The General Assembly’s break is almost over, and several committees have already scheduled meetings over the next two weeks. The House K-12 Education Committee is slated to meet twice on Tuesday, April 29th and once again on Tuesday, May 6^th. Dozens of bills impacting K-12 public education are scheduled to be heard, some of which could significantly affect local public school operations. One bill of particular interest is H981: Local Schools Open Enrollment. This bill would allow parents or guardians to request their student be enrolled in any school in the local school unit where they are domiciled. If enacted, it would take effect in the upcoming school year.

NCASA urges all school and district leaders to contact members of the House K-12 Education Committee to share their thoughts or concerns on H981 or any of the other scheduled bills listed below. With the May 8th crossover deadline quickly approaching, it is imperative that administrators voice how these proposed changes would affect local public schools. Sample messages for H773: School Performance Grade Changes and H806: Public School Operational Relief are available in NCASA’s Advocacy Center. These messages can also be used as examples for further communication.

Tuesday, April 29th at 2 P.M.

• H56: Publish Central Office Employment Information – Requires local school boards to publish pay and position information for central office employees.
• H121: SchCalFlex/Statewide/Open Cal – Provides local boards of education with additional flexibility in adopting school calendars by removing the specified opening and closing dates.
• H578: The Jason Flatt Act of North Carolina – Requires each public school to adopt a suicide prevention education component in their mental health training program. Requires annual suicide prevention education to be provided to school personnel at no cost to the school unit.
• H615: Enrollment Stability for Military Students – Provides students of military families with additional time to provide proof of residency for public school enrollment.
• H773: School Performance Grade Changes – Modifies testing requirements in certain grades. Modifies the formula/calculation to determine the overall school performance scores and grades.
• H875: DPI to Redesign Math Instruction – Directs the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) to provide a system of support for all K-8 students in math education and their teachers, including supplemental math screening systems for districts to use. Requires DPI to provide a list of math instructional materials and professional educational offerings for teachers.
• H928: Allow PTs in School Concussion Protocol – Allows licensed physical therapists to evaluate a student athlete injured in an interscholastic athletic activity for a concussion and give written clearance for participation.

Tuesday, April 29th 15 minutes after House Session

• H806: Public School Operational Relief – Removes class size requirements for public schools. Requires local boards of education to employ at least 50% of teachers with teacher licenses. Requires all teachers in core subjects to be college graduates. Requires all unlicensed teachers to complete preservice training.
• H193: Firearm Law Revisions – Allows a person with a valid concealed handgun permit, or who is exempt from obtaining a concealed handgun permit, to possess or carry a handgun on educational property owned, used, or operated by a private school.
• H433: Registered Nurses in Schools – Allows licensed registered nurses with at least two years of experience serving in a hospital or health clinic to serve as a school nurse.
• H573: Remove Testing Requirement for Teacher Lic. – Prevents the State Board of Education from adopting rules or policies requiring an applicant for a teaching license to complete a standardized examination as a condition for licensure.
• H772: North Carolina Student Lifeline Act – Directs local boards of education to adopt a policy ensuring all schools in the local school administrative unit provide students the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Number.

Tuesday, May 6th at 2 P.M.

• H981: Local Schools Open Enrollment – Allows a parent or guardian to request that a student be enrolled at any school within the same local education agency. Requires local boards of education to adopt an open enrollment plan to allow students to apply to attend a school other than the school in the assignment area the student lives in. Establishes minimum requirements that must be included in the policy. Establishes parameters for open enrollment procedures.
• H556: 2025 Charter Schools Review Board Omnibus – Requires Charter Schools Review Board (CSRB) approval of all state rules related to charter schools. Authorizes the CSRB to hire legal counsel without permission or approval. Exempts charter schools from reporting class rank on student transcripts. Allows charter schools to use alternate teacher evaluations. Requires low-performing charters to report improvement plans to the CSRB only. Allows the CSRB to review decisions related to charter school federal funding. Creates an expedited application process for certain remote charter academies. Directs remote charter academies to be graded separately.
• H878: Increased Academic Transparency – Requires governing bodies of public schools to ensure that certain information is clearly displayed on the school website at all times, including:
  1. All lesson plans (no later than 10 days after the lesson was given),
  2. Procedures for the approval of lesson plans,
  3. Procedures for requesting an in-person review of course materials not made available to the public, and
  4. A list of teacher and staff training materials and activities used at each school.
• H945: Reporting of Sexual Assault on School Buses – Requires local schools report acts of violence within five days and to specify in the reports if the violence occurred on a school bus. Makes failure to submit a report a Class I felony.
• H959: Social Media Literacy in Schools – Requires local boards of education to adopt policies for student internet access.  Requires local boards of education to provide instruction on social media and its impacts, including negative effects on mental health and the spread of misinformation.