UNC guts DEI Policy
The Board of Governors for the University of North Carolina System voted Thursday to repeal and replace its existing diversity and inclusion policy that applies to the 17 schools the board oversees.
The new policy reverses one that was adopted in 2019 that sought to “foster an inclusive environment” and required each school to submit diversity and inclusion reports to the board of trustees every year.
The new policy now requires UNC schools to “ensure equality of all persons & viewpoints,” and promote “nondiscrimination in employment practices.”
It also mandates that all UNC schools comply with a series of amendments passed by the North Carolina General Assembly in the past year that limit what can be discussed or taught about race, racism and sex in government institutions.
The policy passed with two board members – Joel Ford and Sonja Phillips Nichols – voting no. Both Ford and Nichols are Black.
As the meeting convened, dozens of protestors gathered outside to rally against the proposed changes to the DEI policy. Andy Wallace, director of media relations for the UNC system, confirmed to CNN that two people were arrested outside the meeting Thursday morning.
Ahead of the vote, board secretary Pearl Burris-Floyd and board member Gene Davis discussed their support for the new policy.
Burris-Floyd said she retired from the field of DEI and believes there have been flaws in the way DEI has been taught.
“And that has hurt the fabric and ability to carry things forward, but it does not mean that we stop,” Burris-Floyd said.
Read More at https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/23/us/unc-dei-policy-vote-reaj/index.html.
NC House rejects Masking Bill
The state House voted Wednesday to reject a Senate bill that could restrict the use of face masks in public.
The Senate wanted to eliminate a provision in state law that allows masks for public health reasons. Republicans say they want to crack down on protestors who break the law while wearing masks.
But the wording of the legislation prompted concerns it could ban all masks in public spaces. Republicans in the House say they want to clarify that before the bill becomes law.
"What we've seen with a lot of this civil unrest, wearing a mask — that needs to be punished, you shouldn't be able to conceal your identity to engage in criminal conduct," House Speaker Tim Moore said Wednesday. "The question is striking that balance to make sure that it doesn't go so far, that you aren't limiting the ability of someone who is not breaking the law, wearing a mask for their own health. So we believe there's some language that can be drafted ... that will make that clear."
Rep. Sarah Crawford, D-Wake, said she's gotten lots of calls from opponents of the bill.
"This bill as written infringes on our constitutional First Amendment rights and puts at risk the health and safety of our communities," she said, adding that she'd like to see the law explicitly allow people to wear face coverings for religious purposes.
The House and Senate will now negotiate a new version of the bill. The original House version of the bill, which passed the chamber a year ago, called for longer prison sentences for people who commit a crime while wearing a hood or mask to conceal their identity.
Moore declined to speculate on what the wording will be in the final bill. "There's nothing that's been pre-baked or predetermined on this," he said. "This is a genuine interest in having a conversation with the Senate to improve this bill."
The Senate version would repeal a law passed during the COVID-19 pandemic that allows masks in public for health and safety reasons. That exemption was added to a 1953 ban on face masks passed in response to Ku Klux Klan activity.
The 1953 law applies the ban to "any mask, hood or device whereby the person, face or voice is disguised so as to conceal the identity of the wearer." Exceptions include safety masks related to someone's occupation or trade, holiday costumes and gas masks for civil defense drills.
The Senate bill would also impose Class H felony penalties — up to two years in prison — on repeat offenders who block traffic as part of a protest. First-time offenses would come with a higher level of misdemeanor charge.
Speaker Moore proposes Constitutional Amendment for citizen only Voting.
The North Carolina Speaker of the House, Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, has filed legislation to amend the state constitution to allow citizens-only to vote in all
elections.
This legislation, HB 1074, is co-sponsored by Rep. Destin Hall, R-Caldwell, and House Majority Whip Rep. Karl Gillespie, R-Cherokee. Rep. Mike Clampitt,
R-Jackson; Rep. Ben T. Moss, R-Moore; and Rep. Mitchell S. Setzer, R-Catawba, also signed onto the bill.
“In order to preserve the democratic principles of our nation, it is imperative that we ensure the integrity of our elections. I am proud to sponsor this bill,” said
Gillespie.
The legislation mirrors SB 630, which was filed in 2023 and which Sen. Brad Overcash, R-Gaston, told the Carolina Journal that he intended to reintroduce
this session.
