Despite signs of progress, the latest test results show that most North Carolina students have yet to regain the ground lost during the pandemic. There are at least three barriers to academic recovery. First is chronic absenteeism. Compared to five years ago, the number of chronically absent students has doubled. Second, there has been a...
For more than 20 years, thought leaders, policymakers, and readers have turned to Carolina Journal for the latest news and analysis. We thank you for that trust, and thrive on the daily engagement we have with our readers. Starting in 2024, we are stepping it up with the new Carolina Journal poll. Building on decades...
I have a feeling most people involved in education policy intuitively accept the conclusion that parents should be the final word on what’s best for their child. But I also believe some don’t really understand its implications. You see, if we accept as our guiding principle that final authority rests with parents, then the answer...
North Carolina has experienced the country’s fifth-fastest rate of growth in private-school enrollment since 2020, according to state data collected by the Associated Press. Our charter schools are booming, as well, with enrollments shooting up at a faster rate than in all but two other states. Last year, the General Assembly changed the chartering process...
The Tar Heel state is third best in the nation for the growth of public charter schools during the pandemic, trailing only Texas and Florida, according to a new report by the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools. Nationwide, charter schools have gained more than 300,000 students since the 2019-2020 school year, while traditional public schools have...
What’s in a name? In the case of the newly minted Charter School Review Board, that answer encompasses the entirety of the entity’s new charge and function. Formerly known as the Charter School Advisory Board, or CSAB, this government body has moved from an advisory to a regulatory capacity. It no longer makes recommendations to...
Tensions flared between members of the North Carolina State Board of Education on Thursday over the approval of a new charter school.
On Thursday, North Carolina House Republicans introduced a new bill proposing the creation of a “Charter School Review Board” to take over responsibility for approving, amending, renewing, and terminating charter schools in an effort to streamline the decision-making process for charter schools. The new board will be responsible for reviewing and approving new rules for...
Plaintiffs in a lawsuit that seeks to protect charter schools across the United States filed a motion Dec. 14 asking a federal judge to reject the government’s attempt to have the lawsuit dismissed. In November, a coalition of charter-school advocacy organizations from five states filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to block new restrictions on charter...
A new report ranks North Carolina fifth in the nation for number of new charter school enrollments during the pandemic. The ranking is another feather in the cap for the Tar Heel State when it comes to the growth of school choice in recent years. The report, produced by the National Alliance for Charter Schools,...
A new poll from a national charter school group indicates that many parents could become single-issue voters on the topic of education.
