Public Schools Face Deficits While Private Schools Profit |
Public school districts across the state are working through their budget planning for next year facing threats of looming budget shortfalls expected from the loss of federal funds and the revenue shortfalls predicted at the state level. Some, like Wake County, which announced a hiring freeze earlier this month, are already taking measures to cut costs. Wake County’s Board recently heard a presentation from staff that proposes $18.4 million in cuts for next year. As part of the cuts, the county may eliminate employer contributions to employee dental insurance. The county is also looking to reduce maintenance spending even though it has a $600 million backlog of maintenance needs and broken HVAC systems have caused several schools to lose instructional time when students had to be sent home early. In January, Buncombe County and Asheville City Schools lost $4.7 million in local funding from county commissioners due to revenue shortfalls caused by Hurricane Helene. Winston-Salem-Forsyth is cutting $8 million in the current school year and plans to cut $16 million more next year. Charlotte-Mecklenburg is juggling the loss of federal ESSER funds and other federal cuts along with a need to raise teacher pay to attract and retain quality educators. Looming over budget considerations for public schools across the state is the executive order recently signed by President Trump to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education. With about $1.5 billion coming from federal funds annually, districts have a lot to lose if the new administration decides to cut all of its current programs. Teacher education programs in the state have already lost more than $90 million in federal grants in an early round of cuts just days after Secretary McMahon was confirmed. In a sharp contrast to the belt-tightening at public schools across the state, private schools are experiencing a gold rush thanks to the voucher expansion passed in 2023 and funded to the tune of $616 million in 2024-25. According to a recent presentation by the NC Fiscal Research Division, the base budget appropriation for the state’s two voucher programs in 2025-26 is $731 million. By making vouchers available to all families regardless of whether the student has ever attended a public school, the NCGA added a new burden on its taxpayers—paying for private school tuition. According to the state constitution, the legislature is responsible for funding a system of PUBLIC schools, NOT private schools. Some private schools have taken full advantage of the state’s generosity by raising tuition prices and (strongly) encouraging the families of all students to apply for a voucher regardless of income level or financial need. For example, in Beaufort County, the three voucher-accepting private schools all raised tuition to closely match the maximum voucher amount: $7,468/student. Tuition was much lower in the years leading up to the big expansion. |
- Unity Christian increased its tuition from $4,800 in 2023-24 to $7,200 in 2024-25, a 50% increase.
- Pungo Christian Academy had increased its tuition $237 in 2022-23, then $318 in 2023-24 and a whopping $2,107 in 2024-25 once vouchers became universal.
- Terra Ceia’s 2023-24 tuition was aligned with the 2023-24 maximum voucher amount, so its year-over-year increase was 15%.
As a result, the state funds going to these schools increased dramatically. Pungo's voucher funds grew 549% - from $162, 577 in 2023-24 to $1,054,830 in 2024-25. |
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In Wake County where tuition is often far higher for private schools, St. David’s provides a striking example of how the state is subsidizing tuition increases. The school’s average tuition was $24,521 in 2022-23 and $25,769 in 2024-25. The $1,238 average one-year increase was just 5%, but the dollar amount is far less than the $3,360 voucher that the highest income families (making $260,000/year or more) receive. In 2023-24, St. David’s enrolled zero voucher-receiving students, probably because all families were too wealthy to qualify for a voucher. With the income cap lifted, St. David’s has received $1,144,362 in taxpayer-funded vouchers in 2024-25 as of February. Public Schools First has compiled data on the funds received by each voucher-accepting school in the state since the Opportunity Scholarship program started in 2014. Take a look at this and other resources on our website and share! Private schools have no accountability for how taxpayer funds are used. As the data show, many schools are taking advantage of the NCGA's massive expansion by increasing tuition to maximize revenue. Even schools that primarily or exclusively serve wealthy families are receiving tax dollars. While public school districts are struggling to fix their HVAC systems, while the NCGA chooses to subsidize private school tuition! |
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Support the Voucher School Accountability Act |
Let your legislators know you support SB744! This week was the deadline for introducing bills in the Senate, so there was a lot of action. Senate Bill 744 "Voucher School Accountability Act" recognizes that just as the state holds public schools accountable for how tax dollars are spent, it should also hold private schools accountable. This is a common-sense bill that should sail through both chambers if lawmakers are serious about about using our tax dollars responsibly and making sure that every tax dollar is fully accountable to tax payers. The bill changes the language of current law to build in fiscal checks and academic standards. Vouchers will be awarded on a monthly basis (changed from twice/year) to allow for students entering or leaving private schools. |
Voucher-accepting schools must meet the following obligations: - Limit annual tuition increases to 5%.