“In North Carolina, we value the integrity of our elections and have put safeguards in place to ensure our elections are secure,” said Moore in a press release
Thursday. “Recent efforts to allow non-citizens to vote would undermine the public’s confidence in our electoral system and leave the door open for chaos and
election fraud to take hold. Preventing non-citizens from voting in our elections also helps maintain national sovereignty, as it prevents foreign influence from
affecting the outcomes of American elections, and this amendment to our constitution would further strengthen election integrity in North Carolina.”
The North Carolina Constitution currently says that “Every person born in the United States and every person who has been naturalized, who is 18 years of
age.”
Read More at https://www.carolinajournal.com/speaker-moore-introduces-constitutional-amendment-for-citizen-only-voting/
WAKE COUNTY PRESENTS $2 BILLION BUDGET
Wake County Manager David Ellis presented a $2 billion budget proposal to the Wake County Board of Commissioners for Fiscal Year 2025 on Monday night.
Ellis is asking for $200 million more than the previous budget. The School Board is asking for $49 million more than last year.
"This budget aligns with the county's newly adopted strategic plan," Ellis said. "It includes funding to advance each of the plan's six focus areas, so we can improve the quality and reach of our programs and services while remaining fiscally responsible."
Ellis is also proposing a lower overall tax rate for county property taxes. However, with property valuations skyrocketing this year, many may still end up paying for in property tax than in years past. The tax rate is going from 65.7 cents down to 51.05 cents per $100 of assessed value.
Back in January, 53% of Wake County residents saw an increase in their property valuation, and therefore their taxes.
The proposed budget decreases the current tax rate from 65.7 cents to 51.05 cents per $100 of valuation. Of that, 36.30 cents will fund operating expenses, and 14.75 cents will go toward long-term debt and capital plans.
Read More at #.
Republican Primaries give Weatherman, Bolick, and Brad Knott Victories:
Brad Knott, a candidate backed by former President Donald Trump, overwhelmingly won the Republican primary runoff for North Carolina’s 13th Congressional District on Tuesday against a rival who suspended her campaign two weeks ago in response to the endorsement.
The former assistant U.S. attorney defeated Kelly Daughtry, a local lawyer and the daughter of a former longtime Republican legislative leader. Daughtry had finished first among 14 candidates in the March 5 primary. But she failed to exceed the 30% necessary to avoid a runoff, which Knott sought as the second-place finisher.
In statewide GOP primary runoffs Tuesday, Hal Weatherman won the nomination for lieutenant governor and Dave Boliek won the nomination for state auditor. Like Knott, they also advance to the general election in November.
Trump backed Knott in early April. It wasn’t until weeks later, on May 2, that Daughtry, who was also the top fundraiser in the primary largely thanks to her personal campaign loans, suspended her campaign and threw her support to her rival. But by then, early voting was well underway, and it was too late to take her name off the ballot.
Daughtry said Trump’s endorsement of Knott made clear to her “that a pathway to victory is no longer feasible.”
Knott’s victory once again highlights Trump’s history of successful interventions in North Carolina GOP politics.
Knott now will take on Democrat Frank Pierce in the general election. The GOP-dominated General Assembly reconfigured the 13th District last year so
that it is more rightward leaning. The new district covers all or parts of eight counties in or close to the capital of Raleigh. Current 13th District Democratic Rep. Wiley Nickel chose not to run for reelection, citing the boundary changes. The seat is one of three the GOP expects to add to the U.S. House from North Carolina this fall, thanks to redistricting.
In a written statement late Tuesday, Knott thanked Trump and members of the North Carolina congressional delegation for their endorsements, and said it was time to focus on winning in November.
“We need Conservatives from all across the country to stand strong with President Trump and deliver real solutions in Congress. I look forward to doing just that,” Knott said.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, won North Carolina, the country’s ninth-largest state, in both the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections, and the state is expected to be a presidential battleground this fall.
Trump’s social media post endorsing Knott called him a “Strong Patriot” who would support law enforcement, secure the U.S.-Mexico border and protect gun rights.
As for Daughtry, the daughter of a former longtime Republican legislative leader, Trump called her a “RINO” — Republican in Name Only — and someone who “is no friend to MAGA,” a reference to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan.
This year marks the second time Trump has endorsed a Daughtry opponent; in a 2022 primary for the 13th District, he backed her challenger and then-political newcomer Bo Hines, the ultimate primary winner.
Trump also endorsed then-U.S. Rep. Ted Budd in the 2022 GOP primary for U.S. Senate. Budd easily defeated former Gov. Pat McCrory, then went on to win the general election. In the recent March primary, Trump backed first-time candidate Addison McDowell, who ended up winning the 6th Congressional District race.
