School board authority in North Carolina

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North Carolina state law makes school boards responsible for governing and managing public school districts in the state. This article details the powers and duties North Carolina law grants to school boards for governing school districts and the constraints on that authority with regard to certain topics.

HIGHLIGHTS

North Carolina is one of 26 states that has a Parents' Bill of Rights.

North Carolina is one of 10 states that do not give local school boards any authority over whether charter schools are issued in their district.

School boards are required to create policies that provide for parental notification if their student requests that school employees call them by a different name or different pronouns.

School boards in North Carolina are not legally allowed to engage in collective bargaining agreements with public employees.

Types of legal and contractual constraints on school board authority

See also: Local school board authority across the 50 states

This page presents the results from Ballotpedia research on school board authority and constraints on that authority in all 50 states as of 2024. School board authority comes from state constitutions and state statutes and can be interpreted or specified by state regulations or court decisions. In addition to authority over district budgets, the selection of a superintendent, and administrative responsibilities, school boards have varying levels of authority over district policy on other topics depending on the state and district.

There are several sources of legal and contractual constraints on school board policy-making authority which also vary by state or by district.

• State laws commonly restrict or mandate school board policies on certain topics.
  • Parents' Bills of Rights, which at least 26 states have in statute to some degree, limit the policies school boards are allowed to pass.
• State rules, guidance, and funding incentives can constrain, mandate, or influence school board policies. These include regulation from state education commissions and superintendents, executive orders from governors, or grant conditions.
• Federal and state court rulings can dictate whether or not school district policies are compatible with state law or federal law.
• The federal government, largely through its Department of Education, can promulgate regulations or guidance that influence district policy or make funding contingent on certain policies.
• Collective bargaining agreements between school districts and teacher unions can create contractual constraints on the policies school boards can pass.
• State school board associations can influence school board policy or, in some cases. enter into contracts with school boards that can limit school board policy.

This page features the following sections:

• North Carolina law on school boards' authority over district policy. This section features the statutes in North Carolina law that establish, enable, or define local school district boards.
• Constraints on North Carolina school boards' authority. This section provides an overview of constraints on the school boards' authority in North Carolina. It contains information on the constraints by the following topics:
  • Curriculum requirements
  • Curriculum restrictions
  • Book bans, removals, and restrictions
  • Parental notification
  • Discipline
  • School board elections
  • Public school choice and open enrollment
  • Charter schools
  • Cellphone bans
• Collective bargaining agreements
• Parents' bill of rights
• How does North Carolina compare to other states?
• Noteworthy Events. This section tracks noteworthy events related to school boards' authority in North Carolina.

School board authority over district policy in North Carolina

Enabling or authorizing statute for the boards of school districts in North Carolina

See also: Enabling statute

North Carolina Statutes § 115C-40 creates school district boards and gives them authority to operate according to state law:

“ Local boards of education, subject to any paramount powers vested by law in the State Board of Education or any other authorized agency shall have general control and supervision of all matters pertaining to the public schools in their respective local school administrative units; they shall execute the school laws in their units; and shall have authority to make agreements with other boards of education to transfer pupils from one local school administrative unit to another unit when the administration of the schools can be thereby more efficiently and more economically accomplished. ”

North Carolina school boards' powers and duties

North Carolina public school boards of directors are given broad authority over district policy as well as over 70 specific duties or powers to administer the public schools in North Carolina. In addition to budget-related and fiscal duties, school property and facilities management, and administrative responsibilities, the specific powers and duties include:

• adopt a code of ethics
• adopt policies to reduce students' exposure to diesel emissions
• select, procure, and use textbooks not adopted by the North Carolina State Board of Education

The list of powers and duties school district boards are charged with appears in North Carolina Statutes § 115C-47 and are as follows:

