North Carolina

News, analysis, and opinion about K-12 education in North Carolina
A group of silhouettes looks across a grid with a public school on the other side.
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Federal Low-Performing Schools Are Left to Languish by Districts and States, Watchdog Finds
Fewer than half of district plans for improving struggling schools meet bare minimum requirements.
Alyson Klein, February 23, 2024
11 min read
A blue maze with a money bag at the end of the maze.
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Education Funding A Court Ordered Billions for Education. Why Schools Might Not Get It Now
The North Carolina Supreme Court is considering arguments for overturning a statewide order for more school funding.
Mark Lieberman, February 22, 2024
6 min read
Empty blue school bathroom showing the bathroom sinks without mirrors.
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School Climate & Safety A School Removed Bathroom Mirrors to Keep Students From Making TikToks. Will It Work?
The desperate strategy for keeping students in class illuminates the challenge schools face in competing with social media.
Elizabeth Heubeck, February 1, 2024
5 min read
Illustration of a cellphone with a red exclamation mark inside of a word bubble.
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School Climate & Safety Researchers Analyzed Years of Reports to a School Safety Tipline. Here's What They Learned
More than a third of gun-related tips in one state outlined possible school attacks, a new analysis finds.
Evie Blad, January 31, 2024
4 min read
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Classroom Technology State Outlines Guidance for Different Levels of AI Use in Classrooms
How to use AI in a variety of ways without encouraging cheating or plagiarism.
Alyson Klein, January 29, 2024
3 min read
Photo of a diverse group of elementary aged kids around a table building robots and testing them together with a male teacher during a stem robotics class.
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College & Workforce Readiness This District Wants to Start CTE in Elementary School, in a New Twist on Career Prep
It's believed to be the nation's first gaming and robotics magnet school for elementary-age students.
Caitlynn Peetz, January 26, 2024
6 min read
People hold signs during a protest at the state house in Trenton, N.J., Monday, Jan. 13, 2020. New Jersey lawmakers are set to vote Monday on legislation to eliminate most religious exemptions for vaccines for schoolchildren, as opponents crowd the statehouse grounds with flags and banners, including some reading "My Child, My Choice."
People hold signs during a protest at the state house in Trenton, N.J., on Jan. 13, 2020, opposing legislation to eliminate most religious exemptions for vaccines for schoolchildren. In North Carolina, a bill passed to protect parents' rights in schools caused uncertainty that led two districts to pause a child sex abuse prevention program out of fear it would violate the new law.
Seth Wenig/AP
States How a Parents' Rights Law Halted a Child Abuse Prevention Program
State laws that have passed as part of the parents' rights movement have caused confusion and uncertainty over what schools can teach.
Libby Stanford & Caitlynn Peetz, December 21, 2023
7 min read
Peggy Carr, Commissioner of the National Center for Education, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press about the National Assessment of Education Process on Oct. 21, 2022, in Washington.
Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, speaks during an interview with The Associated Press about the National Assessment of Education Process on Oct. 21, 2022, in Washington. Carr is facing scrutiny over allegations of improper spending by a North Carolina charter for which she serves as vice chair and landlord.
Alex Brandon/AP
School Choice & Charters Lead NAEP Official Faces Scrutiny Over Improper Spending Alleged at N.C. Charter School
Peggy Carr, the National Center for Education Statistics' head, is vice chair of the school's board and part-owner of school properties.
Mark Lieberman, December 15, 2023
7 min read
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Education Funding A Judge Just Ruled That Another State's School Funding System Is Unconstitutional
New Hampshire joins Pennsylvania on the list of states whose courts have ruled that it's underfunding poor school districts.
Mark Lieberman, November 27, 2023
5 min read
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Budget & Finance Q&A Why Are K-12 Funding Inequities So Pervasive? A French Scholar of U.S. Education Weighs In
Esther Cyna brings a unique perspective as a French scholar studying school finance in the United States.
Mark Lieberman, September 13, 2023
6 min read
Kelly Frycz, principal of Sardis Elementary, leads an interactive read-aloud with a second-grade class in Monroe, North Carolina.
Kelly Frycz, principal of Sardis Elementary, works with a 2nd grade class in Monroe, N.C., on Sept. 5. As a second year principal, Frycz looks for opportunities to engage with kids and teach in the classroom.
Kate Medley for Education Week
School & District Management These 3 Principals Still Take Time to Teach. Here's Why
The pandemic played a role in fueling these principals' need to better understand a changed educational environment.
Caitlyn Meisner, September 12, 2023
5 min read
The Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, April 19, 2023, in Washington.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, April 19, 2023, in Washington.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Declines to Hear Closely Watched Case on Charter Schools
The justices won't consider whether charter schools are "state actors," which has implications for the push for religious charter schools.
Mark Walsh, June 26, 2023
5 min read
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Education Funding What Happens (or Doesn't) After Courts Order States to Improve School Funding
Pennsylvania is the latest state working on school funding reforms after a judge ruled its current approach unconstitutional.
Mark Lieberman, June 23, 2023
8 min read
This artist sketch depicts Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, right, presenting an argument before the Supreme Court, Monday, Nov. 1, 2021, in Washington.
U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar, shown in a November 2021 sketch arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court, has filed a brief urging the justices not to take up a closely watched case about the legal status of charter schools.
Dana Verkouteren via AP
Law & Courts Biden Administration Urges High Court to Reject Case on Legal Status of Charter Schools
The case about whether a North Carolina charter school is a "state actor" when it enforces its dress code is being watched closely.
Mark Walsh, May 23, 2023
4 min read