Clara Witherspoon
Non-Partisan | North Carolina
Candidate Profile
Moderate
BIOGRAPHY
Name
Clara Witherspoon
Party
Non-Partisan
Election Year
2022
Election
General
Race
Charlotte-Mecklenburg County Schools Board of Education, District 4
Incumbent
No
Links
EDUCATION
North Carolina Central University, Durham, BA, 1979
Liberty University, Lynchburg VA, MAR, 2006
The University of the Southwest, Hobb NM, MSEd, 2015
WORK & MILITARY
Candidate did not provide
AFFILIATIONS
GPM Inc, Founder/President
POLITICAL OFFICES HELD
Candidate did not provide
POLITICAL OFFICES SOUGHT
Candidate did not provide
Race
Previous Races
SELECTED FINANCIAL SOURCE DOCUMENTS
OTHER INFORMATION
Election Voting History for Clara Kennedy Witherspoon during time of resident in district and/or at current address:
- 2022 Party Primary Election: Democratic
- 2020 Party Primary Election: Democratic
- Voted in six Democratic Primary Elections 2002 - 2018
- Voted in one Nonpartisan Primary Election 2012
- Voted in three Primary Elections 1987 - 2001
- Voted in 22 General Elections 1987 - 2020
**Voter history is not considered during panel evaluations.**
Founder of GPM Inc
QUESTIONNAIRE
RIGHT TO LIFE
Abortion providers, including Planned Parenthood, should not be a resource for instruction or services in the school.
Choose not to answer
As a candidate for Mecklenburg County School Board, the school board's focus is to maintain high-performing schools through equity and equality for all children.
Human life begins at conception and deserves legal protection at every stage until natural death.
Choose not to answer
As a candidate for school board member district 4, I will ensure all students are provided with an equitable and quality education.
ECONOMY
School districts should be able to use taxpayer money for lobbying the state legislature.
Choose not to answer
As a candidate for Mecklenburg County School Board, the school board focuses on maintaining high-performing schools through equity and equality for all children.
What is your position on government funding of public education from Pre-K through college?
If elected in the role of a school board member my responsibility will be to advocate for students Pre K-12.
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
At school, students should be able to speak freely and civilly about matters of conscience and faith, including Christianity.
Agree
Charlotte Mecklenburg School district has a nondiscrimination policy based on religion or religion in school, as long as it does not interfere with school programs.
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
As stated above, the US Constitution's first and fourteenth Amendments protect the rights to freedom of speech and or from being discriminated against.
Students should not be allowed to pray in school.
Disagree
The Charlotte Mecklenburg School district has a non-discrimination policy based on religion in school. No restriction of prayer is placed upon individual students or groups of students, as long as their religious practice does not impede students' learning.
HEALTHCARE
Under what circumstances (if any) should a government, school, or employer be allowed to require vaccinations?
It is important to adhere to best practices ( CDC) that support the well-being of all students and staff.
EDUCATION
When should parents be restricted from speaking in school board meetings?
Parents have the right to participate and/or speak during a public hearing about a specific topic of concern as long as it is done with respect and there are no personal attacks on any individuals.
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
Language Arts, Math, Science, American History, Information Technology Music Foreign Language, Social and Emotional Learning
American civics education should emphasize our nation's founding principles of liberty and equality.
Agree
American Civics education should tell the history of the US and the founding principles of liberty and equality.
Before students are taught courses such as Comprehensive Sex Ed (CSE) or Social Emotional Learning (SEL), they must opt-in with written parental permission.
Agree
The loss of local control in education is too high a price to pay in exchange for federal dollars.
Choose not to answer
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.
Choose not to answer
I support the teaching of United States history, however, the history curricula should not promote hatred, discrimination, or inequality.
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
I believe public education must provide all children with equity and quality education. However, parents should also have the right to seek other educational options when it does not.
What is the function of the local school board?
The school board is the governing body for the public school district. The board has the responsibility of controlling and supervising the public schools located in a specific school district.
Do you support the National School Board Association's characterization of parents who speak out at school board meetings as "domestic terrorists"?
Choose not to answer
I believe everything should be done in order and with respect, even when a person is passionate about their beliefs. As stated earlier, public participation and care should be adhered to during board meetings, and there should be no personal attacks upon any individuals.
Who should have the authority to set curriculum and determine resources used in those curricula?
The curriculum selected should be based on the alignment of the North Carolina Standard Course of Study. Also, parents are important stakeholders and should be engaged in their child's learning.
Who has the ultimate right to control the education of children in public schools? (a) parents (b) teachers (c)school boards.
To improve our schools, there must be a collaborative engagement of all stakeholders, students, parents, teachers, and the school board.
VALUES
Briefly describe your spiritual beliefs and values.
As a former school counselor, my personal spiritual beliefs can not influence how I serve children and their families.
I support allowing public high school students to participate in athletic competition based on the gender with which they identify instead of biological sex.
Choose not to answer
Who is responsible for teaching sexual education to children, and what is the appropriate age when it should be taught?
It is the parent's responsibility first; children should be taught sexual education when they are developmentally ready.
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
A parent should have the right to consent or not consent to sexual education.
Judeo-Christian values established a framework of morality that is necessary for our system of limited government.
Choose not to answer
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.
Choose not to answer
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.
Disagree
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?
Choose not to answer
Please provide publicly available information, including interviews and media reports, validating your answer to the previous question (other than your website).
N/A
Is there anything else you would like voters to know about you?
My core values are honesty, integrity, and accountability.
OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES
Under what circumstances (if any) should schools be allowed to require vaccinations?
School should follow the directive of their governor, who follows the orders of the CDC.
I support mask mandates.
Neutral
Again, I support mask mandates when there is a directive from the CDC.
