NCASA is proud to provide non-partisan advocacy to represent your interests and promote strong public schools in the halls of the North Carolina General Assembly and before the Governor’s Office, State Board of Education, State Retirement System, State Health Plan, and other policy-making entities. We are your advocate, and your network, providing you direct access to the laws affecting your school right now.
Members of the Senate voted not to concur on Wednesday with House changes to a bill laying out new parameters for virtual education and remote academies in the state. The primary bill sponsor, Senate Education Co-Chair Michael Lee (R-New Hanover) asked fellow Senators not to concur with the latest version of Senate Bill 671, noting
Members of the NC House of Representatives this week voted 72-23 in favor of a bill that would make several changes to virtual education and remote academies in our state.
The NC Senate this week passed House Bill 755: Parents’ Bill of Rights in a vote of 28-18, after the bill gained approval in the Senate Rules Committee this week, as well as in the Senate Education and Health Care committees last week.
The N.C. House of Representatives has approved two bills making technical and clarifying changes to the state’s pension and retirement laws as requested by the State Treasurer’s Office.
As the nation continues to reel from the school shooting massacre in Uvalde, TX, the Education K-12 Committee Chairs in the NC House of Representatives scheduled a meeting on Wednesday for lawmakers to be updated on efforts to keep students safe in North Carolina.
After last week’s relatively quiet start to the legislative short session, Senate lawmakers introduced this week a revised version of House Bill 755, entitled “Parents’ Bill of Rights.”
The NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) this week sent a final report on virtual academies to the General Assembly, calling for expanded opportunities for PSUs to operate virtual academies. The report was the result of COVID-19 relief legislation passed by state lawmakers in August of 2021, which required NCDPI to establish a Working Group on Virtual Academies and make recommendations on the use of virtual academies in our state.
State lawmakers voted this week to approve a resolution officially adjourning the 2021 legislative session on Friday, March 11, following an unsuccessful attempt by Senate legislators to override the Governor’s veto of Senate Bill 173: Free the Smiles Act, a bill allowing parents to opt their students out of school mask requirements.
State lawmakers today passed a bill allowing parents to “opt out” of school face covering requirements for their children, as Governor Cooper called on schools and local leaders to end mask mandates.
The NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) released this afternoon an updated StrongSchools NC Public Health Toolkit taking effect February 21, that will provide schools with greater flexibility in regard to contact tracing and student/staff exclusion procedures.
See below for PDF of NCASA 2021-22 Legislative & Policy Priorities:
Last year, it came to the attention of the State Board of Education (SBE) legal counsel that the NC Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) had been issuing school administrator licenses for several years that were not technically in compliance with the statutory requirements for licensing principals in North Carolina.
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