“ § 115C-47. Powers and duties generally. In addition to the powers and duties designated in G.S. 115C-36, local boards of education shall have the power or duty: (1) To Provide the Opportunity to Receive a Sound Basic Education. – It shall be the duty of local boards of education to provide students with the opportunity to receive a sound basic education and to make all policy decisions with that objective in mind, including employment decisions, budget development, and other administrative actions, within their respective local school administrative units, as directed by law. (1a) a. To Establish and Maintain Kindergartens. – Local boards of education shall provide for their respective local school administrative unit kindergartens as a part of the public school system for all children living in the local school administrative unit who are eligible for admission pursuant to sub-subdivision c. of this subdivision provided that funds are available from State, local, federal, or other sources to operate a kindergarten program as provided in this subdivision. b. All kindergarten programs so established shall be subject to the supervision of the Department of Public Instruction and shall be operated in accordance with the standards adopted by the State Board of Education, upon recommendation of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Among the standards to be adopted by the State Board of Education shall be a provision that the Board will allocate funds for the purpose of operating and administering kindergartens to each school administrative unit in the State based on the average daily membership for the best continuous three out of the first four school months of pupils in the kindergarten program during the last school year in that respective school administrative unit. Such allocations are to be made from funds appropriated to the State Board of Education for the kindergarten program. c. Any child who meets the requirements of G.S. 115C-364 shall be eligible for enrollment in kindergarten. Any child who is enrolled in kindergarten and not withdrawn by the child's parent or legal guardian shall attend kindergarten. d. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, subject to the approval of the State Board of Education, any local board of education may elect not to establish and maintain a kindergarten program. Any funds allocated to a local board of education which does not operate a kindergarten program may be reallocated by the State Board of Education, within the discretion of the Board, to a county or city board of education which will operate such a program. (2) To Exercise Certain Judicial Functions and to Participate in Certain Suits and Actions. – Local boards of education shall have the power and authority to exercise certain judicial functions pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-45 and to participate in certain suits and actions pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-44. (3) To Divide Local School Administrative Units into Attendance Areas. – Local boards of education shall have authority to divide their various units into attendance areas without regard to district lines. (4) To Regulate Extracurricular Activities. – Local boards of education shall make all rules and regulations necessary for the conducting of extracurricular activities in the schools under their supervision, including a program of athletics, where desired, without assuming liability therefor; provided, that all interscholastic athletic activities shall be conducted in accordance with rules adopted by the State Board of Education, in accordance with G.S. 115C-12(23) and Article 29E of this Chapter. (5) To Fix Time of Opening and Closing Schools. – The time of opening and closing the public schools shall be fixed under G.S. 115C-84.2. (6) To Regulate Fees, Charges and Solicitations. – Local boards of education shall adopt rules and regulations governing solicitations of, sales to, and fund-raising activities conducted by, the students and faculty members in schools under their jurisdiction, and no fees, charges, or costs shall be collected from students and school personnel without approval of the board of education as recorded in the minutes of said board; provided, this subdivision shall not apply to such textbooks fees as are determined and established by the State Board of Education. The local board of education shall publish a schedule of fees, charges, and solicitations approved by the local board on the local school administrative unit's Web site by October 15 of each school year and, if the schedule is subsequently revised, within 30 days following the revision. (7) To Accept and Administer Federal or Private Funds. – Local boards of education shall have power and authority to accept, receive and administer any funds or financial assistance given, granted or provided under the provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-10, 89th Congress, HR 2362) and under the provisions of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 (Public Law 88-452, 88th Congress, S. 2642), or other federal acts or funds from foundations or private sources, and to comply with all conditions and requirements necessary for the receipt, acceptance and use of said funds. In the administration of such funds, local boards of education shall have authority to enter into contracts with and to cooperate with and to carry out projects with nonpublic elementary and secondary schools, community groups and nonprofit corporations, and to enter into joint agreements for these purposes with other local boards of education. Local boards of education shall furnish such information as shall be requested by the State Board of Education, from time to time, relating to any programs related or conducted pursuant to this subdivision. (8) To Sponsor or Conduct Educational Research. – Local boards of education are authorized to sponsor or conduct educational research and special projects approved by the Department of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education that may improve the school system under their jurisdictions. Such research or projects may be conducted during the summer months and the board may use any available funds for such purposes. (9) To Assure Accurate Attendance Records. – When the governing board of any local school administrative unit shall have information that inaccurate school attendance records are being kept, the board concerned shall immediately investigate such inaccuracies and take necessary action to establish and maintain correct records and report its findings and action to the State Board of Education. (10) To Assure Appropriate Class Size. – It shall be the responsibility of local boards of education to assure that the class size requirements set forth in G.S. 115C-301 for kindergarten through third grade are met. Any teacher who believes that the requirements of G.S. 115C-301 have not been met shall make a report to the principal and superintendent, and the superintendent shall immediately determine whether the requirements have in fact not been met. If the superintendent determines the requirements have not been met, he or she shall make a report to the next local board of education meeting. The local board of education shall take action to meet the requirements of the statute. If the local board cannot organizationally correct the exception, it shall immediately apply to the State Board of Education for additional personnel or a waiver of the class size requirements, as provided in G.S. 115C-301(g). Upon notification from the State Board of Education that the reported exception does not qualify for an allotment adjustment or a waiver under provisions of G.S. 115C-301, the local board, within 30 days, shall take action necessary to correct the exception, as required in G.S. 115C-301(g). At the end of October and end of February of each school year, the local board of education, through the superintendent, shall file a report with the Superintendent of Public Instruction, in a format prescribed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, describing the organization for each school in the local school administrative unit, as required by G.S. 115C-301(f). In addition to assuring that the requirements of G.S. 115C-301 are met, each local board of education shall also have the duty to provide an adequate number of classrooms to meet the requirements of that statute. (11) To Determine the School Calendar. – Local boards of education shall determine the school calendar under G.S. 115C-84.2. (12) Repealed by Session Laws 2017-126, s. 12, effective July 20, 2017. (13) To Elect a Superintendent. – The local boards of education shall elect superintendents subject to the requirements and limitations set forth in G.S. 115C-271. (14) To Supply an Office, Equipment and Clerical Assistance for the Superintendent. – It shall be the duty of the various boards of education to provide the superintendent of schools with an office, equipment and clerical assistance as provided in G.S. 115C-277. (15) To Prescribe Duties of Superintendent. – The local boards of education shall prescribe the duties of the superintendent as subject to the provisions of G.S. 115C-276(a). (16) To Remove a Superintendent, When Necessary. – Local boards of education shall remove a superintendent for cause, pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-274(a). (17) To Employ Assistant Superintendent and Supervisors. – Local boards of education have the authority to employ assistant superintendents and supervisors pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-278 and 115C-284(g). (17a) To adopt anti-nepotism policies. – Local boards of education shall adopt policies requiring that before any immediate family, as defined in G.S. 115C-12.2, of any board of education member or central office staff administrator, including directors, supervisors, specialists, staff officers, assistant superintendents, area superintendents, superintendents, or principals, shall be employed or engaged as an employee, independent contractor, or otherwise by the board of education in any capacity, such proposed employment or engagement shall be (i) disclosed to the board of education and (ii) approved by the board of education in a duly called open-session meeting. The burden of disclosure of such a conflict of interest shall be on the applicable board member or central office staff administrator. (18) To Make Rules Concerning the Conduct and Duties of Personnel. – Local boards of education, upon the recommendation of the superintendent, shall have full power to make all just and needful rules and regulations governing the conduct of teachers, principals, and supervisors, the kind of reports they shall make, and their duties in the care of school property. Prior to the beginning of each school year, each local board of education shall identify all reports, including local school required reports, that are required at the local level for the school year and shall, to the maximum extent possible, eliminate any duplicate or obsolete reporting requirements and consolidate remaining reporting requirements. No additional reports shall be required at the local level after the beginning of the school year without the prior approval of the local board of education. Prior to the beginning of each school year, each local board of education shall also identify software protocols such as NC Wise that could be used to minimize repetitious data entry by teachers and shall make them available to teachers. Each local board of education shall appoint a person or establish a local paperwork control committee to monitor all reports and other paperwork required of teachers by the central office and to monitor teachers' access to software protocols that minimize repetitious data entry. (18a) To Adopt Rules and Policies Limiting the Noninstructional Duties of Teachers. – Local boards of education shall adopt rules and policies limiting the noninstructional duties assigned to teachers. A local board may temporarily suspend the rules and policies for individual schools upon a finding that there is a compelling reason the rules or policies should not be implemented. These rules and policies shall ensure that: a. Teachers with initial certification are not assigned extracurricular activities unless they request the assignments in writing and that other noninstructional duties assigned to these teachers are minimized, so these teachers have an opportunity to develop into skilled professionals; b. Repealed by Session Laws 2015-241, s. 8.45, effective July 1, 2015. c. The noninstructional duties of all teachers are limited to the extent possible given federal, State, and local laws, rules, and policies, and that the noninstructional duties required of teachers are distributed equitably among employees. (19) To Approve the Assignment of Duties to an Assistant Principal. – Local boards of education shall permit certain duties of the principal to be assigned to an assistant or acting principal pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-289. (20) To Provide for Training of Teachers. – Local boards of education are authorized to provide for the training of teachers as provided in G.S. 115C-300. (21) It is the duty of every local board of education to provide for the prompt monthly payment of all salaries due teachers and other school officials and employees, and of all current bills and other necessary operating expenses. All salaries and bills shall be paid as provided by law for disbursing State and local funds. The local board shall determine salary schedules of employees pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-273, 115C-285(b), 115C-302.1(i), and 115C-316(b). The authority for boards of education to issue salary vouchers to all school employees, whether paid from State or local funds, shall be a monthly payroll prepared on forms approved by the State Board of Education and containing all information required by the State Board of Education. This monthly payroll shall be signed by the principal of each school. (22) To Provide School Food Services. – Local boards of education shall provide, to the extent practicable, school food services as provided in Part 2 of Article 17 of this Chapter. (23) To Purchase Equipment and Supplies. – Local boards shall contract for equipment and supplies under G.S. 115C-522(a) and G.S. 115C-528. (24) Purchase of Activity Buses with Local Capital Outlay Tax Funds. – Local boards of education are authorized to purchase activity buses with local capital outlay tax funds, and are authorized to maintain these buses in the county school bus garage. Reimbursement to the State Public School Fund shall be made for all maintenance cost including labor, gasoline and oil, repair parts, tires and tubes, antifreeze, etc. Labor cost reimbursements and local funds may be used to employ additional mechanics so as to insure that all activity buses owned and operated by local boards of education are maintained in a safe mechanical condition. Replacement units for activity buses shall be financed with local funds. (25) To Secure Liability Insurance. – Local boards of education are authorized to secure liability insurance, as provided in G.S. 115C-42, so as to waive their immunity for liability for certain negligent acts of their employees. (25a) To Reimburse the Additional Cost of Automobile Liability Coverage for School Social Workers Required to Transport Students. – Unless a local board of education otherwise provides for liability insurance coverage of a school social worker who is required to transport students under G.S. 115C-317.1, a local board of education may require a school social worker who is required to transport students as provided under G.S. 115C-317.1 to increase the liability limits or add a business-use rider, or both, on that employee's personal automobile liability insurance policy for the purpose of transporting students within the course of that employee's work duties, only if the board reimburses the employee for the additional premium charged, up to the maximum additional amount charged to a person with up to two points assessed under the Safe Driver Incentive Plan pursuant to G.S. 58-36-65, for the increased liability limits or the added rider, or both. (26) If a local board of education provides access to its buildings and campus and the student information directory to persons or groups which make students aware of occupational or educational options, the local board of education shall provide access on the same basis to official recruiting representatives of the military forces of the State and of the United States for the purpose of informing students of educational and career opportunities available in the military. (27) Repealed by Session Laws 1987, c. 571, s. 2. (28) To Enter Lease Purchase and Installment Purchase Contracts. – Local boards may enter into lease purchase and installment purchase contracts as provided in G.S. 115C-528. (28a) To Enter Guaranteed Energy Savings Contracts for Energy Conservation Measures. – Local boards may purchase energy conservation measures by guaranteed energy savings contracts pursuant to Part 2 of Article 3B of Chapter 143 of the General Statutes. (29) To Authorize the Observance of a Moment of Silence. – To afford students and teachers a moment of quiet reflection at the beginning of each day in the public schools, to create a boundary between school time and nonschool time, and to set a tone of decorum in the classroom that will be conducive to discipline and learning, each local board of education may adopt a policy to authorize the observance of a moment of silence at the commencement of the first class of each day in all grades in the public schools. Such a policy shall provide that the teacher in charge of the room in which each class is held may announce that a period of silence not to exceed one minute in duration shall be observed and that during that period silence shall be maintained and no one may engage in any other activities. Such period of silence shall be totally and completely unstructured and free of guidance or influence of any kind from any sources. (29a) To Require the Display of the United States and North Carolina Flags, and to Require the Recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. – Local boards of education shall adopt policies to (i) require the display of the United States and North Carolina flags in each classroom, when available, (ii) require that recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance be scheduled on a daily basis, and (iii) provide age-appropriate instruction on the meaning and historical origins of the flag and the Pledge of Allegiance. These policies shall not compel any person to stand, salute the flag, or recite the Pledge of Allegiance. If flags are donated or are otherwise available, flags shall be displayed in each classroom. (29b) Repealed by Session Laws 2014-13, s. 2, effective June 19, 2014. See now G.S. 115C-407.30 et seq. (29c) To Allow and Encourage the Reading and Posting of Documents on the History of the United States and With Historical Significance for the United States. a. Local boards of education shall allow and may encourage any public school teacher or administrator to read or post in a public school building, classroom, or event excerpts or portions of writings, documents, and records that reflect the history of the United States, including, but not limited to: 1. The preamble to the North Carolina Constitution. 2. The Declaration of Independence. 3. The United States Constitution. 4. The Mayflower Compact. 5. The national motto. 6. The National Anthem. 7. The Pledge of Allegiance. 8. The writings, speeches, documents, and proclamations of the founding fathers and Presidents of the United States. 9. Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States. 10. Acts of the Congress of the United States, including the published text of the Congressional Record. b. Local boards, superintendents, principals, and supervisors shall not allow content-based censorship of American history in the public schools of this State, including religious references in these writings, documents, and records. Local boards and professional school personnel may develop curricula and use materials that are limited to specified topics, provided the curricula and materials are aligned with the standard course of study or are grade level appropriate. c. A local school administrative unit may display on real property controlled by that local school administrative unit documents and objects of historical significance that have formed and influenced the United States legal or governmental system and that exemplify the development of the rule of law, such as the Magna Carta, the Mecklenburg Declaration, the Ten Commandments, the Justinian Code, and documents set out in sub-subdivision a. of this subdivision. Such displays are subject to the following requirements: 1. The display may include, but shall not be limited to, documents that contain words associated with a religion; provided, however, no display shall seek to establish or promote religion or to persuade any person to embrace a particular religion, denomination of a religion, or other philosophy. 