We only use cookies that are necessary for this site to function to provide you with the best experience. The controller of this site may choose to place supplementary cookies to support additional functionality such as support analytics, and has an obligation to disclose these cookies. Learn more in our Cookie Statement.
K-12 Education Office of Government and Community Affairs Update - Friday, September 23, 2022
North Carolina Public Schools sent this bulletin at 09/22/2022 11:32 PM EDT
State Board of Education Vision:Every public school student in North Carolina will be empowered to accept academic challenges, prepared to pursue their chosen path after graduating high school, and encouraged to become lifelong learners with the capacity to engage in a globally-collaborative society.
State Board of Education Mission:The mission of the North Carolina State Board of Education is to use its constitutional authority to guard and maintain the right of a sound, basic education for every child in North Carolina Public Schools.
Winston-Salem JournalLisa O’Donnell | : New program will place teachers in high-need schools - Three local colleges and universities received federal dollars this week to train and develop future teachers who will eventually work for area schools with some of the highest needs. The $4.7 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education comes at an important time for Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools, which is facing a teacher shortage, an issue that is plaguing school districts across the country. The Teacher Quality Partnership grant will involve graduate students at Winston-Salem State University, Wake Forest University and Salem College working with the school district in a program called Winston-Salem Teachers for Equity, Achievement, Community and Humanity or WS-TEACH.
The N.C. Department of Public Instruction (DPI) has convened an advisory group to redesign the state’s school performance grades between now and January 2023. This survey, run by EducationNC, seeks to gather your input on how school performance should be evaluated. All results will be used anonymously in aggregate, and a final report will be provided to DPI ahead of its next meeting in October.
This survey will close at 5 p.m. on Monday, October 10. Once the survey closes, the results will be posted publicly. Thank you for your participation.
Nine North Carolina school districts stretching from Hyde County in the east to Cherokee County in the west will share more than $300 million in new state lottery-funded grant awards for school construction, renovation projects and other capital improvements.
Districts awarded grants for fiscal year 2022-23:
Alleghany County / Alleghany County Schools – $47 million – New 9-12 high school – Replaces the district’s one existing high school
Cherokee County / Cherokee County Schools – $50 million – New 9-12 high school – Replaces three existing high schools
Gates County / Gates County Schools – $9.8 million – Gates County High School – additions and renovations
Greene County / Greene County Schools – $50 million – New high school – replaces the district’s one existing high school
Halifax County / Weldon City Schools – $50 million – New 6-12 school – replaces two existing schools
Hyde County / Hyde County Schools – $8.3 million – Mattamuskeet PK-12 school – additions and renovations
Pamlico County / Pamlico County Schools – $50 million – New 6-12 school – replaces two existing schools
Perquimans County / Perquimans County Schools – $36.9 million – New 3-8 intermediate school – replaces two existing schools
Tyrrell County / Tyrrell County Schools – $350,000 – New CTE (Career Technical Education) center – Serves the high school and early college
Yet, computer science only counts as an elective in the state’s K-12 system. Jamey Falkenbury, director of government affairs for state Superintendent Catherine Truitt, says that creates a disincentive; students are more concerned with taking classes that meet the minimum requirements of the UNC System, rather than electives.
The State Board of Education wants that to change, Falkenbury said, but they won’t move until the UNC System agrees. That’s because the UNC System sets the minimum requirements — courses that must be taken by a student before a UNC System school will consider admitting them.
EdNCCaroline Parker | : How to become a STEM school of distinction - The Department of Public Instruction and State Board of Education each year recognize schools around North Carolina who incorporate STEM instruction into the standards and daily lives of their students. This designation is known as a STEM School of Distinction and interested schools should complete their intent to apply no later than Oct. 7, 2022.
The STEM recognition intent to apply form for the 2022-23 school year can be found here.
On Tuesday, September 6th, I attended the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee meeting at the Legislative Office Building in Raleigh, NC. After approving previous meeting minutes, the committee heard several presentations. Click here to view all the documents and slide shows from the meeting.