Weatherman, the former chief of staff to then-Lt. Gov. Dan Forest, defeated Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O’Neill in the lieutenant governor's primary.
Weatherman will take on Democratic state Sen. Rachel Hunt, daughter of former four-term Gov. Jim Hunt, in the fall election.
Boliek, an attorney and former chairman of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill trustee board, defeated CPA and state legislative staffer Jack Clark in the auditor's primary. Boliek will take on Democratic State Auditor Jessica Holmes in November.
GOP runoff voting was open to registered Republicans and unaffiliated voters who either voted in the March Republican primaries or didn’t vote at all.
SENATE PASSES BILL MANDATING SHERIFF COOPERATION WITH ICE
The North Carolina Senate passed legislation Thursday mandating all North Carolina sheriffs cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal agency that issues detainers to remove noncitizens who have been arrested for felonies or violent misdemeanor criminal activity. The bill passed 28-16 along party lines.
“You can vote for public safety or you can vote to continue sanctuary policies,” Sen. Buck Newton, R-Wilson, said on the Senate floor. “When I was in this body before, we were pursuing this legislation for stubborn hard-headed sheriffs that did not want to comply and follow federal immigration laws and did not want to work with ICE. Most sheriffs are totally on board with this policy. Most sheriffs comply, but we have a few that don’t want to.” House Bill 10 passed the North Carolina House of Representatives in 2023 71-44, with just two Democrats voting in favor; Rep. Cecil Brockman, D-Guilford, and Rep. Michael Wray, D-Northampton. Both Democrats have been targeted by Democrat activists as a result of that vote and others in which they sided with Republicans.
When the bill became active in the Senate this spring, Newton proposed an amendment to change the date of when sheriffs offices will begin tracking detainer orders to October 1, 2025, rather than October of 2024. Now the legislation will return to the House side for concurrence with the amended bill.
As Senate committees considered the bill earlier this week, opponent activists lobbied lawmakers in the legislative buildings. The vocal minority belies a recent Carolina Journal poll that found 25% of North Carolina likely voters labeled immigration as the most important issue in light of elections this November.
Read More at https://www.carolinajournal.com/senate-passes-bill-requiring-sheriffs-to-cooperate-with-ice/.
DEMOCRATS RUN ANTI MORROW BILL
The Democrats’ minority whip in the North Carolina Senate has introduced a bill that could bar the Republican candidate for superintendent of public instruction from serving in office. Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, D-Wake, is running Senate Bill 867, Superintendent of Public Instruction Minimum Requirements. The measure mandates that the state superintendent “must have at least one year of experience as a teacher or school administrator in this State or a member of a local board of education or the State Board of Education.” The legislation notably leaves out homeschool educators.
The GOP’s nominee for state superintendent, Michele Morrow, has never served as a traditional school teacher, administrator, or on a local or state board of education. She ran unsuccessfully for the Wake County School Board in 2022, but has remained a grassroots activist on the state of education in North Carolina. Five of Morrow’s children attended public school, but she became a homeschool educator when public schools weren’t meeting her daughter’s needs. She works with teaching coalitions to guide other homeschool educators.
Under the North Carolina Constitution, the only Council of State office with a credentialing or experience requirement is attorney general. The Council of State is the 10-member executive body that includes offices like governor, lieutenant governor, and state labor commissioner.
In 1984, voters approved an amendment to the state constitution requiring that an attorney general be licensed to practice law in the state: “Candidates must be duly authorized to practice law in the courts of the state,” according to the NC Board of Elections. Under current NC statutes, the agriculture commissioner and the members of the Board of Agriculture “shall be practicing farmers engaged in their profession,” but it’s unclear how “farmer” is defined.
Other offices have no requirements. For example, the current state auditory, Democrat Jessica Holmes, is not a Certified Public Accountant. The two most recent auditors, Les Merritt and Beth Wood, have been CPAs.
Attorney Paul “Skip” Stam, a former Republican leader in NC House, said that a change like that included in HB867 would need to be added to the state constitution. That process would require
a three-fifths vote in both chambers of the General Assembly and a simple majority vote from voters. In February, Chaudhuri announced plans to file a bill that would empower the NC State Board of Elections with the authority to remove a presidential candidate from voter ballots under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution. The measure would ostensibly give the state board the authority to block a candidate like former President Donald Trump from appearing on the NC ballot.
