April 24 marked the first day of the 2026-27 school year for the majority of students in our state—those whose schools follow the traditional public school calendar schedule. This year, 33 of North Carolina’s 115 school districts have chosen start/end dates that don’t follow the law, but the majority still follow the legislative start/end date requirements.
Congratulations to all of the teachers, administrators, special instructional staff, and support staff who have worked to make the new school year start off well! School personnel have had to be flexible, strong, determined, resilient, and persistent to make it through the past few years, especially when state lawmakers couldn’t manage to pass a new budget last year. Thankfully, we have a new budget this year and hope the next legislative session that starts in January will brings better funding for our public schools.
North Carolina’s public school educators are a foundation of our state’s future as they teach, support, and help guide our children through their educational journey. Our students benefit every day from the dedication of our public school staff and educators; we must show them real appreciation by funding competitive salaries along with celebrating their accomplishments.
Last August, NCDPI published a strategic plan to make North Carolina’s public schools the best in the nation by 2030. One year later, at the August State Board of Education monthly meeting, NCDPI launched the new Achieving Educational Excellence dashboard that gives everyone the ability to track progress toward meeting “best in the nation” targets. Their press release listed four recent historic achievements that underscore NC public school excellence:
- An 87.7% four-year graduation rate
- 72.1% of AP exams earning a qualifying score for college credit, surpassing the national average
- 382,964 industry-recognized credentials earned by Career and Technical Education students
- 54% of graduates passing a college-level course while in high schools
These accomplishments can only grow if everyone in the state does their part. As we start a new school year, let’s all commit to supporting our public schools, our educators and students! You can start by advocating for better funding for all educators with your state lawmakers, county commissioners, and school board members. Equally important, volunteer at the public school nearest you and join their PTA!
There are nearly 1.5 million public school students in North Carolina (including charter schools). It benefits all North Carolinians to have a well-educated population that powers our workforce, builds our businesses, and boosts our local economies. Supporting and funding a unified system of public schools is the most efficient and effective way to make sure this happens. We need public schools to prepare citizens for full participation in society and our democracy!
Ten top reasons why traditional public schools are the best choice for our state.
1) Public schools attract the best teachers. Because they have more stringent educational and licensure requirements and generally earn higher salaries than their private or charter school counterparts, public school educators are more qualified, experienced, and higher performing. North Carolina has far more National Board Certified teachers than any other state in the nation.
2) Public schools have a greater sense of community. Most traditional public schools have been around a long time and are the heart of their communities. They are often the hub of community events and are the place where people vote. Public schools are one of the top three employers in 80 of the state’s 100 counties.
3) Public schools increase educational choice. Traditional public schools typically offer a much wider array of schools, classes and curriculum than private or charter schools. Districts often have magnet or theme schools such as technology, AIG, or language immersion (e.g., Durham Public School Montessori Schools). They also have career-tech and dual enrollment options. Within public schools, students have more choice than their private school peers.
4) Public schools have greater diversity. Traditional public schools are open and welcoming to all students, making them much more diverse than private or charter schools. The lack of diversity is especially striking in the private schools participating in NC’s voucher program. Learning and growing among diverse peers better prepares students for success in our increasingly diverse communities.
5) Public schools are more fiscally transparent. The financial records of public schools are open to public scrutiny, and laws require that expenses must relate to educating children. Private and charter schools are not bound by the same requirements, so financial records are less transparent and funds can be spent to enrich for-profit operators instead of educating students.
6) Traditional public schools are more reliable. Charter and private schools are less stable than public schools and can close without notice, even in the middle of the school year, leaving families to scramble for other educational options. When a public school closes, there is ample notice to the community and provisions are made to move affected students to new schools.
7) Public schools have greater commitment to students in the community. Public schools accept ALL students. They don’t select students by limiting services (e.g. transportation, school meals) or through explicit exclusionary admissions policies.
8) Citizens have ownership of public schools. Public schools are led by elected school boards voted into office by members of the whole community. In contrast, many charter and private schools do not have elected boards. Some are led by appointed boards whose members live far from the school community.
9) Public schools provide more amenities. Special education and gifted services are often minimal or nonexistent at private or charter schools, and schools provide supplies when parents can’t afford to provide them. Public schools also offer a wide array of athletics, clubs, and other extracurricular options not available in most other schooling options.
10) Public schools match or outperform private schools. The myth that private schools are better at educating students has been debunked by numerous studies and documented in The Public School Advantage: Why Public Schools Outperform Private Schools. Studies of voucher program effects show dramatic declines for students who use vouchers to attend private school.
As we enter the new school year, let’s renew our commitment to ensuring that North Carolina has the best public school system possible. We have the resources!