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Proposals to reject federal funding for NC public schools would lead to disaster
Every student has the right to a high-quality education and to learn in an environment that helps them thrive. An equitably resourced public education system is the cornerstone of a strong society and produces many health, social, and economic benefits for all of us. For two groups of students facing additional barriers to education equity—students with disabilities […]
The courts have decided on school calendar flexibility; why are legislative leaders fighting it?
A decades-long battle over school calendars is now playing out in the courts. On one side are public schools. According to WRAL, “About 27 of the state’s 115 school systems are expected to start their upcoming school year before” the August 26 start date laid out under the state’s General Statutes. Education versus vacation These schools […]
NC legislators continue to ignore teacher vacancy crisis
In 2023 state policymakers were confronted with alarming data: teacher vacancies had hit record highs. Not only did 1 in every 18 classrooms lack a licensed teacher, but districts serving the greatest share of Black students and students from families with low incomes faced the greatest shortages. In other words, the teacher shortage had reached […]
School voucher changes will benefit North Carolina’s wealthiest households
Think of the things that you’ll be doing over the next year—planning a vacation to the beach, getting some tacos at a restaurant, hosting a regular game night with friends, or volunteering at a local food pantry. Imagine if you could receive thousands of dollars of public subsidy to do these activities you were already […]
The stats that really matter in assessing K-12 education funding
When I was a kid, I would sometimes ask my parents for money. Call me crazy, but I didn’t really care how much came from my mom versus how much came from my dad. I cared about whether or not I could afford to buy the latest Tribe Called Quest tape and whether I was […]
Research from pro-charter school group makes case for halting the approval of new charters
A new report from the Fordham Institute, a pro-charter school think tank, inadvertently makes the case that North Carolina should stop approving new charter schools. The report, “Do Authorizer Evaluations Predict the Success of New Charter Schools?”, looks at the performance of North Carolina charter school authorizations between 2013 and 2019 to determine whether ratings […]
Reports document legislature’s continued assault on democratic, inclusive public schools
A new report from the Network for Public Education gives North Carolina failing marks for its commitment to democratically governed schools. According to the report, North Carolina legislators are working hard to undermine our public schools. The report puts North Carolina in the bottom five of all states. When given the proper resources and support, […]
Putting the investments needed to uphold children’s education rights in context
Public education is a policy area rife with big numbers. North Carolina schools serve more than 1.5 million students in about 2,700 schools. Education policy debates necessarily involve large numbers that must be put into context. Humans are famously terrible at putting large numbers into context. Once we start talking about millions and billions, people […]
Putting moneyed interests over people
Legislative leaders are knowingly violating the constitutional rights of North Carolina’s 1.5 million public school students in order to help fund tax cuts for the corporations and wealthy North Carolinians who finance their campaigns. North Carolina’s constitution requires the state to provide all students with access to decent schools that provide all students with meaningful […]
As the new school year commences, backward education priorities reveal a backward agenda
North Carolina’s public school students could use some help. From thirty years of the still-ongoing Leandro court case, we know that our school funding is inadequate. Our state’s school funding effort – the amount we spend relative to the size of our economy – ranks dead last in the country. We also know that funding […]
Senate budget would take education funding to destructive new depths
“Fund students, not systems” has become the rallying cry of the country’s most extreme school choice zealots. It’s a silly motto for many reasons. Notably, private schools and public schools are both “systems,” and systems are necessary to efficiently provide students with high quality education serving the public good. Despite the motto’s obvious ridiculousness, it […]
Proponents of massive school privatization scheme owe us answers
If legislative leadership has their way, our public schools will be radically transformed by the 2023 legislative session. Bills targeting Black students and trans students threaten to make our schools increasingly hostile for many children. They are seeking to radically overhaul school funding in ways that harm rural students, students with disabilities, Black students, and […]