North Carolina had eight years of stagnant administrative leadership.

Under former Governor Michael F. Easley, the state simply existed. There was no strong leadership, no evidence of a vision and no thought for the future of our children.

That has changed dramatically since January 10 when Governor Bev Perdue took the oath of office. The new governor has hit the ground running, tackling many of the problems of our state head-on.

One important step she took came Monday when she consolidated the leadership of the state’s department of public instruction and school board. The education system has been in trouble for many years. Locally, our school districts are getting better and it is because of strong leadership.

Consolidating the state school system under one leader will give North Carolina the same opportunity our local school districts have had – the direction of one strong leader.

It took courage to take the step Governor Perdue did when she made the Superintendent of Public Instruction a figure-head and an “ambassador” of education, but it was the right move. Educational leaders can’t be elected. There should be a clear line to the governor, who the state constitution holds responsible for education.

We now have that in North Carolina. Bill Harrison will now be in charge of educating every child in the state of North Carolina. It will be his lot to provide direction and leadership. He has done it already in a handful of school districts, including the state’s fourth largest in Cumberland County.

We wish Harrison and Governor Perdue success. They certainly have started on the right track.