Why would I call for such an action?
Because outside auditors are more objective. With so much money being expected from taxpayer citizens (yet again), it makes sense to have our county officials give us the most clear and definitive evidence that this money is actually needed.

If you, as those officials, deny the citizens this right to access information, how can you, in good conscience, say you’ve given this due diligence? If we do not know or see the evidence, we might as well just hand over our purses and checkbooks and let you have free reign. You wouldn’t hand your checkbooks to a stranger and tell them, take what you need, but that is how this can be seen without the citizens understanding the need NOR seeing the need. Anything can look good on paper, but those citizens who are on strict budgets cannot and SHOULD NOT have to keep giving with little to no explanation.

As far as due diligence goes, where are the number slides used in the presentation before public comment? Very few slides have any source cited. How are ‘We the People’ to know if the numbers are accurate or not? Think about it from a taxpayer stance: those who support this proposal are seen as ‘good’, yet those who take issue, are called ‘bad’. What if I’m a neutral person and want to access the information on MY OWN without being told what to think or support? This kind of presentation is lacking transparency. A transparency that should be afforded EVERY citizen in our county.As I stated on the 1st of October, I’m not anti-education. I’m not anti-school construction. But when such a huge amount of money is sought after, why are we, as citizens not privy to exactly where the funds are needed? Why are we not included in making Iredell education, truly local? You say you believe in county run education, but exclude those who can bring much to the table besides money.

For example, you, as our elected officials owe it to the people to tell us, is this bond a tax increment financing tool? Is the bond interest bearing? How, aside from property taxes rising will the bond be paid back? Where, exactly is the County trying to drive citizens to? The entire presentation was based off population growth.

By combining education with economics, you are manipulating where people live, work, and go to school. Those are infringements on life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I’ve seen the newest GIS information where this precise model is being used to tip the hat to workforce development, not the 3 Rs. (If you remember, I also commented on this). Merging education to labor is unconstitutional in every way.
The goal of this type of model is building an education to workforce pipeline. Pipelines offer zero freedom, if you think about it. The material in the pipe is forced to go one way. Doing this to students is demoralizing.Since these unanswered questions persist, as well as your attitude toward saddling future generations with debt they didn’t incur, I cannot support this bond. I cannot support seeing another school being built to support workforce prep. Not when true academics are suffering.
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Before Oct. 1st and since, I’ve had many conversations in person and on social media about this. Almost everyone is in agreement that rushing into this bond without complete transparency and using our tax dollars in ways we did not ask for, is not a true representation of who Iredell citizens are. Again, government IS not and SHOULD NOT be run like a business. When it is, we are conducting a great disservice to our State.Lastly, and this connects to the workforce prep being passed off as education:
the continued use of “Edge Factor” in Iredell County (page 6 &7 of the 2020 Budget Message).

Did you know it’s based in Canada? Did you realize that the student data collected falls under UN jurisdiction? How is this ‘local control’? Do you think Iredell citizens would be ‘okay’ with this? I don’t, not in the least.

Here’s what I’ve been able to find out about the service and what I’m sharing with Iredell taxpayers:
” If you want to learn about Edge Factor’s UN/Canada ties
go here: https://education.edgefactor.com/Terms-Of-Use.aspx
**Edge Factor corporate partners (illustrates the biz overreaches in education): http://about.edgefactor.com/partners/
***If you want to see how CTE (Career Tech Education) is the kingpin for Edge Factor, go here: https://www.edgefactor.com/zone/preparation
****If you don’t think CTE isn’t Common Core, I’ve provided evidence from my blog’s archives. https://commoncorediva.wordpress.com/2015/09/27/weekend-news-tracking-the-ccsscteworkforce-aligned-society/
*****The proof of that PCAST Report: https://commoncorediva.wordpress.com/2014/09/02/from-the-files-pcast-stem-and-common-core/
******Proof of STEM’s being a UN tool:
https://commoncorediva.wordpress.com/2019/09/17/educratic-stalks/ ”
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Commissioners, I  do offer my expertise in education research to you. This issue is not simple, nor will one bond ‘fix’ it. No bond before this proposed one has ‘fixed’ education.

I may be reached via cell: ***-***-****. My email: mooregrits@gmail.com
I will be available for meeting with any of you, or all, of you after 10/20/19. I’m attending to out of state business until then.

In closing, it is my prayer, that we can work together to make Iredell truly local..free from businesses who are not qualified to teach or set standards, free from the Chamber of Commerce’s (fed-to-state-to-local) Bill Gates funded rhetoric that all education is workforce based; free from groups with agendas to twist our students’ heads around with. I pray, once that’s accomplished, we can work toward freeing NC from the federal funds which are dictating this shift away from the 3Rs to workforce agendas.

Sincerely,

Dear Lynn,