of the local school board?
Oversight
Do you support the National School Board Association's characterization of parents who speak out at school board meetings as "domestic terrorists"?
No
But please see my response to question 1 above.
Who should have the authority to set curriculum and determine resources used in those curricula?
Superintendent
Who has the ultimate right to control the education of children in public schools? (a) parents (b) teachers (c)school boards.
School Boards
OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES
Under what circumstances (if any) should schools be allowed to require vaccinations?
None
I support mask mandates.
Neutral
ABOUT YOU
Have you ever been convicted of a felony or been penalized in either civil or criminal court for sexual misconduct? If so, please explain.
NO
A candidate's personal moral values should not be relevant when considering a candidacy for elective office.
Agree
When you consider your views on a wide range of issues from economic and social matters to foreign policy and religious liberty, which of the following best describes you overall?
Lean Liberal
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
I don't know of any
Is there anything else you would like voters to know about you?
I believe in fiscal responsibility in the management of the properties under their control. I believe that the state legislature should adopt the Leandro plan to fulfill its obligation to provide a free, sound, basic education for all students. I believe that when our parents, communities, churches and schools start emphasizing the same values and expectations for our students, we will see a change in the attitudes our students exhibit about themselves because everyone in their world will be singing from the same hymn book that each and every one of them is capable of being successful.
VALUES
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
I believe God created the universe. I believe the Bible is the inspired Word of God. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God. I believe that Jesus died on the cross to save everyone who believes in Him. I believe Jesus rose from the dead after 3 days. I believe Jesus ascended into heaven to be with God, His Father. I believe the Holy Spirit is the third being of the Three in one God. I believe that Jesus will come again to reign on earth. I believe in the power of prayer. I believe one of God's most precious gifts is free will which includes the right to be wrong. I believe that reasonable minds can differ.
I support allowing public high school students to participate in athletic competition based on the gender with which they identify instead of biological sex.
Neutral
Who is responsible for teaching sexual education to children, and what is the appropriate age when it should be taught?
Sex education is primarily the responsibility of parents and should be introduced at the age when the child is asking questions. The discussion should be age appropriate.
If you support the teaching of Sex Ed, please answer the following question: Sexual education should include these topics (list all that apply and add your own, if needed) -- Physical and emotional health outcomes; contraceptive methods; consent; abstinence; sexual orientation and gender identity; human anatomy/the reproductive system; abortion methods and side effects; stages of pregnancy and fetal development; sex acts and pleasures of sex
Human anatomy/the reproductive system Stages of pregnancy and fetal development Physical and emotional health outcomes Consent Abstinence Contraceptive methods Abortion methods and side effects
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality that is necessary for our system of limited government.
Agree
No healthcare diagnosis or treatment, whether mental, reproductive, or otherwise, should be given to a child without first receiving written consent from the parent.
Agree
No school official should be involved in the sexual transitioning of a student, including the use of alternative names and pronouns.
Agree
EQUALITY
I support the teaching that an individual, solely by virtue of his or her race, is inherently racist, whether consciously or unconsciously.
Neutral