Read More at https://www.carolinajournal.com/democrats-run-anti-morrow-bill-in-nc-senate/
NC Republican Run Offs Underway!
Early in-person voting started on Thursday across North Carolina for next month's runoff elections, including one congressional and two statewide primary contests.
Voters are choosing this fall's Republican nominees for lieutenant governor, state auditor and the 13th Congressional District seat. These May 14 runoffs, also known as "second primaries," occurred because the candidate with the most votes in the March 5 primaries for these races failed to receive more than 30% of the vote. The second-place candidate had to formally ask for a runoff.
The lieutenant governor's GOP runoff is between Hal Weatherman and Jim O'Neill, while the nomination for state auditor is between Jack Clark and Dave Boliek. Kelly Daughtry and Brad Knott are seeking the 13th District nomination. The winners will face Democratic rivals — and in some cases Libertarian Party candidates — in the fall.
These GOP primary runoffs are open to all registered Republicans in the state, or in the case of the congressional race, registered Republicans within the 13th District.
Unaffiliated voters who either didn't vote or voted Republican in the March primaries also can participate, the State Board of Elections said in a news release.
Early voting in all 100 counties continues through May 11. Generally, most counties have just one early-vote site for the runoffs.
A GOP primary runoff is also being conducted for a Gaston County commissioner's seat. And there's a race to fill a seat on the nonpartisan Orange County Board of Education that had different runoff rules.
Same-day registration is unavailable during early voting because the registration of new voters is not permitted between the first and second primaries. But people who become eligible to vote during the two primaries can both register and vote on May 14, the state board said.
Traditional mail-in absentee voting for the runoffs began in late March when county boards started sending ballots to those who requested them.
Governor Cooper proposes Final Budget
Before the short session began in the General Assembly Wednesday, Democrat Gov. Roy Cooper laid out his recommended budget proposal for the last time as governor.
A major part of the budget, entitled “Securing North Carolina’s Future,” focuses on education and school funding. Cooper’s proposal would spend over $1 billion on additional funding for public schools.
Under the plan, starting teacher salaries would rise to more than $47,500, including local and state supplements—the highest in the Southeast. The budget would also reinstate Masters Pay, raise teacher pay by 8.5% plus a $1,500 retention bonus for most teachers, increase salaries for school-based administrators, and invest $34.7 million to expand Read to Achieve to middle school students.
It would also provide funding for 700 elementary school teaching assistants in grades K-3, $11 million to attract new teachers, and expand the Teaching Fellows program eligibility to more education schools and in more subject areas.
$745 million would be dedicated to subsidizing child care and early education; $217 million would go toward support programs for disadvantaged students, children with disabilities, and students with limited English proficiency; and, $44.6 million to support student mental and physical health by hiring more school counselors, nurses, psychologists, and social workers.
Cooper said the budget also addresses the $13 billion need for new school buildings by recommending that voters approve a $2.5 billion school construction bond on the November 2024 ballot.
In addition, he would put a moratorium on taxpayer-funded private school vouchers and redirect the money to public schools.
Cooper declared a “State of Emergency” for public education in May 2023, with a red banner across the top of the governor.nc.gov website that would normally be dedicated for true emergencies such as hurricanes. He has been against school choice, including Opportunity Scholarships, which are designed to enable families to choose a private school education for their children.
A record-breaking 72,000 applications were received for the program this year.
The North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority, or NCSEAA, announced on March 30 that 13,511 new students in the first award tier have been offered scholarships. Renewal families — those already enrolled in the program — were also offered scholarships.
In his proposal, Cooper sets aside $200 million for Child Care Stabilization Grants to keep child care centers open and $128.5 million for child care subsidies that will increase reimbursement rates for providers in rural and low-wealth communities.
The budget also includes $197 million to cover the full cost of care for NC Pre-K students and $24.4 million to provide summer programs for students once they complete NC Pre-K and before they enter kindergarten. The budget further reduces childcare costs for North Carolina families by providing a refundable tax credit for child and dependent care.
“This budget is an opportunity to build on our state’s momentum and make up ground in areas like public education, quality child care and clean drinking water, where legislators have fallen short,” Cooper said in a press release. “As the number one state to do business in the country for two years in a row, we have the formula for success in our high-quality public schools, talented workforce and thriving economy. We must make targeted investments strengthening public education, boosting economic development, and protecting our natural resources to secure a bright future for North Carolina.”
