North Carolina school districts
| K-12 education in North Carolina | |
 | |
| Education facts | |
| State superintendent: Mo Green | |
| Number of students: 1,442,736 | |
| Number of teachers: 93,665 | |
| Teacher/pupil ratio: 1:15.4 | |
| Number of school districts: 120 | |
| Number of schools: 2,475 | |
| Graduation rate: 87% | |
| Per-pupil spending: $9,958 | |
| See also | |
| North Carolina Department of Education • List of school districts in North Carolina • North Carolina • School boards portal | |
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Public education in the United States Public education in North Carolina Glossary of education terms | |
| Note: These statistics are mainly from government sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. Figures given were the most recent as of October 2022. | |
North Carolina is home to 236 school districts, 2,577 schools and 1,507,864 students.[1]
Quick facts
State school administrators
- State Board of Education[2]
- William Cobey, Chairman, At-Large Member
- A.L. Collins, Vice Chairman, District 5
- Dan Forest, Lieutenant Governor
- Janet Cowell, State Treasurer
- Rebecca Taylor, District 1
- Reginald Kenan, District 2
- Kevin Howell, District 3
- Dr. Olivia Holmes Oxendine, District 4
- John A. Tate, III, District 6
- Gregory Alcorn, District 7
- Wayne McDevitt, District 8
- Marcella Savage, At-Large Member
- Patricia Willoughby, At-Large Member
Statistics
The following table displays the state's top 10 school districts by total student enrollment and per-pupil spending.
| Student enrollment, 2011-2012[3] | Per-pupil spending, 2012-2013[4] |
|---|---|
| 1.) Wake County | 1.) Hyde County |
| 2.) Charlotte-Mecklenburg | 2.) Tyrrell County |
| 3.) Guilford County | 3.) Weldon City |
| 4.) Cumberland County | 4.) Jones County |
| 5.) Winston-Salem/Forsyth County | 5.) Asheville City |
| 6.) Union County | 6.) Pamlico County |
| 7.) Durham | 7.) Northampton County |
| 8.) Johnston County | 8.) Washington County |
| 9.) Gaston County | 9.) Dare County |
| 10.) Cabarrus County | 10.) Warren County |
Demographics
The following table displays the ethnic distribution of students in North Carolina as reported in the National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data for 2011-2012.[5]
| Demographic Information for North Carolina's K-12 Public School System | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Students | State Percentage | United States Percentage** | |
| American Indian | 22,098 | 1.47% | 1.10% | |
| Asian | 38,019 | 2.52% | 4.68% | |
| African American | 397,489 | 26.36% | 15.68% | |
| Hawaiian Nat./Pacific Isl. Students | 1,293 | 0.09% | 0.42% | |
| Hispanic | 203,503 | 13.50% | 24.37% | |
| White | 790,132 | 52.40% | 51.21% | |
| Two or More | 55,330 | 3.67% | 2.54% | |
| **Note: This is the percentage of all students in the United States that are reported to be of this ethnicity. | ||||
In the news
State budget concerns
On June 15, 2014, the North Carolina Large District Superintendent Consortium, a group of leaders from the state's 10 largest school systems, held a news conference to discuss the state budget. Prior to the conference, both houses of the North Carolina State Legislature passed their versions of the 2015 state budget. The North Carolina State Senate proposed raising teacher pay by nearly $470 million, which would come to an average 11 percent raise. In order to get that raise, however, teachers would have to surrender tenure, and other education funding cuts would have to be made, including nearly half of the funding for teacher assistants. The North Carolina House of Representatives proposed raising teacher salaries by five percent without making them surrender tenure. The money for the raises would partly come from increased lottery proceeds from the North Carolina Education Lottery. The House plan also cut millions from the University of North Carolina system.[6][7]
At the news conference, members of the North Carolina Large District Superintendent Consortium thanked state lawmakers for their efforts to raise teacher pay but expressed concern over the proposed paths to fund the raises. They said schools would not be able to stand losing half of the state's teaching assistants and that lottery money could force schools to take money from one area to pay for another. Despite their concern over the proposed methods of finding money to increase teacher salaries, members of the superintendent consortium did say they were encouraged by the discussions state lawmakers were having, as teacher pay had not had a significant increase in over five years, which made it difficult to retain teachers as well as hire new ones.[8]
State law
Common Core
Common Core, or the Common Core State Standards Initiative, is an American education initiative that outlines quantifiable benchmarks in English and mathematics at each grade level from kindergarten through high school. The North Carolina State Board of Education and the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction adopted these standards on June 3, 2010. The standards were fully implemented during the 2012-2013 school year.[9]
In July of 2014 North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory (R) signed a bill into law that required the state's Common Core curriculum standards be re-written. The bill was passed by the North Carolina State Senate on July 10, 2014, and by the North Carolina House of Representatives on July 16, 2014. Common Core standards were to remain in place until the re-written standards were completed.[10]
As of July 2015 no revised standards had been published. North Carolina lawmakers, educators and parents have debated exactly how much the Common Core standards need to be revised. Supporters of Common Core believe that only a few changes are needed, while opponents wish to see the standards scrapped completely to make way for different, state-designed standards.[11]
School board composition
School board members in North Carolina are generally elected by residents of the school district, although in certain cases school board members may be appointed. School board elections must be nonpartisan, and school boards must consist of five members serving four-year terms.[12]
District types
North Carolina has three types of school districts: county school districts, county school administrative units and city school administrative units. County school districts have elected school boards, and most county and city school administrative units have elected school boards as well. Some city administrative units, however, have school boards that are appointed by the city council.[13]
Term limits
North Carolina does not impose term limits on school board members.[12]
School board elections
Upcoming elections
A total of four North Carolina school districts among America's largest school districts by enrollment held elections for 16 seats in 2015. All of the districts held their elections on November 3, 2015.
