News

Pilot program enables NC high school students to explore tech fields

North Carolina lawmakers recently authorized pilot programs in 17 high schools across the state with the intention of encouraging more students to pursue high-tech careers. On Tuesday, a joint legislative committee heard an update on the results so far. The pilot programs are housed under the SparkNC label. In 2023, lawmakers OK’ed $3 million in funding...

David N. Bass
Opinion

How will Opportunity Scholarship boom affect NC charter schools?

According to the National School Choice Awareness Foundation (NSCAF), more Americans googled “school choice” during National School Choice Week in January 2023 than during any other time over the prior six years. This should come as no surprise to North Carolinians. Since January 2023, our state legislature has made major expansion possible in both charter...

Rhonda Dillingham
News

Record-breaking 72,000 applicants seek Opportunity Scholarships

Nearly 72,000 applications were received for the expanded Opportunity Scholarship program in North Carolina by the close of the priority application window March 1, according to new data from the state government agency that oversees the program. That record-breaking number more than doubles the current number of recipients. Demand was so high in the first...

David N. Bass

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News

Crime, suspensions continue to worsen in NC public schools

Despite emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, North Carolina public schools continue to experience increased incidences of crime, violence, and suspensions, according to data from the NC Department of Public Instruction. A DPI report released at the end of January showed that public schools reported 13,193 acts of crime and violence in the 2022-2023 school year,...

David N. Bass
News

Cooper Math: Governor’s anti-scholarship tour fact-checked by education expert

Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper hit the road in February on a campaign in eastern North Carolina to blast Opportunity Scholarships, the state’s voucher program that provides a pathway to a private school education for tens of thousands of families across the state. The governor’s office claims that vouchers will have a draconian impact on local...

David N. Bass
Opinion

School finance in NC: It’s time to take the next step

In 2022, North Carolina spent $16.7 billion in state, federal, and local funds on its public schools. Those funds were distributed to local schools using 50 different funding formulas. People frequently focus on how much money was distributed, which is important. Equally important, however, is to evaluate how that money is distributed. In recent years,...

Bob Luebke