The hot topic this campaign season has, without a doubt, been the county's diversity program, which helps spread out pockets of poverty so as to limit the divide between wealthy communities and their poorer cousins.

Last week's forum between Chris Malone, Rita Rakestraw and Debbie Vair, rarely strayed from that topic.

But the truth is, we should be electing school board members on a much broader scale of criteria.

Among other important measuring sticks, voters should consider topics as far-reaching as how the candidates will attack dropout rates and how the candidates will represent school interests in their dealings with Wake County commissioners.

Dropouts cost everyone. They are more likely to need public assistance as adults. That means the rest of us will pay our tax dollars into retraining efforts and other human service programs that should be reserved for people who find themselves at the mercy of public largesse through no fault of their own.

Dealing with county commissioners has long been a tricky task. County commissioners watch each year as a hulking portion of their revenues are gobbled up by the school system for expenses county commissioners can't control.

The relationship between the two boards has been icy at best and that's bad for everyone when politics becomes more important that sound public policy.

For all the noise devoted to diversity policy, it's been hard to learn much else that would allow the voters to put the best candidate in that seat come Election Day.