House Budget Set, The Debate Begins |
This was a big week in the North Carolina House as members had the opportunity to debate their budget bill (House Bill 257) on the House floor Wednesday and Thursday before taking final votes. Although the final House budget proposal passed 83-20 on its 3rd reading, members proposed 46 amendments and argued fiercely for changes. Many speakers pointed out that the Opportunity Scholarship school voucher program had millions in unspent funds this year and more than $1.36 BILLION is appropriated for the program over the next two years. These funds could be reallocated to other programs that currently lack adequate funding. Early in the debate, Rep. Buansi proposed an amendment to use the Opportunity Scholarship voucher cash balance (extra funds) to pay for an HVAC grant program for public schools. It failed mostly along party lines, setting the tone for future amendments proposed by Democrats. The next stage in the budget process will start when House and Senate members are selected to form the conference committee that will negotiate a compromise budget. If the compromise budget is passed in both chambers, it goes to Governor Stein for his signature (or veto). Governor Stein could also choose to let the budget pass into law with no signature. The House and Senate budget proposals differ markedly in their salary increases for teachers, and especially beginning teachers. The House raises starting pay from the current $41,000/year to $48,000 next year and $51,000 in 2026-27 compared to $41,500 in the Senate proposal for both years. Governor Stein’s proposal would have raised starting salaries to $44,500 next year and to $51,200 in 2026-27. Experienced teachers don’t receive the pay increases they should, which is something the budget must address if the state expects to retain teachers beyond their first few years. In the House budget, teachers with 25 years or more of experience would earn a base salary of $57,110 next year. In the Senate budget, they would earn $56,650, and in Governor Stein’s budget, they would earn $57,950. Because the state pays so little, most districts add local salary supplements to the state base schedule. As a result, teacher salaries across the state are generally higher than the state base. However, the amount provided by local districts varies widely, leading to unequal opportunities to attract and retain teachers. |
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The House budget reinstates master’s pay for teachers; the Senate budget does not. The teacher pipeline gets some additional support through an expanded Teaching Fellows program. More licensure areas qualify, more teacher education programs can participate, and the forgivable loan amount increases from $5,000 to $10,000 per year. Early grades teachers may face challenges; the House budget rolls back the K-3 class size maximums so all districts in the state would be allowed to exceed the current class size maximums by three students. Growing schools—defined as growing by .5% (half of one percent) for two consecutive years—are allowed to add an additional three students per class, for a total of up to six additional students per class. Growing schools that have also received a performance grade of A or B can add two more students, bringing the total additional students to 8. The House budget adds $10 million annually for training middle school teachers and principals in research-backed reading instruction. This supplements the training teachers in Pre-K through 5 received from 2021-2024 in early literacy research and instruction. Special education funding gets a $10 million boost to accommodate a proposed increase in the funding cap for students with disabilities from 13% of enrolled students to 13.25%. Charter school oversight continues its shift away from DPI and the State Board of Education in the House budget. The power to hire the executive director of the Office of Charter Schools moves from Superintendent of Public Instruction to the Charter School Review Board and the authority to approve new charter school rules moves from the State Board of Education to the Charter School Review Board. In addition, provisions in the House budget state that a charter school can relocate, expand a campus or establish a satellite location within 10 miles of the main campus without prior approval of the charter school review board. The House budget reinstates the tax holiday weekend in August for qualified school supplies. See more on the Education Budget on our website. Watch Rep. Julie von Haefen's floor speech as she discussed the House budget's failure to adhere to the provisions in the North Carolina State Constitution. |
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Supreme Court Halts Oklahoma Religious Charter School |
A Thursday ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court upholds Oklahoma’s Supreme Court’s prohibition on state funding for a religious school. St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School had applied to become a state-funded charter school, but the Oklahoma Supreme Court blocked the move, ruling that using taxpayer funds for a religious charter school would violate the OK state constitution, the OK charter school statute, and the U.S. Constitution. Because the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling was 4-4, with no majority ruling, the decision doesn’t set a nationwide precedent. This leaves open the possibility for future lawsuits. In the OK case, Justice Barrett recused herself, likely due to her close relationship with Ms. Garnett, an early advisor to St. Isadore of Seville Virtual School. Justice Barrett and Ms. Garnett taught together at the University of Notre Dame and Justice Barrett is the godmother to one of Ms. Garnett’s children. |
Americans United for Separation of Church and State President and CEO Rachel Laser said, “The Supreme Court’s stalemate safeguards public education and upholds the separation of church and state. We will continue our efforts to protect inclusive public education. We call on this nation to recommit to church-state separation before this safeguard of democracy and freedom is further attacked.” |
