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Republican Mark Johnson enters race for superintendent

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxAdBWfhf0I

Republican Mark Johnson has officially entered the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

In a video posted to YouTube today, he gave a general outline of what he stands for and tried to contrast himself with Superintendent June Atkinson, a Democrat — though he was careful to never actually say her name. 

“Leaving the same person in charge of our public school system won’t yield the improvements we need for our students and teachers,” he said. “She has been at the Department of Public Instruction for 40 years and she will only provide more of the same” 

In the video, he also criticizes the overemphasis on assessments in state schools, saying that under Atkinson’s watch, a “regime of over-testing” was put into place. 

“Education’s not about testing, it’s about teaching,” he said. 

Johnson is an attorney and a member of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Board of Education. He taught at West Charlotte High School before going to law school.