2. The display of a document containing words associated with a religion shall be in the same manner and appearance generally as other documents and objects displayed and shall not be presented or displayed in any fashion that results in calling attention to it apart from the other displayed documents and objects. The display also shall be accompanied by a prominent sign quoting the First Amendment of the United States Constitution as follows: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." (30) To Appoint Advisory Councils. – Local boards of education are authorized to appoint advisory councils as provided in G.S. 115C-55 and Article 10 of this Chapter. (31) Local boards of education shall determine the hours of employment for teacher assistants. The Legislative Commission of Salary Schedules for Public School Employees shall include in its report to the General Assembly recommendations regarding hours of employment for teacher assistants and other employees. (32) To Refer All Students Who Drop Out of the Public Schools to Appropriate Services. – Local boards of education shall refer all students who drop out of the public schools to appropriate services. When appropriate public school services such as extended day programs are available, the local boards shall refer the students to those services. When appropriate public school programs are not available or are not suitable for certain students, the local board shall refer the students to the community college system or to other appropriate services. (32a) To Establish Alternative Learning Programs and Develop Policies and Guidelines. – Each local board of education shall establish at least one alternative learning program and shall adopt guidelines for assigning students to alternative learning programs. These guidelines shall include (i) a description of the programs and services to be provided, (ii) a process for ensuring that an assignment is appropriate for the student and that the student's parents are involved in the decision, and (iii) strategies for providing alternative learning programs, when feasible and appropriate, for students who are subject to long term suspension or expulsion. In developing these guidelines, local boards shall consider the State Board's standards developed under G.S. 115C-12(24). The General Assembly urges local boards to adopt policies that prohibit superintendents from assigning to any alternative learning program any professional public school employee who has received within the last three years a rating on a formal evaluation that is less than above standard. Notwithstanding this subdivision, each local board shall adopt policies based on the State Board's standards developed under G.S. 115C-12(24). These policies shall apply to any new alternative learning program or alternative school that is implemented beginning with the 2006-2007 school year. Local boards of education are encouraged to apply these standards to alternative learning programs and alternative schools implemented before the 2006-2007 school year. Local boards shall assess on a regular basis whether the unit's alternative schools and alternative learning programs comply with the State Board's standards developed under G.S. 115C-12(24) and whether they incorporate best practices for improving student academic performance and reducing disruptive behavior, are staffed with professional public school employees who are well trained and provided with appropriate staff development, are organized to provide coordinated services, and provide students with high quality and rigorous academic instruction. (33) Local boards of education shall have sole authority to select and procure supplementary instructional materials, whether or not the materials contain commercial advertising, pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 115C-98(b). (33a) To Approve and Use Textbooks Not Adopted by State Board of Education. – Local boards of education shall have the authority to select, procure, and use textbooks not adopted by the State Board of Education as provided in G.S. 115C-98(b1). (34) To Encourage the Business Community to Facilitate Student Achievement. – Local boards of education, in consultation with local business leaders, shall develop voluntary guidelines relating to after-school employment. The guidelines may include an agreement to limit the number of hours a student may work or to tie the number of hours a student may work to his academic performance, school attendance, and economic need. The General Assembly finds that local boards of education do not currently have information regarding how many of their students are employed after school and how many hours they work; the General Assembly urges local boards of education to compile this critical information so that the State can determine to what extent these students' work affects their school performance. Local boards of education shall work with local business leaders, including local chambers of commerce, to encourage employers to include and adopt as part of their stated personnel policies time for employees who are parents or guardians to attend conferences with their children's teachers. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall provide guidance and technical assistance to the local boards of education on carrying out the provisions of this subdivision. (34a) To Establish Work-Based Opportunities and Encourage High School to Work Partnerships. – Each local board of education shall offer at least two work-based learning opportunities that are related to career and technical education instruction in the local school administrative unit as required by G.S. 115C-157. Local boards of education shall also encourage high schools and local businesses to partner, specifically to target students who may not seek higher education, and facilitate high school to work partnerships. Local businesses shall be encouraged to work with local high schools to create opportunities for students to complete a job shadow, internship, or apprenticeship. Students may also be encouraged to tour the local business or clinic, meet with employees, and participate in career and technical student organizations. Waiver forms shall be developed in collaboration with participating businesses for the protection of both the students and the businesses. Each local board of education shall encourage high schools to designate the Career Development Coordinator or other designee of the local Career and Technical Education administrator to be the point person for local businesses to contact. If the person selected is a teacher, the teacher shall work with the principal and the local Career and Technical Education administrator to find time in the school day to contact businesses and develop opportunities for students. The high school shall include a variety of trades and skilled labor positions for students to interact with and shadow and shall encourage students who may be interested in a job-shadowing opportunity to pursue and set up the job shadow. Each local board of education shall develop a policy with provisions for students who are absent from school while doing a job shadow to make up the work. Students shall not be counted as absent when participating in these work-based learning opportunities or in Career and Technical Education student organization activities. Local boards may determine maximum numbers of days to be used for job-shadowing activities. (35) To produce school building improvement reports. – Each administrative unit shall produce school building improvement reports for each school building in the local school administrative unit, in accordance with G.S. 115C-12(9)c3. (36) To Report All Acts of School Violence. – Local boards of education shall report all acts of school violence to the State Board of Education in accordance with G.S. 115C-12(21). (37) To purchase group accident and health insurance for students. – Local boards of education may purchase group accident, group health, or group accident and health insurance for students in accordance with G.S. 58-51-81. (38) To Establish School Improvement Teams. – Local boards shall adopt a policy to ensure that each principal has established a school improvement team under G.S. 115C-105.27 and in accordance with G.S. 115C-288(l) and that the composition of the team complies with G.S. 115C-105.27(a). Local boards shall direct the superintendent or the superintendent's designee to provide appropriate guidance to principals to ensure that these teams are established and that the principals work together with these teams to develop, review, and amend school improvement plans for their schools. (39) To Adopt Policies Related to Student Retention Decisions. – Local boards shall adopt policies related to G.S. 115C-45(c) that include opportunities for parents and guardians to discuss decisions to retain students. (40) Adopt School Risk Management Plans. – Each local board of education shall, in coordination with local law enforcement and emergency management agencies, adopt a School Risk Management Plan (SRMP) relating to incidents of school violence for each school in its jurisdiction. In constructing and maintaining these plans, local boards of education and local school administrative units shall utilize the School Risk and Response Management System (SRRMS) established pursuant to G.S. 115C-105.49A. These plans are not a public record as the term "public record" is defined under G.S. 132-1 and shall not be subject to inspection and examination under G.S. 132-6. (41) To Encourage Recycling in Public Schools. – Local boards of education shall encourage recycling in public schools and may develop and implement recycling programs at public schools. Local boards of education shall comply with G.S. 160A-327. (42) Recodified as G.S. 115C-375.3 by Session Laws 2005-22, s. 3(a), effective April 28, 2005. (43) Local boards of education are encouraged to adopt policies that require superintendents to assign to the core academic courses, in seventh through ninth grades, teachers who have at least four years' teaching experience and who have received within the last three years an overall rating on a formal evaluation that is at least above standard. (44) Recodified as G.S. 115C-375.4 by Session Laws 2005-22, s. 4(a), effective April 28, 2005. (45) To Report Certain Incidents of Seclusion and Restraint. – Local boards of education shall maintain a record of incidents reported under G.S. 115C-391.1(j)(4) and shall provide this information annually to the State Board of Education. (46) At the discretion of the board, to adopt policies and procedures authorizing schools that operate programs under G.S. 115C-307(c) to utilize unlicensed health care personnel to perform the technical aspects of medication administration to students. If adopted, the policies and procedures shall be consistent with the requirements of Article 9A of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes and shall include the following: a. Training and competency evaluation of medication aides as provided for under G.S. 131E-270. b. Requirements for listing under the Medication Aide Registry as provided for under G.S. 131E-271. c. Requirements for supervision of medication aides by licensed health professionals or appropriately qualified supervisory personnel consistent with Articles 5, 6, 10, and 16 of Chapter 131E of the General Statutes. (47) To Address the Use of Pesticides in Schools. – Local boards of education shall adopt policies that address the use of pesticides in schools. These policies shall: a. Require the principal or the principal's designee to annually notify the students' parents, guardians, or custodians as well as school staff of the schedule of pesticide use on school property and their right to request notification. Such notification shall be made, to the extent possible, at least 72 hours in advance of nonscheduled pesticide use on school property. The notification requirements under this subdivision do not apply to the application of the following types of pesticide products: antimicrobial cleansers, disinfectants, self-contained baits and crack-and-crevice treatments, and any pesticide products classified by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as belonging to the U.S.E.P.A. Toxicity Class IV, "relatively nontoxic" (no signal word required on the product's label). b. Require the use of Integrated Pest Management. As used in this sub-subdivision, "Integrated Pest Management" or "IPM" means the comprehensive approach to pest management that combines biological, physical, chemical, and cultural tactics as well as effective, economic, environmentally sound, and socially acceptable methods to prevent and solve pest problems that emphasizes pest prevention and provides a decision-making process for determining if, when, and where pest suppression is needed and what control tactics and methods are appropriate. (48) To Address Arsenic-Treated Wood in the Classroom and on School Grounds. – Local boards of education shall prohibit the purchase or acceptance of chromated copper arsenate-treated wood for future use on school grounds. Local boards of education shall seal existing arsenic-treated wood in playground equipment or establish a time line for removing existing arsenic-treated wood on playgrounds, according to the guidelines established under G.S. 115C-12(33). Local boards of education are encouraged to test the soil on school grounds for contamination caused by the leaching of arsenic-treated wood. (49) To Address Mercury in the Classroom and on School Grounds. – Local boards of education are encouraged to remove and properly dispose of all bulk elemental mercury, chemical mercury, and bulk mercury compounds used as teaching aids in science classrooms, not including barometers. Local boards of education shall prohibit the future use of bulk elemental mercury, chemical mercury compounds, and bulk mercury compounds used as teaching aids in science classrooms, not including barometers. (49a) To Address Science Safety Requirements. – a. Each local board of education shall certify annually to the State Board of Education that its high school and middle school science laboratories are equipped with appropriate personal protective equipment for students and teachers. b. Each local board of education shall ensure that its high schools and middle schools comply with all State Board of Education policies related to science laboratory safety. (50) To Address Exposure to Diesel Exhaust Fumes. – Local boards of education shall adopt policies and procedures to reduce students' exposure to diesel emissions. (51) To Ensure that Schools Provide Information Concerning Cervical Cancer, Cervical Dysplasia, Human Papillomavirus, and the Vaccines Available to Prevent These Diseases. – Local boards of education shall ensure that schools provide parents and guardians with information about cervical cancer, cervical dysplasia, human papillomavirus, and the vaccines available to prevent these diseases. This information shall be provided at the beginning of the school year to parents of children entering grades five through 12. This information shall include the causes and symptoms of these diseases, how they are transmitted, how they may be prevented by vaccination, including the benefits and possible side effects of vaccination, and places parents and guardians may obtain additional information and vaccinations for their children. (52) To Ensure That Certain Students Receive Information Annually on Lawfully Abandoning a Newborn Baby. – Not later than August 1, 2008, local boards of education shall adopt policies to ensure that students in grades nine through 12 receive information annually on the manner in which a parent may lawfully abandon a newborn baby with a responsible person, in accordance with Article 5A of Chapter 7B of the General Statutes. (53) To Encourage Programs for Successful Transition Between the Middle School and High School Years. – Local boards of education are encouraged to adopt policies to implement programs that assist students in making a successful transition between the middle school and high school years. The programs may include Ninth Grade Academies, programs to effectively prepare eighth grade students for the expectations and rigors of high school, early warning systems to flag students not ready for ninth grade and develop plans for those students, mentoring programs that pair upperclassmen with incoming students, and graduation plans for students who have fallen behind and are off track for graduation. (54) To Increase Parental Involvement in Student Achievement and Graduation Preparation. – Local boards of education are encouraged to adopt policies to promote and support parental involvement in student learning and achievement at school and at home and to encourage successful progress toward graduation. These policies may include strategies to increase school communications with parents regarding expectations for students and student progress, graduation requirements, and available course offerings, to provide increased opportunities for parental involvement in schools, and to create an environment in the schools conducive for parental involvement. (54a) To ensure funding for graduation projects. – A local board of education shall not require a high school graduation project as a condition of graduation from high school unless the board provides from local funds a method of reimbursement of up to seventy-five dollars ($75.00) for expenses related to the high school graduation project for any student identified as an economically disadvantaged student. (55) To Reduce Suspension and Expulsion Rates and Provide for Academic Progress During Suspensions. – Local boards of education are encouraged to adopt policies and best practices to reduce suspension and expulsion rates and to provide alternative learning programs for continued academic progress for students who have been suspended. (56) To Notify Parents or Legal Guardians of Students Alleged to be Victims of Acts Required to be Reported to Law Enforcement and the Superintendent. – Local boards of education shall adopt a policy on the notification to parents or legal guardians of any students alleged to be victims of any act that is required to be reported to law enforcement and the superintendent under G.S. 115C-288(g). (57) To adopt a code of ethics. – Local boards of education shall adopt a resolution or policy containing a code of ethics, as required by G.S. 160A-86. (58) To Inform the Public About the North Carolina School Report Cards Issued by the State Board of Education. – Each local board of education shall ensure that the report card issued for it by the State Board of Education receives wide distribution to the local press or is otherwise provided to the public. Each local board of education shall ensure that the overall school performance score and grade earned by each school in the local school administrative unit for the current and previous four school years is prominently displayed on the Web site of the local school administrative unit. If any school in the local school administrative unit earned an overall school performance grade of D or F, the local board of education shall provide notice of the grade in writing to the parent or guardian of all students enrolled in that school. (59) To Encourage Student Voter Registration. – Local boards of education are encouraged to adopt policies to promote student voter registration. These policies may include collaboration with county boards of elections to conduct voter registration in high schools. Completion and submission of voter registration forms shall not be a course requirement or graded assignment for students. (60) Repealed by Session Laws 2012-194, s. 55(a), effective July 17, 2012. (61) To Provide a Safe School Environment. – Local boards of education may enter into an agreement with the sheriff, chief of police of a local police department, or chief of police of a county police department to provide security at the schools by assigning volunteer school safety resource officers who meet the selection standards and criteria developed by the head of the appropriate local law enforcement agency and the criteria set out in G.S. 162-26 or G.S. 160A-288.4, as appropriate. (62) To Establish Nonprofit Corporations to Further Authorized Purposes. – Local boards of education may establish, control, and operate a nonprofit corporation that is created under Chapter 55A of the General Statutes and is a tax-exempt organization under the Internal Revenue Code to further their authorized purposes. A nonprofit corporation established as provided in this section shall not have regulatory or enforcement powers and shall not engage in partisan political activity or policy advocacy. Any local board of education that establishes a nonprofit corporation shall make a report annually to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee. (63) Repealed by 2017-4, s. 1, effective March 30, 2017. (64) To adopt a child sexual abuse and sex trafficking training program. – Each local board of education shall adopt and implement a child sexual abuse and sex trafficking training program for school personnel who work directly with students in grades kindergarten through 12, as required by G.S. 115C-375.20. (65) To Provide Information About Child Abuse and Neglect. – Local boards of education shall implement the rule addressing student awareness of child abuse and neglect, including sexual abuse, adopted by the State Board of Education under G.S. 115C-12(47). (66) Computer Science Reporting. – A local board of education shall annually report the information required by G.S. 115C-12(48) to the State Board of Education, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Education/Higher Education, and the House Appropriations Committee on Education no later than September 15. (67) (Applicable beginning with 2022–2023 school year – see note) To Provide at Least One School Psychologist. – Local boards of education shall ensure that each local school administrative unit employs at least one full-time, permanent school psychologist. (68) Peer-to-Peer Student Support Programs. – Local boards of education shall require peer-to-peer student support programs be established at all schools with grades six and higher and are encouraged to implement peer-to-peer student support programs as appropriate in other grades. (69) To Provide Equal Access to All Residents of the Local School Administrative Unit. – A local board of education shall not consider a student's current or prior enrollment in a charter school in any criteria used by the local board for determination of admissions or eligibility to any school or special program. ”

