A Union County judge has approved a deal calling on the state of North Carolina to boost education spending by more than $400 million a year. It’s the first stage of a plan that would lead to billions of dollars of new spending. The money is tied to the long-running Leandro lawsuit. Terry Stoops, John Locke Foundation vice president for research and director of education studies, analyzes the latest developments in the quarter-century-old Leandro case. The N.C. Association of Educators teachers union is leading a lawsuit designed to kill the state’s Opportunity Scholarship program. But three families are going to court to intervene in the case. They want to defend the scholarship vouchers. Grandparent Janet Nunn explains why she’s working with the Institute for Justice to protect the vouchers. North Carolina and the rest of the United States recently celebrated the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed women’s right to vote in elections. During a recent online forum, John Locke Foundation CEO Amy Cooke helped mark the anniversary. Cooke also shared her concerns about current political debates about women’s role in politics. COVID-19 has generated health care challenges across the country. During a recent online John Locke Foundation forum, North Carolinians heard expert analysis from Rea Hederman, vice president for policy at the Ohio-based Buckeye Institute. Hederman discussed state-level innovations that can lead to better health outcomes during the pandemic and afterward. The N.C. General Assembly recently approved a COVID-19 package totaling nearly $1 billion. They dubbed it the Coronavirus Relief Act 3.0. Joseph Coletti, John Locke Foundation senior fellow, explores the latest package’s pros and cons. He looks at the potential impact on the state’s long-term fiscal outlook.