June Atkinson has been a dedicated education professional for the better part of her life, working for the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction for almost 30 years. In 2004, Atkinson ran for the office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and won, becoming North Carolina’s first female in the position. Despite having a long career as an educator, she didn’t consider seeking public office until she realized the progress in education reform she could champion if elected.

“After being in education for many years, I felt as if I could be a spokesperson and be very candid and could speak on behalf of the students and teachers,” Atkinson said. “I was in a great position to move public education forward.”

In her first election in 2004, Atkinson ran and won as a privately funded candidate and found that there were several aspects of the campaign and election process that she didn’t enjoy. Atkinson disliked constantly having to dial-for-dollars rather than listen to her constituents’ concerns and ideas. “Running without public financing causes a candidate to spend an inordinate amount of time asking people to donate money. [When] running without public financing, you really need people to be major donors, people who could give $4,000 a pop.”

In 2008, Atkinson was up for re-election but this time she had the opportunity to use North Carolina’s Voter-Owned Elections program. Candidates participating in the Voter-Owned Elections program, also commonly referred to as “Clean Elections” programs, qualify for public grants by raising 750 qualifying contributions from constituents and agreeing to abide by strict spending limits during the primary and general election. North Carolina has had Voter-Owned Elections for judicial races since 2004, and, in 2007, they expanded their program to cover Superintendent of Public Instruction, Commissioner of Insurance, and State Auditor races.

“Instead of spending lots of time on the phone, I could spend that amount really meeting with people – talking to them, getting their ideas,” Atkinson said. She also liked how the small individual contributions got citizens more involved in the electoral process and gave them a voice in politics. “Asking people for $10 was a way for people to be vested in my campaign,” she said. “So the people who gave $10 were just as invested as the person in my previous campaign who gave $4,000.”

Atkinson has noticed that the Voter-Owned Elections program encourages more people to run for public office and that women are among those who benefit most under these programs. “I think there’s been sufficient research to show that women in particular may be reluctant to ask for money – I do think [Clean Elections] entices more women and minorities to run for public office,” Atkinson said.

Now in her second term, Atkinson is focusing on technological advancements for North Carolina schools. She has set a goal to improve the graduation rate and redesign high schools to promote effective and efficient learning by ensuring that they have the most up-to-date computers and other technology. Because of Voter-Owned Elections, Atkinson is free to concentrate on improving the North Carolina educational system without having to worry about where her next campaign check is going to come from.