Constraints on North Carolina school boards' authority

This section tracks constraints on school boards specific to North Carolina as of September 2024. It features constraints on school boards' authority from state law, collective bargaining agreements, and Parents' Bills of Rights.

Constraint on North Carolina school boards' authority by topic

This section features constraints on North Carolina school boards' authority on policies related to the following topics:

• Curriculum requirements
• Curriculum restrictions
• Book bans, removals, and restrictions
• Parental notification
• Discipline
• School board elections
• Public school choice and open enrollment
• Charter schools
• Cellphone bans

Curriculum requirements

North Carolina requires the following specific topics to be included in each district's curriculum, among others:

• instruction regarding alcohol and drug use prevention
• health education
• reproductive health and safety education beginning in seventh grade
• North Carolina history and geography
• instruction on social media use and its effects

Curriculum restrictions

North Carolina law prohibits K-4 instruction in public schools regarding gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality. The text of North Carolina Statutes § 115C-76.55 is as follows:

“ § 115C-76.55. Age-appropriate instruction for grades kindergarten through fourth grade. Instruction on gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality shall not be included in the curriculum provided in grades kindergarten through fourth grade, regardless of whether the information is provided by school personnel or third parties. For the purposes of this section, curriculum includes the standard course of study and support materials, locally developed curriculum, supplemental instruction, and textbooks and other supplementary materials, but does not include responses to student-initiated questions. ”

Federal law and guidance

Federal executive orders:

President Donald Trump (R) issued an executive order (E.O.) on January 29, 2025, entitled Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling, prohibiting federal funding that directly or indirectly facilitates K-12 instruction regarding what the bill calls gender or equity ideology. It directs federal executive agencies, including the U.S. Department of Education, to create a plan to relinquish federal funds from school or teacher certification programs that include what the E.O. called gender ideology or discriminatory equity ideology. The order defined discriminatory equity ideology as ideology that treats individuals as members of preferred or disfavored groups rather than as individuals and minimizes agency, merit, and capability in favor of immoral generalizations.