The first presentation was an update on Project Kitty Hawk. The presentation was given by Dr. Andrew Kelly, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Policy for the UNC System Office, and Wil Zemp, President & CEO of Project Kitty Hawk. We then heard reports on instructional support personnel. The first report was from the NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI), given by Alexis Schauss, Chief Financial Officer at NCDPI. Next, we heard a report from Catawba County Schools (CCS) given by Dr. Matthew Stover, CCS Superintendent, and Karla Albridge, CCS Chief Financial Officer.
The final group of presentations was on competency-based education models. The first presentation was from NCDPI, given by Dr. Andrew Smith, NCDPI Assistant Superintendent. A presentation was then given by Newton-Conover City School District‘s Shuford Elementary School. Kisha Clemons, Principal of Shuford Elementary School, and teachers Cayley Rozzelle and Emily Bryan. The final presentation was given by Dr. Trip Stallings, Executive Director of NC Longitudinal Data System for the NC Department of Information Technology.
The North Carolina Education Lottery was established in 2005 following the signing of the North Carolina State Lottery Act. The lottery took in $3.8 billion in fiscal year 2020-21 and paid out $2.4 billion in prizes. Of the remaining $1.3 billion, 69% ($936.8 million) went toward education. Below is a breakdown of the NC Lottery’s revenue from fiscal year 2020-21:
The revenue that goes toward education is either appropriated in the state budget by the General Assembly or is automatically appropriated under state law. Of the $936 million, 52% went to school staff, 29% for school construction, 11% for NC Pre-K, 5% for Education Lottery Scholarships & Grants, and 3% for transportation.
On the NC Education Lottery’s website, you can find a summary of lottery fund distribution to education programs in every county (click hereto view). In fiscal year 2021, Gaston County received $14,746,607 from the lottery. The breakdown of those funds is as follows:
$3,428,875 for Prekindergarten
$696,254 for College Scholarships
$197,659 for Financial Aid within the UNC System
$7,659,142 for Non-Instructional Staff (i.e., office assistants, custodians, and substitute teachers)
$337,195 for School Transportation
$2,427,482 for School Construction
If there is an area of our Education System you wish me to cover in a future newsletter, please get in touch with me at john.torbett@ncleg.gov.
An increasing share of states are including student perspectives in education policymaking, a new report finds, but making sure those voices are diverse and have real power can remain a challenge. At least 33 now include formal positions for youth representatives or advisors on their state boards of education, up from just 25 four years ago, according to an August briefby the National Association of State Boards of Education. The organization is the only group that carries out nationwide audits of youth representation on state boards of education, and its prior update came in 2018. Over that span, three states — Mississippi, Kentucky and Delaware — added positions for student members on their state boards where no such role previously existed. Five more — Virginia, Idaho, California, Arizona and Michigan — created new student advisory councils to guide their state boards. “Students have a very valuable perspective,” said Celina Pierrottet, the report’s author. “Now our state leaders are starting to recognize the importance of capturing that experience and learning from it.” The pandemic may have spurred some of the recent uptick, with California and Idaho explicitly citing the coronavirus as the reason they created the new positions. “The effects of COVID-19 have been widespread and created impacts unlike anything that we have ever seen. Youth have experienced their education in ways that are unprecedented, including pivoting to virtual learning,” California State Superintendent Tony Thurmond wroteas he announced a new Youth Advisory Council in September 2021. “As we reimagine education, we hope to have young people working alongside California’s education professionals and policymakers to build a better tomorrow.”
Student Perspective in North Carolina:
Two high school students also are appointed as advisors to the State Board of Education. A high school junior is appointed each year for a two-year term.
Student Advisory Council (SSAC) is a strong and diverse group comprised of 12 high school students from across the state’s eight education regions, with eight juniors and four seniors.
The two-year appointment to the SSAC provides student advisors the opportunity to meet twice per month to discuss education issues affecting students, advocate on behalf of their peers and ultimately advise decision makers in state public education. DPI Press Release - March 17, 2022