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Department of Education Staff Reinstated |
A Thursday ruling by U.S. District Judge Myong Juan requires the U.S. Department of Education to temporarily reinstate the employees laid off earlier this year. The department has appealed the ruling, but Judge Juan's ruling made it clear that the dismantling of the Department of Education through firing nearly all its staff in March left the department incapable of fulfilling legally required functions. |
The ruling came just one day after Education Secretary Linda McMahon appeared before the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations to explain the administration's budget request, which includes $12 billion in cuts. |
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Legislative and SBE Updates |
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| The NCGA reconvenes on Tuesday, May 27. The legislative calendar shows no further meetings until June 3. Keep an eye on the calendar for more updates. See our Week in Review for a summary of bills and key education bills to watch. |
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| Even though citizens have rejected vouchers every time they have the opportunity to vote, legislators and their billionaire funders keep trying to push vouchers on the public. After being soundly rejected last fall in all three states where vouchers were on the ballot, supporters are now trying to pass a FEDERAL voucher bill. Watch this short video explainer to learn more about this harmful bill. Then contact your U.S. lawmakers and ask them to vote no on federal vouchers! |
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What's Democratic about Giving Tax Dollars to Private Schools? |
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| Public schools are essential for democracy—and they’re under attack. But the very policies that are being championed as their salvation may have a catastrophic impact on American education for generations. Public education advocate and historian Dr. Diane Ravitch unpacks how school choice policies like vouchers and charter schools are dangerous for democracy. Diane Ravitch is a former assistant secretary in the United States Department of Education. She is the author of several books on the history and policy of American public schools. Her memoir, about her life as a leading public education reformer, will be published this fall. It’s called An Education: How I Changed My Mind About Almost Everything. |
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What's Democratic about Giving Tax Dollars to Private Schools? |
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| You’re Invited! Join Co-Sponsors for “The New Mecklenburg Resolves” Press Conference Tuesday, May 27 | 5:00 PM (Arrive by 4:30 PM) Charlotte-Mecklenburg Government Center (600 E. 4th St.) Public education in North Carolina is in crisis. State lawmakers continue to underfund our schools while pushing tax cuts for the wealthy — leaving students, teachers, and families without the resources they need. Join parents, teachers, students, business and faith leaders, and community members as we gather to say: enough is enough. Street parking and Government Center parking deck are available. |
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| Protect Public Schools—End Christian Nationalism Wednesday, June 4th at 7pm at Greenwood Forest Baptist Church in Cary, NC. Amanda Tyler of Christians Against Christian Nationalism How to End Christian Nationalism by Amanda Tyler is the essential guidebook for Christians alarmed by the rising tide of Christian nationalism yet unsure how to counter it. Join Amanda for a timely discussion about the threat of this dangerous ideology and learn about how she drew on her experiences, conversations with pastors and laypeople, research, Scripture, and her Baptist convictions to write this new book. Book purchase and signing in the reception hall. Christian nationalism is one of the primary threats against public education in this country. Pastors for NC Children sees many of the struggles our public schools face are rooted in Christian nationalism including the rise of vouchers and defunding public education, book bans, limiting what can be taught in history and science, release time for religious education, posting the 10 Commandments in schools, chaplains replacing counselors, and so much more. PNCC is a host of this event because it connects their work to mobilize faith communities in support of public schools across North Carolina. REGISTER HERE (free) |
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| Tuesday, June 10, noon - 1:00 p.m. Join PSFNC and UNC law professor Barbara Fedders to discuss our latest report, North Carolina Charter Schools: Undermining Quality Education for All. We will discuss important findings in the report about problematic features of charter schools in North Carolina: racial segregation, exclusionary student discipline, the rate of school closures, and financial mismanagement. There will be time for Q & A, so come ready to discuss! REGISTER HERE |
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Join a Discussion with PSFNC and NCPTA |
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| June 19 at 5:00 p.m. Join PSFNC and NCPTA for an online discussion of updates on bills, policy or budget changes, etc. that impact public education. Bring your questions and suggestions. Participate in the conversation to support our public schools! SIGN UP HERE |
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Words to Remember"School choice is a deceptive misnomer because the choice lies not so much with parents as with the private schools, which are highly selective about who they enroll and who they do not enroll. They will not take the economically disadvantaged, at-risk, special needs, socially and emotionally challenged child because it is too expensive to teach that child." — Rev. Charles Foster Johnson, founder of Pastors for TX Children |
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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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