Book bans, removals, and restrictions

North Carolina school boards have the authority to remove books from school libraries. State law establishes local boards of education as the sole authority regarding supplementary instructional materials, including library books, for their district. School boards have sole authority and discretion to determine whether challenges to library books or curricular material have merit and whether to remove the challenged materials. State law requires school boards to adopt policies requiring each school to maintain an online database of books present at each school library and in each classroom, and allowing parents to identify books that their students are not permitted to borrow.

Case law:
The U.S. Supreme Court affirmed local school boards' authority to remove school books in Island Trees Sch. Dist. v. Pico by Pico in 1982 but held that school library books are distinct from curricular books, which school boards have more authority to regulate. The ruling held that school boards are charged with inculcating community values and may make curricular decisions accordingly. In Zykan v. Warsaw Community School Corp. in 1980, the Supreme Court held that school boards had discretionary power over curriculum, textbooks, and other educational matters but could not impose religious creeds or "permanently the student’s ability to investigate matters that arise in the natural course of intellectual inquiry,” according to the opinion.

Federal guidance

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights rescinded all guidance against the removal of books and no longer employed a coordinator to investigate local district book removals as of January 24, 2025. The Department said they believed removing books from school libraries was a question of parental and community judgment, not civil rights, and that the office had no role as it related to book removal.

Parental notification

North Carolina requires parental notification in the following circumstances, among others:

• Their students are going to receive reproductive health education. Parents can review the curricular material and opt out of the instruction.
• An employee of the State suspects that a criminal offense has been committed against their student, unless the incident has first been reported to law enforcement or the county child welfare agency, and notification of the parent would impede the investigation.
• Their student has a change of name or pronouns used at school.
• Their student has been suspended.

Case law: The United States Supreme Court ruled in Mahmoud v. Taylor on June 27, 2025, that Montgomery County Board of Education's introduction of LGBTQ+ related storybooks, along with its decision to withhold opt outs, placed an unconstitutional burden on the parents’ rights to the free exercise of their religion.

Discipline

See also: How does North Carolina compare to other states on school board authority over disciplinary policy?

North Carolina is one of 47 states that gives school boards authority over district disciplinary policy.

The text of North Carolina Statutes § 115C-390.2 is as follows:

“ (a) Local boards of education shall adopt policies to govern the conduct of students and establish procedures to be followed by school officials in disciplining students. These policies must be consistent with the provisions of this Article and the constitutions, statutes, and regulations of the United States and the State of North Carolina. ”

Federal guidance

President Donald Trump (R) issued an Executive Order (E.O.) titled Reinstating Common Sense School Discipline Policies on April 23, 2025, that required the Secretary of Education, in consultation with the Attorney General, to issue guidance local educational agencies (LEAs) and State educational agencies (SEAs) regarding "school discipline and their obligations not to engage in racial discrimination under Title VI in all contexts, including school discipline," according to the order. The first Trump administration rescinded guidance issued in 2014 under the Obama administration that suggested that higher rates of discipline for racial minorities could be evidence of discrimination and could cause schools to lose federal funding. Trump's 2025 E.O. argued that the guidance "effectively required schools to discriminate on the basis of race by imposing discipline based on racial characteristics, rather than on objective behavior alone." Though the guidance was rescinded in 2018, the U.S. Department of Education continued to collect data regarding the racial breakdown of disciplinary actions taken across the country. Trump's 2025 E.O. prohibits schools from engaging in what it called racial discrimination in the application of school discipline.

School board elections

See also: Rules governing school board election dates and timing in North Carolina, How does North Carolina compare to other states on school board authority over election timing?

North Carolina is one of 42 states in which school boards do not have authority over the timing of school board elections because state or municipal laws determine school board election dates.

Click here to read about the laws governing school board elections in North Carolina.

Public school choice and open enrollment

See also: School choice in North Carolina

North Carolina state law allows school boards to admit students residing outside of their district to attend schools in their administrative unit. The boards are authorized to deny applications for interdistrict enrollment on certain grounds, including if students were suspended or expelled from other schools. The text of the North Carolina Statute regarding open enrollment is as follows:

“

(a) All students under the age of 21 years who are domiciled in a school administrative unit who have not been removed from school for cause, or who have not obtained a high school diploma, are entitled to all the privileges and advantages of the public schools to which they are assigned by the local boards of education. The assignment of students living in one local school administrative unit or district to a school located in another local school administrative unit or district, shall have no effect upon the right of the local school administrative unit or district to which the students are assigned to levy and collect any supplemental tax heretofore or hereafter voted in that local school administrative unit or district. (a1) Children living in and cared for and supported by an institution established, operated, or incorporated for the purpose of rearing and caring for children who do not live with their parents are considered legal residents of the local school administrative unit in which the institution is located. These children are eligible for admission to the public schools of the local school administrative unit as provided in this section. (a2) It is the policy of the State that every child of a homeless individual and every homeless child and youth has access to a free, appropriate public education. The State Board of Education and every local board of education shall ensure compliance with the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act of 2001. A local board of education shall not charge a homeless child or youth tuition for enrollment. An unaccompanied youth or a homeless child's or youth's parent, guardian, or legal custodian may apply to the State Board of Education for a determination of whether a particular local board of education shall enroll the homeless child or youth, and this determination shall be binding on the local board of education, subject to judicial review. (a3) A student who is not a domiciliary of a local school administrative unit may attend, without the payment of tuition, the public schools of that unit if all of the following apply: (1) The student resides with an adult, who is a domiciliary of that unit, as a result of any one of the following: a. The death, serious illness, or incarceration of a parent or legal guardian. b. The abandonment by a parent or legal guardian of the complete control of the student as evidenced by the failure to provide substantial financial support and parental guidance. c. Abuse or neglect by the parent or legal guardian. d. The physical or mental condition of the parent or legal guardian is such that he or she cannot provide adequate care and supervision of the student. e. The relinquishment of physical custody and control of the student by the student's parent or legal guardian upon the recommendation of the department of social services or the Division of Mental Health. f. The loss or uninhabitability of the student's home as the result of a natural disaster. g. The parent or legal guardian is one of the following: 1. Repealed by S.L. 2021-9, § 1(a), eff. April 9, 2021. [See now, (a3)(1)h. of this section.] 2. A member or veteran of the uniformed services who is severely injured and medically discharged or retired, but only for a period of one year after the medical discharge or retirement of the parent or guardian. 3. A member of the uniformed services who dies on active duty or as a result of injuries sustained on active duty, but only for a period of one year after death. For purposes of this sub-sub-subdivision, the term “active duty” is as defined in G.S. 115C-407.5 Assignment under this sub-subdivision is only available if some evidence of the deployment, medical discharge, retirement, or death is tendered with the affidavits required under subdivision (3) of this subsection. h. The parent or legal guardian is on active military duty, and the commanding officer of the parent or legal guardian provides in a signed letter that the parent or legal guardian's military orders prevent the parent or legal guardian from physically residing with the student. Assignment under this sub-subdivision is only available if the signed letter from the commanding officer of the parent or legal guardian is included with the affidavits required under subdivision (3) of this subsection, and the commanding officer indicates the time period that such military orders will be in effect. For purposes of this sub-subdivision, the term “active military duty” does not include periods of active duty for training for less than 30 days. (2) The student is: a. Not currently under a term of suspension or expulsion from a school for conduct that could have led to a suspension or an expulsion from the local school administrative unit, or b. Currently under a term of suspension or expulsion from a school for conduct that could have led to a suspension or an expulsion from the local school administrative unit and is identified as eligible for special education and related services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400, et seq., (2004). Assignment under this sub-subdivision is available only if evidence of current eligibility is tendered with the affidavit required under subdivision (3) of this subsection. (3) The caregiver adult and the student's parent, guardian, or legal custodian have each completed and signed separate affidavits that do all of the following: a. Confirm the qualifications set out in this subsection establishing the student's residency. b. Attest that the student's claim of residency in the unit is not primarily related to attendance at a particular school within the unit. c. Attest that the caregiver adult has been given and accepts responsibility for educational decisions for the student. If the student's parent, guardian, or legal custodian is unable, refuses, or is otherwise unavailable to sign the affidavit, then the caregiver adult shall attest to that fact in the affidavit. If the student is a minor, the caregiver adult must make educational decisions concerning the student and has the same legal authority and responsibility regarding the student as a parent or legal custodian would have even if the parent, guardian, or legal custodian does not sign the affidavit. The minor student's parent, legal guardian, or legal custodian retains liability for the student's acts. Upon receipt of both affidavits or an affidavit from the caregiver adult that includes an attestation that the student's parent, guardian, or legal custodian is unable, refuses, or is otherwise unavailable to sign an affidavit, the local board shall admit and assign as soon as practicable the student to an appropriate school, as determined under the local board's school assignment policy, pending the results of any further procedures for verifying eligibility for attendance and assignment within the local school administrative unit. No requirement of legal guardianship by the caregiver adult shall be required by a local board for a student to qualify for enrollment under this subsection. If it is found that the information contained in either or both affidavits is false, then the local board may, unless the student is otherwise eligible for school attendance under other laws or local board policy, remove the student from school. If a student is removed from school, the board shall provide an opportunity to appeal the removal under the appropriate policy of the local board and shall notify any person who signed the affidavit of this opportunity. If it is found that a person willfully and knowingly provided false information in the affidavit, the maker of the affidavit shall be guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor and shall pay to the local board an amount equal to the cost of educating the student during the period of enrollment. Repayment shall not include State funds. Affidavits shall include, in large print, the penalty, including repayment of the cost of educating the student, for providing false information in an affidavit. (a4) When a student transfers into the public schools of a local school administrative unit, that local board shall require the student's parent, guardian, or legal custodian to provide a statement made under oath or affirmation before a qualified official indicating whether the student is, at the time, under suspension or expulsion from attendance at a private or public school in this or any other state or has been convicted of a felony in this or any other state. This subsection does not apply to the enrollment of a student who has never been enrolled in or attended a private or public school in this or any other state. (a5) Notwithstanding any other law, a local board may deny admission to or place reasonable conditions on the admission of a student who has been suspended from a school under G.S. 115C-390.5 through G.S. 115C-390.10 or who has been suspended from a school for conduct that could have led to a suspension from a school within the local school administrative unit where the student is seeking admission until the period of suspension has expired. Also, a local board may deny admission to or place reasonable conditions on the admission of a student who has been expelled from a school under G.S. 115C-390.11 or who has been expelled from a school for behavior that indicated the student's continued presence in school constituted a clear threat to the safety of other students or staff as found by clear and convincing evidence, or who has been convicted of a felony in this or any other state. If the local board denies admission to a student who has been expelled or convicted of a felony, the student may request the local board to reconsider that decision in accordance with G.S. 115C-390.12. When a student who has been identified as eligible to receive special education and related services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1400, et seq., is denied admission under this subsection, the local board shall provide educational services to the student to the same extent it would if the student were enrolled in the local school administrative unit at the time of the suspension or expulsion, as required by G.S. 115C-107.1(a)(3). (a6) A child who is placed in or assigned to a licensed facility is eligible for admission, without the payment of tuition, to the public schools of the local school administrative unit in which the licensed facility is located. If an agency or person, other than the student's parent or guardian, is the student's legal custodian and if that person or agency placed or assigned the student to a licensed facility under this subsection, then that agency or person must provide in writing to the school the name, address, and phone number of the individual who has authority and the responsibility to make educational decisions for the student. This individual shall reside or be employed within the local school administrative unit and shall provide in writing to the school a signed statement that the individual understands and accepts this authority and responsibility to make educational decisions for the student. If the student's parent or legal guardian retains legal custody of a child who is placed in or assigned to a licensed facility under this subsection, then the requirements of subsection (a3) of this section must be met. (a7) A student who is a resident of a local school administrative unit because the student resides with a parent, guardian, or legal custodian who is a (i) student, employee, or faculty member of a college or university or (ii) visiting scholar at the National Humanities Center is considered domiciled in that unit for purposes of this section. (a8) A student is considered domiciled in a local school administrative unit for purposes of this section if the student resides (i) with a legal custodian who is not the student's parent or guardian and the legal custodian is domiciled in the local school administrative unit, or (ii) in a preadoptive home following placement by a county department of social services or a licensed child-placing agency. (a9) A student who is not a domiciliary of a local school administrative unit shall be permitted to register to enroll in the public schools of that unit by remote means, including electronic means, prior to commencement of the student's residency in the local school administrative unit if all of the following apply: (1) A parent or legal guardian is on active military duty and is transferred or pending transfer pursuant to an official military order to a military installation or reservation in the State. (2) Upon request by the local school administrative unit where the student seeks to register to enroll, a parent or legal guardian provides a copy of the official military order transferring to a military installation or reservation located in the State. (3) A parent or legal guardian completes and submits the local school administrative unit's required enrollment forms and documentation, except that proof of residency and documentation related to disciplinary actions pursuant to G.S. 115C-366(a4) shall not be required until the student transfers into the local school administrative unit, at which time they shall be required prior to commencing attendance. A local school administrative unit shall make available to a student who registers to enroll pursuant to this subsection the same opportunities available to a student enrolled contemporaneously with domicilia, such as requesting or applying for school assignment, registering for courses, and applying for any other programs that require additional request or application. A student enrolled pursuant to this subsection may not attend school in the local school administrative unit until proof of residency is provided in accordance with the requirements of the local school administrative unit. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to curtail a local school administrative unit's authority pursuant to G.S. 115C-366(a5). (a10) A student who is not a domiciliary of a local school administrative unit shall be permitted to register to enroll in the public schools of that unit if that student resides in that local school administrative unit with a parent, legal guardian, or legal custodian on active military duty who is assigned by official military order to a military installation or reservation in the State. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to curtail a local school administrative unit's authority pursuant to G.S. 115C-366(a5). (b) Each local board of education shall assign to a public school each student qualified for assignment under this section. Except as otherwise provided by law, the authority of each board of education in the matter of assignment of children to the public schools shall be full and complete, and its decision as to the assignment of any child to any school shall be final. (c) Any child who is qualified under the laws of this State for admission to a public school and who has a place of residence in a local school administrative unit incident to the child's parent's or guardian's service in the General Assembly, other than the local school administrative unit in which the child is domiciled, is entitled to attend school in the local school administrative unit of that residence as if the child were domiciled there, subject to the payment of applicable out-of-county fees in effect at the time. (d) A student domiciled in one local school administrative unit may be assigned either with or without the payment of tuition to a public school in another local school administrative unit upon the terms and conditions agreed to in writing between the local boards of education involved and entered in the official records of the boards. The assignment shall be effective only for the current school year, but may be renewed annually in the discretion of the boards involved. (e) The boards of education of adjacent local school administrative units may operate schools in adjacent units upon written agreements between the respective boards of education and approval by the county commissioners and the State Board of Education. (f) This section shall not be construed to allow students to transfer from one local school administrative unit to another for athletic participation purposes in violation of eligibility requirements adopted by the State Board of Education. (g) Any local school administrative unit may use the actual address of a program participant for any purpose related to admission or assignment under this Article as long as the address is kept confidential from the public under Chapter 15C of the General Statutes. The substitute address designated by the Attorney General under the Address Confidentiality Program shall not be used as an address for admission or assignment purposes. (h) The following definitions apply in this section: (1) Abused or neglected.--A student is considered abused or neglected if there has been an adjudication of that issue. The State Board may adopt an additional definition of abuse and neglect, and that definition also shall apply to this section. (2) Caregiver adult.--The adult with whom the child resides. For children placed or assigned in a licensed facility, a caregiver adult also may be the child's caretaker, foster parent, or other clearly identifiable adult who resides in the county where the licensed facility is located. (3) Educational decisions.--Decisions or actions recommended or required by the school concerning the student's academic course of study, extracurricular activities, and conduct. These decisions or actions include enrolling the student, receiving and responding to notices of discipline under G.S. 115C-390.5 through G.S. 115C-390.12, attending conferences with school personnel, granting permission for school-related activities, granting permission for emergency medical care, receiving and taking appropriate action in connection with student records, and any other decisions or actions recommended or required by the school in connection to that student. (4) Facility.--A group home, a family foster home as defined in G.S. 131D-10.2(8), or a therapeutic foster home as defined in G.S. 131D-10.2(14). (5) Homeless.--Individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence or are included in the definition of homeless children and youths in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act of 2001. The term does not include persons who are imprisoned or otherwise detained pursuant to federal or State law. (6) Legal custodian.--The person or agency that has been awarded legal custody of the student by a court. (7) Licensed facility.--A facility licensed under Article 2 of Chapter 122C of the General Statutes or under Article 1A of Chapter 131D of the General Statutes. (8) McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act of 2001.--20 U.S.C. § 11431, et seq., as amended, and federal regulations adopted under this act. (9) Program participant.--An individual accepted into the Address Confidentiality Program under Chapter 15C of the General Statutes. (10) Unaccompanied youth.--Youths who are not in the physical custody of a parent or guardian as defined in the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Improvements Act of 2001.

”

Charter schools

See also: Charter schools in North Carolina, How does North Carolina compare to other states on school board authority over charter schools?

North Carolina is one of 10 states that do not give local school boards any authority over whether charter schools are issued in their district.

The North Carolina Charter Schools Advisory Board reviews charter school applications and advises the North Carolina State Board of Education regarding the decision to accept or deny the charter school.

