Reuters - Nate Raymond | April 24, 2025: Judges Block President’s Ability to Withold School Funds Over DEI -Federal judges in Maryland, New Hampshire and Washington, D.C., on Thursday blocked Republican President Donald Trump's administration from following through on threats to cut off funding to public schools that engage in diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
EdNC - Chris William | April 17, 2025: Perspective | An interview with Sara Fawcett, Brenda Berg, and Eric Davis - In this episode of Carolina Business Review, we interview Sara Fawcett, President and CEO of United Way of the Midlands; Brenda Berg, President and CEO of BEST NC; and Eric Davis, Chair of the North Carolina State Board of Education.
EdNC - Mary Ann Wolf | April 23, 2025: Perspective | Community connections: The power of rural schools and local businesses - When partnerships can be fostered between local businesses and schools, the entire community benefits as students gain access to new resources and opportunities, educators receive vital support, and businesses become more deeply connected to the future of their communities. As Governor Stein reminded us during this year’s NC Rural Summit, “Our state’s path to success runs right through rural North Carolina. That path is paved, first and foremost, by our public schools.”
On April 22, 2025, North Carolina's Department of Public Instruction responded to the U.S. Department of Education's (USDOE) recent certification request regarding anti-discrimination compliance.
While NCDPI and all local education agencies have already certified their compliance with federal civil rights laws, we have provided a letteroutlining our position along with the requested additional certification.
The letter clarifies that our certification is limited to the USDOE's current legal authority. The letter also affirms that our North Carolina public schools remain committed to environments free from discrimination based on race, color or national origin and that we will continue working to ensure fairness, removing barriers to opportunity and making decisions based on merit and need.
Public education in North Carolina is about opening doors of opportunity for all students. We strive to make decisions, such as those about discipline, curriculum, hiring and resource allocation, grounded in fairness and designed to serve the best interests of all public school students as we focus on our primary mission: providing excellent education for North Carolina's children in our public schools.
Maurice "Mo" Green
Superintendent, NC Department of Public Instruction
In addition to the bills scheduled to be heard in education committees next week, here are ten education bills to watch. For a complete list of education bills to watch, see the tracking link above.
LB/LOB = Legislative Building/Legislative Office Building
LEA = Local Education Agency
NCGA = North Carolina General Assembly
PCS = Proposed Committee Substitute
PSU = Public School Unit
SBE = North Carolina State Board of Education
SL = Session Law
For the glossary of education acronyms/terms, click here.
For the glossary of legislative terms, click here.
Register for NC Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) Summer Opportunities
Join the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) this summer for transformative professional development. These residential programs provide educators with the tools, strategies and support to elevate their teaching. Each week, teachers engage in content-rich instruction, explore proven methodologies and receive coaching to implement new insights effectively. The goal is to empower educators to create classrooms where students are more engaged, self-motivated and successful.
The 2025 RISE Back to School Safety Summit will be held from Monday, July 28 to Wednesday, July 30 at the Statesville Civic Center in Statesville, N.C.
Click here, here and here for discounted hotel rates for RISE attendees.
The Center for Safer Schools (CFSS) will use Whova for registration, scheduling and engagement. Download the app and check back on Whova and social media for upcoming opportunities to engage with Center for Safer Schools staff before and during RISE 2025.
If you have questions, send an email to CFSS Executive Assistant-Interim Kaliah Thompson.
SparkNCand District C have been awarded a $1.1 million grant to support their STEM career-readiness program.
The grant is expected to be distributed over two years. Funds will go toward supporting Spark NC and District C’s Teamship program. In Teamship, students collaborate to provide solutions for the program’s business partners. Hundreds of high schoolers across 20 school districts have participated.
The collaboration was one of 30 programs that received funding from the American Student Assistance organization. ASA distributed $17 million across 14 states. Grant recipients were selected for providing “access to opportunities to improve career readiness outcomes for middle and high schoolers, specifically in the areas of work-based learning, social capital, education and career pathways, and career exploration,” the press release read.
More information about the Teamship program along with SparkNC and District C can be found here.
