News
Thousands rally in Raleigh, as teacher protest closes schools statewide
Thousands of educators rallied in Raleigh May 1, as schools closed statewide and lawmakers debate competing proposals on teacher pay and education funding.
News
School districts shift schedules ahead of May 1 teacher protest
NC schools adjust schedules as teachers plan May 1 protest in Raleigh, raising concerns over staffing shortages and classroom disruptions statewide.
News
Bus driver shortage requires school staff to take the wheel
School shutdowns during COVID-19 are partly to blame for a bus driver shortage that has some school districts requiring teacher assistants, janitors, and other school personnel to drive school buses.
News
Twitter blocks Locke’s exposure of teachers’ union agenda
The head of the John Locke Foundation’s Center for Effective Education found himself in “Twitter jail” Wednesday. Terry Stoops faced that penalty after exposing discussion topics at a national teachers’ union’s annual meeting. Thousands of teachers and activists are wrapping up a week of meetings in Chicago for the National Education Association annual meeting. While...
News
Legislative leaders, attorney general, parents all back three-judge panel for voucher suit
Defenders of North Carolina’s Opportunity Scholarship Program want a three-judge panel to hear a lawsuit challenging the voucher program. They’re asking the N.C. Court of Appeals to reverse a lower court’s ruling on the issue. Three separate briefs filed Wednesday at the Appeals Court all supported the lawsuit’s transfer from a single Superior Court judge...
News
Wash, rinse, repeat. Teachers’ union, Democrats offer same complaints on state budget
Democrats and their left-leaning allies offered the same criticism they have over every state budget Republicans have proposed over the last decade, beginning with their first budget after voters handed the GOP control of the General Assembly in 2010. Democrats say, as they have time and time again, that the GOP is not spending enough...
News
Treasurer’s pension stability proposals divide state employees’, teachers’ groups
Senate Republicans are again pushing State Treasurer Dale Folwell’s request to limit risk in the underfunded state pension plan by narrowing the number of retirement options. The Repeal Risky Retirement Payments Act, as Senate Bill 374 is titled, divides Republicans against Democrats, and pits the N.C. Association of Educators against the State Employees Association of...
News
School districts announce closures as teachers plan May 1 march
Once again teachers will descend on the state capital to call for more public school funding, Medicaid expansion, and a $15 minimum wage for all school workers. The North Carolina Association of Educators, in partnership with several other advocacy groups, is planning a teacher march May 1 in downtown Raleigh. Because so many teachers have...
News
Wake and Guilford counties join growing number of school systems closing for May 16 teacher rally
The Wake County Public School System and Guilford County Schools are closing their doors May 16 so thousands of teachers can rally at the start of the short session for higher pay and more school resources. More than 2,500 Wake County teachers and 2,000 Guilford County teachers have requested next Wednesday off to attend the...
Podcast
National education spending rankings questioned
From Carolina Journal Radio Program No. 734: The nation’s largest teachers union recently ranked North Carolina No. 43 in average per-student spending among the 50 states. Dr. Terry Stoops, the John Locke Foundation’s vice president for research, explains why the National Education Association’s numbers are not necessarily accurate, appropriate, or meaningful.
Podcast
Carolina Journal Radio No. 734: Blue Cross plans another double-digit Obamacare rate increase
North Carolina’s largest health insurer wants to raise rates by 23 percent for policies tied to the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare. Katherine Restrepo, the John Locke Foundation’s director of health care policy, analyzes factors contributing to the rate increase. Restrepo also offers ideas about ways the state and federal government could change policies to...
Video
JLF’s Terry Stoops discusses the ‘magic number’ for public school spending
Dr. Terry Stoops, John Locke Foundation vice president for research, discusses research about the level of per-student education spending necessary to meet student achievement goals. Stoops offered these comments during an interview with Donna Martinez for Carolina Journal Radio.