“

§ 115C-218. Purpose of charter schools; role of State Board of Education; establishment of North Carolina Charter Schools Review Board and North Carolina Office of Charter Schools. (a) Purpose of Charter Schools. – The purpose of this Article is to authorize a system of charter schools to provide opportunities for teachers, parents, pupils, and community members to establish and maintain schools that operate independently of existing schools, as a method to accomplish all of the following: (1) Improve student learning; (2) Increase learning opportunities for all students, with special emphasis on expanded learning experiences for students who are identified as at risk of academic failure or academically gifted; (3) Encourage the use of different and innovative teaching methods; (4) Create new professional opportunities for teachers, including the opportunities to be responsible for the learning program at the school site; (5) Provide parents and students with expanded choices in the types of educational opportunities that are available within the public school system; and (6) Hold the schools established under this Article accountable for meeting measurable student achievement results, and provide the schools with a method to change from rule-based to performance-based accountability systems. (a1) State Board of Education. – The State Board of Education shall have the following duties regarding charter schools: (1) Rulemaking. – To establish all rules for the operation and approval of charter schools. Any rule adopted by the State Board shall first be recommended by the Charter Schools Review Board. (2) Funding. – To allocate funds to charter schools. (3) Appeals. – To hear appeals from decisions of the Charter Schools Review Board under G.S. 115C-218.9. (4) Accountability. – To ensure accountability from charter schools for school finances and student performance. (b) North Carolina Charter Schools Review Board. – (1) Review Board. – There is created the North Carolina Charter Schools Review Board, hereinafter referred to in this Article as the Review Board. The Review Board shall be located administratively within the Department of Public Instruction and shall report to the State Board of Education. (2) Membership. – The State Superintendent of Public Instruction, or the Superintendent's designee, shall be the secretary of the Review Board and a nonvoting member. The Review Board shall consist of the following 11 voting members: a. Repealed by Session Laws 2016-126, 4th Ex. Sess., s. 17, effective January 1, 2017. b. Four members appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, in accordance with G.S. 120-121. c. Four members appointed by the General Assembly upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, in accordance with G.S. 120-121. d. Two members appointed by the State Board of Education who are not current members of the State Board of Education and who are charter school advocates in North Carolina. e. The Lieutenant Governor or the Lieutenant Governor's designee. (3) Covered board. – The Review Board shall be treated as a board for purposes of Chapter 138A of the General Statutes. (4) Qualifications of members. – Members appointed to the Review Board shall collectively possess strong experience and expertise in public and nonprofit governance, management and finance, assessment, curriculum and instruction, public charter schools, and public education law. All appointed members of the Review Board shall have demonstrated an understanding of and a commitment to charter schools as a strategy for strengthening public education. (5) Terms of office and vacancy appointments. – Appointed members shall serve four-year terms of office beginning on July 1. No appointed member shall serve more than eight consecutive years. Vacancy appointments shall be made by the appointing authority for the remainder of the term of office. (6) Presiding officers and quorum. – The Review Board shall annually elect a chair and a vice-chair from among its membership. The chair shall preside over the Review Board's meetings. In the absence of the chair, the vice-chair shall preside over the Review Board's meetings. A majority of the Review Board constitutes a quorum. (7) Meetings. – Meetings of the Review Board shall be held upon the call of the chair or the vice-chair with the approval of the chair. (8) Expenses. – Members of the Review Board shall be reimbursed for travel and subsistence expenses at the rates allowed to State officers and employees by G.S. 138-6(a). (9) Removal. – Any appointed member of the Review Board may be removed by a vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the Review Board at any duly held meeting for any cause that renders the member incapable or unfit to discharge the duties of the office. (10) Powers and duties. – The Review Board shall have the following duties: a. To propose, recommend, and approve rules and policies regarding all aspects of charter school operation, including timelines, processes, standards, and criteria for acceptance and approval of applications, monitoring of charter schools, and grounds for revocation of charters. b. To review and approve or deny charter applications, renewals, and revocations. c. To make recommendations to the State Board on actions before the State Board on appeal under G.S. 115C-218.9. d. To undertake any other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the State Board. e. To conduct hearings and make findings and recommendations pursuant to subdivision (a1)(5) of this section. f. To contract for and employ legal counsel, including private counsel, to advise, represent, and provide litigation services to the Review Board, without the need to obtain permission or approval pursuant to G.S. 114-2.3 or G.S. 147-17. (11) Duties of the chair of the Review Board. – In addition to any other duties prescribed in this Article, the chair of the Review Board, or the chair's designee, shall advocate for the recommendations of the Review Board at meetings of the State Board. (c) North Carolina Office of Charter Schools. – (1) Establishment of the North Carolina Office of Charter Schools. – There is established the North Carolina Office of Charter Schools, hereinafter referred to in this Article as the Office of Charter Schools. The Office of Charter Schools shall be administratively located in the Department of Public Instruction. The Office of Charter Schools shall consist of an executive director appointed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction and such other professional, administrative, technical, and clerical personnel as may be necessary to assist the Office of Charter Schools in carrying out its powers and duties. (2) Executive Director. – The Executive Director shall report to and serve at the pleasure of the Review Board at a salary established by the Review Board within the funds appropriated for this purpose. The duties of the Executive Director shall include presenting the recommendations and decisions of the Review Board at meetings of the State Board. (3) Powers and duties. – The Office of Charter Schools shall have the following powers and duties: a. Serve as staff to the Review Board and fulfill any task and duties assigned to it by the Review Board. b. Provide technical assistance and guidance to charter schools operating within the State. c. Provide technical assistance and guidance to nonprofit corporations seeking to operate charter schools within the State. d. Provide or arrange for training for charter schools that have received preliminary approval from the Review Board. e. Assist approved charter schools and charter schools seeking approval from the Review Board in coordinating services with the Department of Public Instruction. e1. Assist certain charter schools seeking to participate in the NC prekindergarten program in accordance with G.S. 115C-218.115. f. Other duties as assigned by the State Board. (4) Agency cooperation. – All State agencies and departments shall cooperate with the Office of Charter Schools in carrying out its powers and duties as necessary in accordance with this Article.

”

Cellphone bans

See also: How does North Carolina compare to other states on cellphone laws?

North Carolina is one of 26 states with state laws or executive orders prohibiting or limiting cell phones in classrooms and/or schools, including through requiring school boards to pass certain policies. Governor Josh Stein (D) signed H959 on July 1, 2025, requiring local school boards to adopt policies prohibiting cellphone use in schools, with exceptions for individualized education plans, curricular activities authorized by a teacher, or student health care management. The bill also required students to be instructed on social media and mental health in elementary, middle, and high schools, and included restrictions on what students could access on internet devices at school.

Collective bargaining agreements

Teacher union collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) can constrain school board authority. Teacher CBAs are agreements between a school district and a teachers’ union to establish rights and other contract details for public school employees. CBAs do not have the force of law, but are contractually binding for a set period of time. Within the time set out in the agreement, the school board must comply with the stipulations that were agreed to in the contract. In this way, CBAs can constrain school board authority by giving teachers authority over curriculum, prohibiting school boards from banning books, and establishing certain student or parental rights. They can also determine rights and protections for educators, and conditions for students (such as required recess periods or the amount of standardized testing), among other provisions.

CBAs vary greatly within and across states in size, topics covered, and constraints they put on school boards. Not all states allow teachers to bargain collectively. As of January 2022, 35 states and the District of Columbia guaranteed K-12 teachers some right to bargain collectively, and six states prohibited public-sector employee collective bargaining by law, which includes public school teachers. The other nine states have no statewide bargaining framework, but local jurisdictions within these states can grant bargaining rights if they choose.

North Carolina school boards are not legally allowed to engage in collective bargaining with school employees.

Parents' bill of rights

See also: How does North Carolina compare to other states on Parents' Bills of Rights?

North Carolina is one of 26 states that has a Parents' Bill of Rights.

The statute holds that parents have the right to review all education records pertaining to their children, to enroll their children in public or private school, and to access all medical records of their children, among other provisions. The text is as follows:

“

Article 29F. Parents' Bill of Rights. § 115C-407.70. Definitions. The following definitions apply in this Article: (1) Reserved for future codification purposes. (2) Child. – A person less than 18 years of age who has not been emancipated pursuant to Article 35 of Chapter 7B of the General Statutes. (3) Reserved for future codification purposes. (4) Reserved for future codification purposes. (5) Parent. – A person who has legal custody of a child, including a natural parent, adoptive parent, or legal guardian. (6) State. – The State, any of its political subdivisions, or any public school unit. §§ 115C-407.71 through 115C-407.72. Reserved for future codification purposes. § 115C-407.73. Parents' bill of rights. A parent has the right to the following: (1) To direct the education and care of his or her child. (2) To direct the upbringing and moral or religious training of his or her child. (3) To enroll his or her child in a public or nonpublic school and in any school choice options available to the parent for which the child is otherwise eligible by law in order to comply with compulsory attendance laws, as provided in Part 1 of Article 26 of this Chapter. (4) To access and review all education records, as authorized by the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1232g, relating to his or her child. (5) To make health care decisions for his or her child, unless otherwise provided by law, including Article 1A of Chapter 90 of the General Statutes. (6) To access and review all medical records of his or her child, as authorized by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), P.L. 104-191, as amended, except as follows: a. If the parent is the subject of an investigation of (i) a crime committed against the child under Chapter 14 of the General Statutes or (ii) an abuse and neglect complaint under Chapter 7B of the General Statutes and an individual authorized to conduct that investigation requests that the information not be released to the parent. b. When otherwise prohibited by law. (7) To prohibit the creation, sharing, or storage of a biometric scan of his or her child without the parent's prior written consent, except as authorized pursuant to a court order or otherwise required by law, including G.S. 7B-2102 and G.S. 7B-2201. (8) To prohibit the creation, sharing, or storage of his or her child's blood or deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) without the parent's prior written consent, except as authorized pursuant to a court order or otherwise required by law, including G.S. 7B-2201. (9) To prohibit the creation by the State of a video or voice recording of his or her child without the parent's prior written consent, except a recording made in the following circumstances: a. During or as part of a court proceeding. b. As part of an investigation under Chapter 7B or Chapter 14 of the General Statutes. c. When the recording will be used solely for any of the following purposes: 1. A safety demonstration, including one related to security and discipline on educational property. 2. An academic or extracurricular activity. 3. Classroom instruction. 4. Photo identification cards. 5. Security or surveillance of buildings or grounds. (10) To be promptly notified if an employee of the State suspects that a criminal offense has been committed against his or her child, unless the incident has first been reported to law enforcement or the county child welfare agency, and notification of the parent would impede the investigation. §§ 115C-407.74 through 115C-407.75. Reserved for future codification purposes. § 115C-407.76. Limitations on the right to parent. (a) The requirements of this Article do not authorize a parent to do any of the following: (1) Engage in unlawful conduct. (2) Abuse or neglect the child, as defined in Chapter 7B of the General Statutes. (b) The requirements of this Article do not prohibit the following: (1) A State official or employee from acting in his or her official capacity within the reasonable and prudent scope of his or her authority. (2) A court of competent jurisdiction from acting in its official capacity within the reasonable and prudent scope of its authority or issuing an order otherwise permitted by law. §§ 115C-407.77 through 115C-407.78. Reserved for future codification purposes. § 115C-407.79. Employee penalties. An employee of the State who encourages, coerces, or attempts to encourage or coerce a child to withhold information from his or her parent may be subject to disciplinary action. § 115C-76.25. Parent legal rights for their child's education. (a) Parents have legal rights with regards to their child's education, including the following: (1) The right to consent or withhold consent for participation in reproductive health and safety education programs, consistent with the requirements of G.S. 115C-81.30. (2) The right to seek a medical or religious exemption from immunization requirements, consistent with the requirements of G.S. 130A-156 and G.S. 130A-157. (3) The right to review statewide standardized assessment results as part of the State report card. (4) The right to request an evaluation of their child for an academically or intellectually gifted program, or for identification as a child with a disability, as provided in Article 9 of this Chapter. (5) The right to inspect and purchase public school unit textbooks and other supplementary instructional materials, as provided in Part 3 of Article 8 of this Chapter. (6) The right to access information relating to the unit's policies for promotion or retention, including high school graduation requirements. (7) The right to receive student report cards on a regular basis that clearly depict and grade the student's academic performance in each class or course, the student's conduct, and the student's attendance. (8) The right to access information relating to the State public education system, State standards, report card requirements, attendance requirements, and textbook requirements. (9) The right to participate in parent-teacher organizations. (10) The right to opt in to certain data collection for their child, as provided in Part 5 of this Article and Article 29 of this Chapter. (11) The right for students to participate in protected student information surveys only with parental consent, as provided in Part 5 of this Article. (12) The right to review all available records of materials their child has borrowed from a school library. (b) Public school units shall (i) allow parents to exercise these rights and (ii) make the rights contained in this section available to parents electronically or by displaying the information on the website of the public school unit.

