Leadership in the General Assembly recently announced additional committee assignments, including positions in Senate education committees. When session convened for a ceremonial day last Wednesday, only members of the House Base Budget Appropriations and Finance committees had been announced.
The General Assembly officially commenced the 2019-2020 legislative session on Wednesday, January 9, as both the House and Senate held swearing-in ceremonies for new and incumbent legislators. Legislators did not introduce substantive legislation during the ceremonial day, but instead held organizational meetings and took necessary votes regarding rules and leadership.
Members of the State Board of Education heard several reports during its monthly meeting on Wednesday regarding the latest results from the State’s Read to Achieve program, which showed little to no improvement in the reading abilities of students participating in the program. Since its implementation in 2012, the state has spent $151.7 million on the program. Despite this significant investment, staff from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) and researchers from the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation at North Carolina State University told Board members the program has yet to make any significant gains.
The Department of Public Instruction School Business Division is currently developing the principal pay tables for salaries effective January 1, 2019, taking into account certain principal pay provisions passed in the most recent special legislative session to protect principals of schools impacted by Hurricane Florence. The new pay schedule will include modifications created by Senate Bill 823 (Session Law 2018-138) and Senate Bill 469 to allow principals of schools in federally declared disaster areas to be held harmless from decreases in ADM due to Hurricane Florence.