Here are several quick facts about North Carolina's school board elections in 2015:
- The largest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools with 144,478 K-12 students.
- The smallest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools with 12,329 K-12 students.
- Cleveland County Schools had the most seats on the ballot in 2015 with five seats up for election.
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools had the fewest seats on the ballot in 2015 with three seats up for election.
The districts listed below served 186,101 K-12 students during the 2012-2013 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Click on the district names for more information on the district and its school board elections.
| 2015 North Carolina School Board Elections | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Date | Seats up for election | Total board seats | Student enrollment |
| Burke County Public Schools | 11/3/2015 | 4 | 7 | 13,343 |
| Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools | 11/3/2015 | 4 | 7 | 12,329 |
| Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools | 11/3/2015 | 3 | 9 | 144,478 |
| Cleveland County Schools | 11/3/2015 | 5 | 9 | 15,951 |
Path to the ballot
In order to be run for election to a school board in North Carolina, a candidate must by at least 21 years old. If the candidate is employed by the school district that he or she seeks to represent, the candidate must resign from that employment before taking office.[12][14] To get on the ballot, candidates must file with their local municipal elections office and pay a filing fee.[15]
Campaign finance
Candidates must file a Statement of Organization, a Certification of Treasurer, a Certification of Financial Account Information and periodic financial disclosure reports with their local municipal elections office. Candidates who do not intend on receiving or spending more than $1,000 on their campaigns can file a Certification of Threshold instead of the disclosure reports.[16]
See also
- School board elections portal
- United States school districts
- List of school districts in North Carolina
- North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
- Public education in North Carolina
- North Carolina
External links
- North Carolina Secretary of State
- North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
- North Carolina School Boards Association
- Classroom Teachers Association of North Carolina
- North Carolina Association of Educators
- National Center for Education Statistics school district search tool
References
- ↑ Public Schools of North Carolina, "Facts and Figures 2012-13," accessed August 12, 2013
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Education, "Board of Education," accessed June 13, 2014
- ↑ Public Schools of North Carolina, "Data & Reports - Student Accounting," accessed August 12, 2013
- ↑ Public Schools of North Carolina, "Statistical Profile - Table 24 - Per Pupil Expenditure Ranking," accessed August 12, 2013
- ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Nonfiscal Public Elementary/Secondary Education Survey, 2011-2012," accessed May 7, 2014
- ↑ News Observer, "NC big school districts to speak on state budget," June 16, 2014
- ↑ Salisbury Post, "NC lawmakers, McCrory hone in on budget differences," June 18, 2014
- ↑ WRAL, "NC school districts encouraged but concerned about state budget," June 17, 2014
- ↑ Common Core State Standards Initiative, "Core Standards in your State," accessed July 12, 2014
- ↑ WFMyNews2.com, "Gov. McCrory Signs Common Core Changes Into Law," July 22, 2014
- ↑ National Public Radio, "North Carolina rethinks the Common Core," accessed July 21, 2015
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 North Carolina General Statutes, "Article 5: Local Boards of Education," accessed July 9, 2014
- ↑ United States Census Bureau, "North Carolina," accessed July 9, 2014
- ↑ North Carolina Constitution, "Article VI, Section 6," accessed July 10, 2014
- ↑ Randolph County Elections Department, "2014 Candidate Filing Schedule," accessed July 10, 2014
- ↑ Randolph County Elections Department, "Candidate Filing Information," accessed July 10, 2014
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