”

How does North Carolina compare to other states?

This section compares North Carolina's school board authority and constraints with those of other states on select topics. These topics include authority over discipline policy, school board election timing, charter schools, cellphone use policy, as well as constraints on school boards' authority from Parents' Bills of Rights.

Book bans, removals, and restrictions

Twenty-three (23) states have no laws regulating the curation of school library books. Twenty-seven (27) states, however, have passed laws restricting school board authority over school library book curation. These laws typically fall into one of the following categories:

• Eleven states require school boards to develop a policy for the removal of books, including creating a way for the public to challenge school library books.
• Nine states prohibit school boards from removing books on the grounds that they represent specific ideologies or perspectives.
• Six states prohibit books if they contain specific material, including sexual content or anything deemed harmful to minors.
• Five states require school boards to establish local boards to review challenges to library books.
• Two states require school boards to allow parents to view a catalogue of books.

Some states have adopted multiple types of these policies.

Discipline

• School boards in 47 states have authority over disciplinary policy in their district.
• School boards in two states have authority over disciplinary policy for specific circumstances, such as suspension, expulsion, or bullying.
• Individual schools in one state create their own disciplinary policy.

School board elections

School boards' authority over the timing of school board elections varies by state.

• School boards in 42 states do not have authority over election timing;
• School boards in five states can choose from limited options when to hold school board elections;
• School boards in two states can choose from a date range when to hold school board elections;
• The school board in Hawaii is not elected.

The map below shows the types of authority school boards in the states have to determine the timing of school board elections.

Charter schools

See also: Charter schools in the United States

Some school boards in the U.S. are authorized to approve or deny applications for charter schools in their district, while state boards of education hold the authority in other states. In some states, school boards can authorize charter schools, but there are other entities besides school boards that can also authorize charter schools or to which a school board decision can be appealed.

• 10 states do not authorize school boards to make decisions on whether to approve new charter schools in their districts.
• 36 states do authorize school boards to approve new charter schools in their districts, deny approval to new charter schools, or both.
• 3 states do not have laws governing charter school authorization.
• 1 state allows school districts to apply to the state board of education to be a charter school district.

State cellphone laws

See also: State policies on cellphone use in K-12 public schools

In most states, school boards or superintendents often set policies on cellphones in public schools. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), around 76% of schools said they banned the non-academic use of cellphones or smartphones during school hours during the 2021-22 school year, down from 91% in 2010.

Beginning with Florida in 2023, some states enacted laws or policies to regulate student cellphone usage in public schools. Twenty-six (26) states had statewide laws or policies restricting cellphone use in K-12 classrooms or schools as of June 2025. Four states had requirements for all school district boards to adopt a policy on cellphones but without specific requirements for those policies. Four other states had policies encouraging school districts to establish restrictions on cellphone use in the classroom.

Parents' Bill of Rights

See also: Parents' Bill of Rights in education

If state law explicitly provides certain rights to parents, it can constrain the policy-making authority of school boards. These sections of statute are often referred to within statute and are categorized here as Parents' Bills of Rights. In some states, they are education-specific, regarding the rights a parent has to be involved in their child's public education. Common examples include notification requirements, opt-out rights, and records access. Other Parents' Bills of Rights are more general, commonly affording parents a right to direct the upbringing of their child.

• 26 states have enacted a statewide Parents' Bill of Rights
• 24 states have not enacted a Parents' Bill of Rights.

Noteworthy events

See also: Overview of trends in K-12 curricula development

• North Carolina requires online library catalogue, parental discretion over books students can borrow (2025): The North Carolina General Assembly overrode Governor Josh Stein (D)'s veto to enact House Bill (HB) 805, requiring school boards to adopt policies requiring each school to maintain an online database of books present at each school library and in each classroom, and allowing parents to identify books that their students are not permitted to borrow, among other provisions. These provisions will take effect on December 1, 2025.

• North Carolina adopts K-12 cellphone ban (2025): Governor Josh Stein (D) signed H959 on July 1, 2025, requiring local school boards to adopt policies prohibiting cellphone use in schools, with exceptions for individualized education plans, curricular activities authorized by a teacher, or student health care management. The bill also required students to be instructed on social media and mental health in elementary, middle, and high schools, and included restrictions on what students could access on internet devices at school.

• North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) releases guidebook for classroom AI use (2024): NCDPI released a guidebook on AI use in public school classrooms on January 16, 2024, that recommended AI be "infused into all grade levels and all curriculum areas," according to the guidebook. The guidebook argued that responsible AI use could help students be more competitive in the job market. As of the time of the guidebook’s publication, NCDPI was one of four state education departments to release guidance for classroom AI use, according to the guidebook.

• North Carolina legislature overrides governor veto of K-3 LGBTQ+ curriculum ban (2023): North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (D) vetoed SB 49, titled the Parents' Bill of Rights, on July 5, 2023, and both the North Carolina Senate and North Carolina House of Representatives overrode the veto on August 16, 2023. The bill proposed prohibiting curriculum on “gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality” in elementary schools, according to the text. The bill also proposed requiring parental notification before “any changes in the name or pronoun used for a student.” The initial version of the bill, titled the Parents’ Bill of Rights, proposed requiring K-12 public schools and local school boards to adopt procedures to notify parents of changes in their child’s mental or physical health. The Senate amendment proposed prohibiting the inclusion of LGBTQ curriculum in kindergarten through third grade but would not prohibit conversations about sexuality in classrooms. The bill was reintroduced as SB 49 during the 2023-2024 legislative session and passed the North Carolina State Senate on February 7, 2023. The bill took effect in the 2023-2024 school year.

• North Carolina lawmakers aim to ban teaching divisive concepts in public schools (2023): The North Carolina House of Representatives on March 22, 2023, passed a bill that aimed to prohibit public schools from promoting that “one race or sex is inherently superior to another race or sex” or that individuals “by virtue of his or her race or sex, should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress,” according to the text of the bill. HB 187 passed the House with a vote of 68-49 along party lines and moved to the Senate for consideration, but Senators did not act on the bill before the legislative session ended.

• North Carolina school board approves new LGBTQ and gender identity policy (2022): The Durham Public School Board of Education in North Carolina approved a policy on December 9, 2022, regarding the district’s approach to gender identity policies. Titled “LGBTQIA+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Allied/Asexual+) and Gender Supports Policy,” the policy stated that it seeks to “maintain a safe and supportive school environment for all students and staff.” It proposed mandating in part that an individual’s preferred name and gender be included on unofficial records and allowing students to participate on sports teams that align with their gender identity. The policy also proposed requiring principals within the district to make staff aware of what the district considered appropriate training related to LGBTQ support.

See also

• Local school board authority across the 50 states
• K-12 curriculum authority, requirements, and statutes in the states
• State policies on cellphone use in K-12 public schools
• Rules governing school board election dates and timing
• Charter schools
• School choice
• Parents' Bill of Rights in education
• Ballotpedia:Index of Contents
• Support our work

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