NEW HANOVER COUNTY — Sweeping educational legislation that took effect this school year may cost a local school district thousands to implement.
On Tuesday, the New Hanover County Schools policy committee discussed several necessary amendments due to the passing of the Parents’ Bill of Rights last month. The controversial state law provides more parent control over curriculum, school surveys, and pronoun use in classrooms.
But simply changing policy isn’t the end of the conversation.
“We’re going to have to hire someone to oversee this implementation,” NHCS Superintendent Charles Foust said at the meeting.
He explained tracking timelines for parent notification, training staff on the changes, and developing the tools to ensure compliance with the law are all tasks now on the backs of district staff.
Port City Daily asked the district for details on the new position, including the title, pay, and whether a law degree will be required. NHCS representative Russell Clark said the addition of the supervisory role has not been finalized, therefore, there is no information to provide regarding the job description.
PCD also asked one of the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Michael Lee (R-New Hanover), if he anticipated the bill would place cost burdens on school districts; he did not respond to the question by press.
However, the district may have more time to reach compliance.
The bill was among the first to be taken up by members of the North Carolina General Assembly in its 2023 session. After surpassing Gov. Roy Cooper’s override, the GA’s Republican supermajority pushed the bill through to passage in August, just weeks before the traditional school year began.
Republicans in favor of the bill have lauded it as providing more opportunity for parental involvement in their children’s education. Democratic lawmakers and LGTBQ+ activists have likened the legislation to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill, claiming it will be harmful to students and create unnecessary obstructions for school staff.
However, an amended timeline is included in the state’s budget proposal, to be voted upon by the end of the week. Lawmakers decided to acquiesce to State Superintendent Catherine Truitt’s request to allow schools until Jan. 1, 2024, to meet requirements. The General Assembly will be taking action on the budget on Thursday.
Until the budget is approved with the proposed extension, school districts are expected to comply.
The policy committee reviewed seven policies Tuesday based on language revisions from the North Carolina School Boards Association. Only Josie Barnhart and Pat Bradford were present for the meeting, as Stephanie Kraybill was absent on vacation.
The most changes were recommended to Policy 1310, parental involvement. The amendments mostly make clear the district will involve parents and communicate with them regularly, cross-referencing processes already encoded within the manual.
Among the significant revisions, the policy requires school principals to ensure parent input involvement in school improvement plans and publishing drafts prior to finalization.. Title I schools will need to develop a written parent- and family-engagement plan with feedback solicited from guardians.
Policy 1310 also calls for the superintendent to create an annual “parent guide for student achievement,” including state standards, school support services, and ways parents can promote learning and be involved in their children’s schools.
Any health questionnaires or surveys will need to be pre-approved by parents, and changes in student well-being will be reported to guardians.
Assistant Superintendent of Support Services Julie Varnam noted mass health screenings, such as ear or eye exams, are on pause until parents opt-in.
The policy also creates specific timelines for addressing parent complaints. Within five days of receipt of a grievance, the school principal must schedule a meeting with the parent. If not resolved within seven days, the principal shall notify the superintendent.
If the complaint is not resolved within 15 days without parent notice, a school board hearing must be held within the next 15 days. If the problem extends 30 days, the superintendent must provide a reason for the delay and the parent has the right to bring the issue to the state.
Parent requests for information have a deadline of no longer than 20 days before going to the superintendent. The superintendent then has another 20 days before it goes to the school board.
Because of the policy’s extensive changes, Bradford requested the committee hold the revisions until the district could provide a plan for how it will comply with the Parent’s Bill of Rights. Barnhart reacted warily.
“I just don’t want to be out of compliance with the law for that long — it makes me nervous,” she said.
As Foust and NHCS legal counsel Jonathon Vogel explained at Tuesday’s policy committee meeting, the district is not necessarily breaking the law by not updating its policy manual — the law still applies. Some of the bill’s components are not accompanied by required policy updates, but doing so will outline consistent practices and expectations for district staff.
Much of the parental involvement’s new provisions are also implemented in six other policies reviewed and advanced for board review.
Of those, the health education plan policy has inserted language that sex education, sexuality, and gender identity will not be taught from kindergarten to fourth grade. Parents wishing to inspect educational materials must be accommodated within 10 days, as outlined in policy 3210.
They will also be “promptly” notified if their child is suspected of criminal behavior under policy 4335. And staff’s general responsibilities were updated under policy 7300, requiring them to “support parents in effectively participating in their child’s education and never encourage or coerce a child to withhold information from a parent.”
The policies will be reviewed by the board of education at its October meeting for final approval, though because the language has to abide by the law, the district will still be held to these standards if the updated policies do not pass.
New Hanover County Schools isn’t the only district grappling with the new law. While Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board of Education became one of the first districts to comply, staff member Charles Jeter told the Charlotte Observer it was a “Herculean task.”
Wake County Board of Education members were split on the decision to follow the law as opponents claimed they would violate federal Title IX regulations on sex discrimination.
PCD reached out to Pender County Schools and Brunswick County Schools on Thursday to gauge their progress with implementation.
Pender County spokesperson Bob Fankboner said district administrators viewed a presentation from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction earlier this month.
“As NCDPI continues to provide districts with information and guidance we will continue to follow their lead,” Fankboner wrote in an email to PCD.
Brunswick County responded Friday after publication, noting the school board made policy revisions on Sept. 5 to remain legally compliant.
“The district will continue to follow all guidance from the state level. There has been no discussion of creating a position to supervise compliance for the district,” BCS spokesperson Gordon Burnette wrote in an email to PCD.
Reach journalist Brenna Flanagan at brenna@localdailymedia.com
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