public schools
‘It’s not a religious service’: Are prayers after football games harmless?
The headlines blared and the news was treated as a thunderbolt, something cataclysmic. A ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court backed a Washington state high school football coach who had been fired for participating in a prayer with his team on the field at a public school. The Supreme Court’s conservative wing ruled the coach […]
New bill would provide schools with free feminine hygiene products, exempt them from state sales tax
A new bill would exempt sales tax on feminine hygiene products and make them free in public schools through a recurring grant program, Rep. Julie von Haefen, the primary bill sponsor said Tuesday. At a press conference at the General Assembly, students and legislators explained how the measure could help families afford feminine hygiene products, […]
Critics say new NC school bill is not needed, will hurt LGBTQ students
The state Senate is set to begin debating proposed legislation that would require schools to tell parents if their children want to change their pronouns or seek counseling, and would ban teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity in K-3 classrooms. The provisions are part of a larger measure that Republican sponsors say would make […]
Census Bureau: NC near the bottom nationally in per-pupil spending
Report reveals the toll that a decade of disinvestment has taken According to a new report from the U.S. Census Bureau, North Carolina continues to lag near the bottom of the pack (44th) nationally when it comes to per-pupil spending on K-12 schools. In 2020, North Carolina spent $9,958 per student on public education — […]
The last best chance for North Carolina’s public schools
A few years ago, I reserved a room at the North Carolina Association of Educators Building in Raleigh for a large public luncheon. When our team arrived a half hour before the event to get set up, however, we encountered a troubling surprise. To our alarm, we discovered that there had been a scheduling mix-up and the large room in question was occupied by a sizable assemblage of teachers who were in town for some kind of training session. Tables, chairs, and materials were scattered across the room. What to do?
The best editorial of the weekend: Polling confirms that there’s still lots of hope for our public schools
To hear denizens of the political right pontificate, you’d think that there was an overwhelming national wave of parental anger and dissatisfaction inundating America’s public education system. You’ve no doubt seen the stories of rowdy school board meetings featuring paranoid complaints about critical race theory and, God forbid, books with actual LGBTQ characters. Turns out, […]
Charter school advocates tell on themselves with whining over federal program changes
Advocates for charter schools have long justified the existence of charters by claiming they serve as laboratories of innovation for traditional schools. They have claimed that operational flexibility and exemption from regulation allows them to operate more efficiently than traditional public schools. And they have claimed that they are not only willing – but better […]
Community rallies to support Chatham County student victimized by racial bullying
A multi-racial coalition of activists rallied Monday to support a student and his family after a racially motivated bullying incident at J.S Waters School in Goldston. The student, who is bi-racial, was reportedly sold at a faux slave auction by white classmates during baseball tryouts. J.S. Waters serves children in Kindergarten through eighth grade; students of […]
Monday numbers: A closer look at teacher attrition rates in NC
As North Carolina schools experience unprecedented learning loss across all grades, the state is facing another challenge: How to keep and recruit the best and brightest teachers. It is, in large part, those educators who will determine how well North Carolina's school children bounce back academically two years into the pandemic.
Students of color are the largest demographic in North Carolina’s schools. Shouldn’t people who look like them help plan their future?
Issues of racial inequity surface as state House committee discusses the future of public education A panel examining and planning the future of public education in North Carolina doesn’t reflect the racial makeup of most students who currently attend the state’s K-12 schools. Only one of nine members serving on the House Select Committee on […]
State Superintendent’s new parent advisory group will have an odd and worrisome makeup
As Policy Watch education reporter Greg Childress reported on Wednesday, state schools Superintendent Catherine Truitt is establishing a new “Parent Advisory Commission” — the members of which she says, will be charged with sharing “their aspirations for public education in the state” and discussing “challenges it faces, helping to put together recommendations for elected officials […]
Citing positive infection and vaccination numbers, Cooper calls for end to school mask mandates
Governor, however, expresses skepticism about GOP bill that would remove authority from local school boards Citing improving COVID-19 trends and the availability of effective vaccines, Gov. Roy Cooper on Thursday urged school boards to end indoor masking mandates beginning March 7. The governor made his remarks during an afternoon news conference, where he was flanked by state health officials.