US Schools Chief Criticizes NC Board Over Busing

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — The nation‘s top education official on Friday joined a chorus of criticism targeting a decision last year by North Carolina’s largest school district to end its busing for diversity program.

“America’s strength has always been a function of its diversity, so it is troubling to see North Carolina’s Wake County school board take steps to reverse a long-standing policy to promote racial diversity in its schools,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wrote in a letter to The Washington Post that was also provided to The Associated Press.

The federal education agency‘s Office for Civil Rights is investigating the board’s decision, following a complaint filed with the department last year by the state chapter of the NAACP and other groups.