- Follow the local school district's policy of conducting criminal background checks on all staff.
- Administer the same tests required by state law for students in grades three and higher.
- Comply with state standard course of study.
- Conduct a financial audit; schools receiving more than $250,000 in voucher funds must publish its expenditures in the state reporting system (Uniform Education Reporting System).
- At least 50% of the teaching staff must be licensed teachers.
- Maintain a student population that reasonable reflects the racial and ethnic composition of the general population residing within the local school district.
And more... Contact your legislators to urge them to SUPPORT this bill! |
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Legislative and SBE Updates |
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| The legislative session continues on Monday. Keep an eye on the legislative calendar as changes occur frequently. Read our Week in Review for a summary of legislative actions and the status of bills. Senate Bill 516 "Women's Safety and Protection Act" defines a number of terms such as sex, gender, girl, boy, male, female, etc. and establishes rules for who is allowed in restrooms, changing facilities, or sleeping quarters. Hopefully a majority of our lawmakers learned a lesson through the HB 2 debacle a few years ago and will let this bill stay dormant. House Bill 445 "Fairness & Transparency in Education Salaries" also reinstates master's pay for teachers and pays school social workers on the master's salary scale. In addition, it requires publication of minimum salary schedules for occupational and physical therapists. This bill that supports educators and moves salaries to a more professional level. House Bill 523 "School Social Workers/Master's Pay" reinstates master's pay for teachers and allows all school social workers and nurses to be paid on the master's salary schedule. HB445 and HB523 would help schools recruit and retain high quality professionals. |
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Presidential Actions Threaten Federal Funding—What's at Stake for Kids—— |
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| by Alexandro Forter Sirota, NC Budget & Tax Center President Trump signed into law last week an Executive Order on closing the Department of Education that furthers his end goal: gutting our country’s public education system. This comes after putting the department under the leadership of Secretary Linda McMahon, an ardent advocate for expanding private school vouchers with next-to-no experience in public education. The vast majority of students learn in public schools, meaning the vast majority of families and businesses rely on them. Every school and community will be impacted by bigger class sizes, the loss of qualified educators, and the lack of support for college and career training that will stem from these cuts. Educational attainment will suffer and over the longer term, our society will have fewer people prepared to participate in our democracy, engage in healthy debate, lead our communities in solving big problems, or start businesses that innovate to meet our state’s needs. As if those impacts are not enough, cuts to public school funding will lead to job losses for public school employees from teachers to bus drivers, causing economic harm to ripple through our communities. |
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Did You Miss Our Webinar? |
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| This week, Dr. Elena Ashburn, Governor Stein's new Senior Education Policy Advisor, joined Public Schools First NC and NC PTA to discuss the state of education in North Carolina and the administration's plans for the upcoming year. It was a great discussion! If you didn't get a chance to join it live, you can still watch it on our YouTube channel. WATCH the WEBINAR HERE |
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| April 24, 7:00-8:30 pm: Resilience and ACES. Learn about Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES) and resilience. Join us for this award-winning, 60-minute film, Resilience: The Biology of Stress & The Science of Hope. This documentary examines how abuse, neglect, and other adverse childhood experiences affect children’s development & health outcomes in adulthood. This powerful movie is a conversation starter and a perspective changer. REGISTER HERE |
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Words to Remember"Millions of families of color as well as poor whites stand to lose as they truly have no choice other than to enroll their children in underfunded, segregated schools, public, private, or charter. Choice has provided a safety net for some but the majority are in peril." — Jon Hale, The Choice We Face p. 165 |
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Help us support public schools!Public Schools First NC is a statewide nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused solely on pre-K to 12 public education issues. We collaborate with parents, teachers, business and civic leaders, and communities across North Carolina to advocate for one unified system of public education that prepares each child for productive citizenship. |
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