By Amy Cockerham
Public Ed Works 

CHARLOTTE (June 25, 2026) – Entrepreneur Christopher Moxley, who co-founded 704shop, a Charlotte-based lifestyle brand, is speaking out on public education issues in North Carolina.

Moxley grew up in public housing while attending Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and later graduated from UNC-Charlotte.

“I kind of feel like I am like the poster child for what public investment looks like, in terms of successful outcomes,” Moxley said. “If it wasn’t for the opportunity to be able to go to school, first and foremost, you know, CMS and then … through UNC-Charlotte, you know, scholarship dollars and on and on has a lot to do with … my success.”

Moxley now serves on a number of different boards, including some at UNC-Charlotte. “It’s not a secret that … a college education is getting more and more expensive, prohibitively so for a lot of families across the country,” Moxley said. “It’s cool to be a part of those conversations and those brainstorming sessions to see what the university can do.”

As an entrepreneur, Moxley recognizes the importance of adequate public school funding.

“Education is a big proponent, or a big contributor, to economic development,” Moxley said. “They’re part of the same conversation, and so we can’t prioritize one and deprioritize or ignore the other.”

At the K-12 level, Moxley said he’s concerned about public dollars going towards the private school voucher program that N.C. legislators have been expanding over recent years.

“On the surface, right, the opportunity scholarships, the opportunity, you would think that it’s going to be a good equalizer to make folks who otherwise would not be able to afford to go to private schools the opportunity to be able to do so,” Moxley said.

“But then when you change some things in the legislation to make it to where, okay, there’s no income cap, which means people who can afford to go to private schools now have access to this public funding to pay for private schools, I don’t think that that’s right.”

Moxley encourages others to learn more about the topic and contact their legislators because he knows preserving public education is worth it.

“I have nothing but positive things to say about the opportunity to pursue a public education and then … through college as well,” Moxley said. “I just feel like there’s no way that I end up where I am, and have the connections and the social capital that I have as well.”