Tag: Community engagement

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Alumni Support School Bond Campaign

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Three Broughton Alumni Lead Communications for 2026 Wake County School Bond Campaign

Graduates from the Classes of 2013, 2019 and 2020 are working together to support the next generation of Wake County students

Three Broughton High School graduates are joining forces to lead communications, digital strategy and voter outreach for the Vote Yes Wake Schools Campaign supporting the 2026 Wake County School Bond.

Sisters Madeline Stephens, Broughton Class of 2013, and Margaret Crone, Class of 2020**, co-founded Crone & Co, a Raleigh-based strategic communications firm. They are partnering with Sarah Wallace, Class of 2019, of Sinclair Agency to lead the countywide campaign in coordination with the Greater Raleigh Chamber.

“As graduates of Broughton and Wake County Public Schools, this campaign is especially meaningful to us,” Crone said. “The education we received helped prepare us for our careers. It is incredibly rewarding to now use those careers to support the schools that will educate the next generation of Wake County students.”

The Vote Yes Wake Schools campaign officially launched September 2 during the Greater Raleigh Chamber’s Metro Metrics event. Campaign co-chairs Gary Greene, Dr. Jeronica Goodwin and Melanie Dubis joined business and community leaders to begin building support for the school bond on the November 3 ballot.

The proposed $680 million school bond would fund capital projects throughout Wake County Public Schools, including renovations and repairs to aging schools, replacement of critical infrastructure such as HVAC systems, safety and security improvements, capacity needs and new construction where needed. Wake County commissioners have also committed $152.3 million in pay-as-you-go funding to supplement the bond program.

The 2026 bond plan includes building three new elementary schools in growing areas, renovating and modernizing aging schools, replacing critical building systems like HVAC, roofs, and elevators, upgrading safety and security infrastructure, improving technology and accessibility, and removing outdated mobile classrooms. 

“Broughton taught each of us the value of strong public schools, not only for individual students, but for the entire community,” Stephens said. “This campaign gives us the opportunity to help Wake County continue that legacy and ensure future students have safe, functional and effective places to learn.”

Over the next two months, the Vote Yes Wake Schools campaign will visit schools and communities across Wake County, highlight current facility needs, demonstrate what previous bond investments have accomplished and answer residents’ questions about cost and accountability. 

For Crone, Stephens and Wallace, the campaign represents a unique full-circle moment: three Broughton graduates now working together on an initiative that could have a lasting impact on future generations of WCPSS students.

“We are proud to be Broughton alumni, and we are proud to support the school system that helped shape us,” Wallace said. 

Learn more about the campaign at voteyeswakeschools.com and follow @yeswakeschools on Instagram and Facebook.

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A Mystery Guest Visits Broughton

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by Diane Payne, Principal of BHS from 1991 to 2005

One of the outstanding leaders of our country told our students about the importance of service and how fortunate they should feel to have the opportunity, as high school students, to give back. 

In early February 1994, Superintendent Bill McNeal called me and said a special person would be in Raleigh that month and wanted to meet with a small group of students.  He would not tell me who the person was, saying the guest didn’t want a lot of publicity.

I told the superintendent it would be very difficult to choose just 25 students for this very special meeting. I suggested we have an assembly in the gym so all the students could hear him.  Although the superintendent wasn’t at all confident the guest would agree, he said he would ask and let me know.

To our mutual surprise and delight, the special guest agreed to meet with the entire school! The superintendent still wouldn’t tell me the name of the guest!

On February 22, 1994, all Broughton High School students and faculty reported to the gym for an assembly with a special guest whose name they did not know. Of course, there was speculation and excitement about the mystery guest!

Colin Powell, the 12th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and later the 65th Secretary of State, arrived at Broughton, and we met in my office to discuss the plan for the assembly. Suddenly, Colin Powell’s nose started bleeding! We tried numerous ways to stop the nosebleed, but without success. As the minutes went on, I thought about the fact that we had a guest whose nose would not stop bleeding and 2100 students in the gym waiting with anticipation! What should we do?

Principal Diane Payne
General Colin Powell

Although disappointed, I told Colin Powell that we would cancel the assembly. I told him that his health was the most important consideration and assured him the students and staff would understand. Colin Powell said he wanted to wait a few more minutes before canceling; he didn’t want to disappoint the students. Thankfully, his nose finally stopped bleeding! 

We walked into the gym as the band played patriotic music, and the audience stood up and applauded when they saw that the special guest was Colin Powell! The students were spellbound as he made his remarks. And then Colin Powell asked the students if they had any questions for him! 

The students asked excellent, thought-provoking questions, but the final question gave me pause. A student asked what he thought of requiring students to perform community service as a graduation requirement. (The school board had recently approved our request to require students to perform 25 hours of community service each year they attended Broughton. Not every student was thrilled with the additional requirement!) 

Colin Powell told students he was a strong proponent of community service and gave compelling reasons why students should willingly give back to their community. One of the outstanding leaders of our country told our students about the importance of service and how fortunate they should feel to have the opportunity, as high school students, to give back. 

February 22, 1994, was a very special day for Broughton High School and one I will never forget. We were honored to have a man who has given so much to our country take the time to speak with our students. 

Several days after his visit, I received a handwritten note from Colin Powell thanking me for allowing him to talk to our students! Of course, I still have the note and will treasure it always! 

Thank you, Colin Powell!

The community service program at Broughton High School was established during the 1994–1995 school year under the leadership of Diane Payne, Principal; Sandra Coats, Teacher; and Jayne VanGraafeiland, Coordinator, Community Service Program. The program is designed to teach citizenship skills and the value of serving others. 

Students must complete 25 hours of community service each academic year they are enrolled at Broughton. Hours must be performed with a non-profit agency, a registered 501(c)(3), such as public schools, public libraries, food banks, or other civic organizations.

Each year, Broughton students provide thousands of hours of community service both on campus as well as in the surrounding community through a combination of hands-on projects and donations. Homecoming Week sees the Broughton community supporting the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina’s Students Against Hunger. January sees the Broughton community come together and support the Kay Yow Cancer Fund with a Play 4 Kay event. Caps for the Community Club spearheads the Queen of Hearts fundraiser each year, letting the student body vote on which local organization will benefit. 

General Colin Powell and Junior ROTC Cadet