Was Black New Hanover Supt. Fired Because of Right-Wing Politics?
Dr. Charles Foust may pursue a lawsuit against the NHCS Board.

By Cash Michaels –
Did right-wing politics play a role in the sudden firing of Dr. Charles Foust, the African American superintendent of New Hanover County Schools (NHCS), by the NHCS Board of Education?
There was no warning, no indication during the course of the NHCS School Board meeting on July 2, 2024 that Foust would be terminated. In fact, he was present, as is customary for the superintendent, at school board meetings.
When the board went into closed session to discuss issues normally not allowed to be made public, Foust went with them. But when they came back out around 11 p.m. and announced his termination, Dr. Foust, who had been superintendent since 2020, was gone. He had reportedly left the building.
The school board vote, 5-0, was unanimous. The only reason given was the result of a district-wide climate survey of over 2,000 teachers and staff members, which reportedly panned district leadership, including the school board.
Dr. Foust, per his contract, will be paid one year’s salary of $225,000. Ironically, Foust’s contract was just extended in 2023 to 2027. And last April, he was named the 2024-25 Regional Superintendent of the Year by the 12 school superintendents of the District 2 Southeast Region.
Foust, the first African American to serve as schools superintendent for New Hanover County in its history, issued a statement upon his termination:
“I am proud of the students and all employees of NHCS. We accomplished so many great things in the last four years. I am grateful for how my peers, the state, and the community have recognized the diligent work put forth for student academic achievement. I wish NHCS nothing but the best; I know the students will continue to achieve excellence … focus on the focus.”
Dr. Foust’s attorney, Gary Shipman, issued his own statement about the NHCS Board’s punitive action on Wednesday, July 3, 2024:
“This morning, I called Dr. Foust to congratulate him on being emancipated from the embarrassment that is the majority of the members of the New Hanover County Board of Education. The deliberate effort on the part of the majority of the board members to radicalize public education in New Hanover County has not only led to career teachers leaving the profession they love but has left a stain on the reputation of the public schools in New Hanover County that will not easily disappear. The group that controls this board has given in to the will of the vocal minority, and for Dr. Foust, I am glad he will no longer have to endure their efforts to trash public education in New Hanover County.”
Shipman continued, “The callous and reckless disregard by this Board towards fiscal responsibility is outrageous, given that the taxpayers of New Hanover County will be writing a check for work that Dr. Foust will not be performing.”
Interestingly, only five of the seven-member elected NHCS School Board were present July 2 when the vote was taken without warning.
Stephanie Kraybill, one of the two absent school board members, later that evening wrote, “I am disgusted with the decisions this board continues to make, coupled with the shady way that my colleagues continue to conduct business, both tonight and since the 2022 candidates were seated.”
Kraybill was reportedly referring to Republican school board, Vice Chair Melinda Mason and board members Pat Bradford and Josie Barnhart.
The New Hanover County NAACP blasted Foust’s firing, calling for more “transparency” from the school board. Other critics of the school board allege its main interest was politics, not education.
In August, 2023, Vice Chair Mason, who had campaigned for her board seat on a promise to fire Dr. Foust in 2022, was the only board member to vote against renewing his contract. She publicly accused Dr. Foust of presiding “…over the dissemination of obscene materials to the children of New Hanover County. Under the General Statutes of North Carolina this is a Class 1 felony, and grounds for Foust’s immediate removal from office—and more.”
Mason also accused Foust of presiding over discriminatory policies “… including segregated classes on the basis of race and gender.”
At the time, however, three of the other board conservatives backed off their objections to his leadership, refusing to go along with the false accusations. But NHC Republican Party Chairman Nevin Carr was not pleased that they did.
“This county was not satisfied with Democrats running our school system, so in the last election we rose up and swept the entire school board with Republicans. We expected sweeping changes as a result, and there are none more important than the person in charge of our entire school system. You have every right to be furious with the recent school board decision (1-6) this past Tuesday to extend the contract of Superintendent Dr. Charles Foust, a Democrat, for another 3 years [sic],” Carr wrote to county GOP members then.
Carr urged more Republicans to run in 2024 to “… get conservatives into government positions where they can protect our liberty and stop this freak society the Democrats are currently creating for our kids.”
Republican board member Pat Bradford wanted to make a motion to fire Foust last January “for cause” because he closed the Career Readiness Academy for special needs students at Mosley School in favor of transferring students there out and using the school to help “newcomers”—refugee migrant families—based on two existing newcomers schools in Guilford County.
The board, however, angry that it had not been consulted first, reversed that decision and retained the program. Dr. Foust was then accused of “woke education.”
Foust grew up in Sedalia, right outside of Greensboro, and credits his parents with prioritizing education above all else in his life. He attended NC A&T University and drove a school bus to earn an income during those years. After graduating, his first job was as a Guilford County teacher. Foust later rose to principal there, and then left North Carolina for a position with the Independent School System in Houston, Texas.
He earned his Doctorate in Education in 2017 from the University of Houston. Foust then came back to North Carolina to work as a School Performance Officer in Union County Schools. But he didn’t there stay long. In 2018, he was hired to become superintendent of Kansas City Public Schools, successfully turning that system around academically after just a year.
He was hired by NHCS in July 2020 in the midst of the pandemic, from a list of 39 highly qualified candidates. But controversy always seemed just around the corner.
In April 2022, Foust got in trouble with many NHCS teachers after writing an article accusing them of using a “bless your heart’ curriculum, where they lower expectations of their students because of their home life. His stance has been that Black children throughout the county are being failed by the system,” according to a petition circulated to get him fired then. Over 1,000 people signed that petition at the time.
On his LinkedIn page online, Dr. Foust now refers to himself as “Former Superintendent at New Hanover County Schools.”
He also reposts something from a group known as “Leadership First,” which says, in part, “Remember to always value yourself enough to have the courage to walk away from individuals who fail to acknowledge your true worth and appreciate your unique qualities.” In reaction to that prescription, Foust wrote, “And trust me, it’s liberating.”
Dr. Foust may pursue a lawsuit against the NHCS Board, published reports state.