The final day of a sometimes divisive election year legislative session ended with bipartisan back slaps, and emotional farewell speeches injected with folksy humor, good-natured jabs, reminiscence, and heartfelt thanks from those who will not return next year. The gavel fell Friday, June 29, on a session that began May 16. It was not only...
In a joint session of the House and the Senate, Republican legislators rejected two of the three nominees for the State Board of Education to the confusion of Democrats. Legislators overwhelmingly approved Reginald Kenan’s reappointment to the state education board, but a partisan split prevented Sandra Byrd and John B. Buxton from earning the necessary...
It’s being called a historic milestone. But just because every state legislative seat will be contested in this year’s general election for the first time in memory doesn’t mean most races will be competitive. “Not every candidate is created equal, nor is every campaign created equal, though you have to have players on the field...
State Republican legislative leaders announced a fix to the class size mandate, which would phase in smaller class sizes in kindergarten through third grade over the next four years instead of an immediate fix this school year. Last spring the General Assembly required local school systems to reduce their class sizes starting in the 2018-19...
The state Senate Sunday night released its proposed legislative maps for the 2018 general election. Similar to the House plan, the Senate proposal would force incumbents in four of the new districts to oppose one another. One of those incumbents already has announced plans to retire. The maps, mandated by a three-judge panel in a federal...
The Excellent Educators for Every Classroom bill is now law as Gov. Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 599. Designed to revamp the teacher hiring process in North Carolina, S.B. 599 established the Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission. The independent body will recommend standards for teacher preparation, licensing, continuing education, and conduct to the State...
A pair of bills in the N.C. Senate would change the way teachers are chosen and hired. By expanding the hiring pool, Senate Bill 448, Professors in the Classroom, and S.B., 599, Excellent Educators for Every Classroom, is meant to address a growing demand for qualified teachers. Sen. Chad Barefoot, R-Wake, is the primary sponsor of both bills. “It is a...
UPDATE, April 27, 6:45 p.m. Gov. Roy Cooper signed H.B. 13 into law. UPDATE, April 27. 4:25 p.m: The House agreed with the revised Senate version of the bill Thursday afternoon, passing it by a 112-3 margin. After weeks of outrage from school administrators who worry that lower class sizes will mean cutting elective courses...
RALEIGH — A move to award scholarships to aspiring teachers would limit options for recipients. Senate Bill 252, “North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program,” would provide future science, technology, engineering, math, and special education teachers with forgivable college loans of up to $8,250 annually for four years. But there’s a caveat. The program requires that students select...
RALEIGH — A host of luminaries led by UNC system President Margaret Spellings used a Thursday press conference to announce a newly branded North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program. The proposal, which is set to be introduced next week in the General Assembly, would offer loans of as much as $8,250 to students who plan to teach...
A stunning election night ended with several election races — including the contest for governor — unresolved, even as Republicans Donald Trump and Richard Burr scored significant victories and the GOP retained its supermajority status in the General Assembly. In the race for governor, Democratic Attorney General Roy Cooper claimed victory just before 1 a.m....