His budget allots $251.8 million to guarantee at least a 5% across-the-board salary increase for state employees and non-certified public-school employees and close to $400 million for a retention bonus for all state-funded employees, with most receiving a $1,500 retention bonus.
The budget also gives $195.8 million in funding for the Enhanced Labor Market Adjustment Reserve to give agencies, universities, and community colleges flexibility to address hard-to-retain and hard-to-fill roles.
The budget allocates $40 million for the Moore Manufacturing and Biotech Solutions Center for high-need job training, more than $18.5 million to expand the state’s capacity to produce more healthcare professionals, $49 million in unemployment insurance tax cuts, and $9 million to help small businesses pursue federal funds through One NC.
It establishes a rural youth apprenticeship program based on existing models and invests $5 million in job coaching for people with barriers to employment. The budget also includes $12.8 million in funding for local reentry councils and support services for former prison inmates upon release.
The proposed budget also suggests more spending on manufacturing readiness with investments in the Certified Sites program and a $50 million investment in Radio Island infrastructure improvements.
Cooper’s budget would also establish a $100 million fund to help communities clean their water from pollutants such as Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS). It would also reinstate the Conservation Tax Credit, as well as additional funds for the Parks and Recreation Trust Fund and the North Carolina Land and Water Fund.
Finally, about $20 million in grants would be used to improve draining and reduce flooding with waterway upgrades and increase funding for the Flood Resilience Blueprint. The budget includes just under $5 million for equipment to enhance the North Carolina Forest Service’s capacity to battle wildfires.
UNC System Plans to Scrap DEI Offices
The University of North Carolina System's Board of Governors plans to vote next month on a new policy targeting diversity and inclusion efforts at state universities and eliminate positions related to diversity and inclusion.
A committee approved the new policy at a Wednesday meeting without discussion. If approved by the full 24-member board next month, it would repeal and replace the system’s existing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policy, which was adopted in 2019.
The item will be placed on the consent agenda at the May meeting, which is scheduled for May 23.
The change would affect all 16 public colleges and universities across the state, including UNC-Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, plus the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics.
Earlier in April, a key UNC-Chapel Hill trustee with ties to Republican legislative leaders said he expected the university system to scrap some DEI policies.
Not only are DEI goals and initiatives at stake, but several jobs and job titles are on the line. The new rules would require those jobs to be changed or eliminated by Sept. 1.
Members of the Board of Governors are appointed by the state House and Senate to staggered four-year terms. Both chambers have been controlled by Republicans since 2011, meaning all current members have been appointed by Republicans.
The current policy, entitled "Regulation on Diversity and Inclusion Within the University of North Carolina" calls for each institution to have a senior-level administrator as its diversity and inclusion officer. The current policy establishes "system-wide diversity and inclusion metrics and goals" and created a "UNC System diversity and inclusion council.
The new proposed policy rewrites the section entirely, beginning with the title: "Equality Within the University of North Carolina." It requires by Sept. 1 that each institution certify that it "fully complies with the university's commitment to institutional neutrality and nondiscrimination.
Further, it requires "a report on reductions in force and spending, along with changes to job titles and position descriptions, undertaken as a result of implementing this policy and how those savings achieved from these actions can be redirected to initiatives related to student success and well-being."
Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat, came out against the move.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/unc-system-may-eliminate-diversity-goals-and-jobs-at-17-campuses-across-the-state/21383986/
WAKE COUNTY SCHOOL COVID FUNDS DRYING UP
The Wake County school system will propose a few alternative budgets for next year that include raises for employees — and the current school programming they could cut afford them.
Board members have posed but not necessarily agreed on various cuts to new programming funded using one-time federal pandemic relief dollars. That money will disappear next year, and the school board — like others around the country — is facing a decision on whether and how to keep what it funded.
This shortfall includes includes a $2.5 million before- and after-school supervision program for some students, $4 million for dozens of full-time school-level substitute teachers and $13.8 million for more than 100 behavioral health support professionals. Not all board members agreed to cut those things or on the extent to which to cut those things.
Meanwhile, the district is still struggling with staffing. It had 324 open bus driver positions in March — a 36.8% vacancy rate that has not stopped rising for years, even with periodic wage increases. Teacher vacancies in Wake County were about 2.1% in March — a slight improvement over the past two years, although the district has experienced high attrition in recent years — 16.7% from March 2022 to March 2023, according to the latest state attrition report.
d feelings on how to move forward during a work session Tuesday afternoon. They’ll meet again during another afternoon work session on April 30, hoping to agree on a final budget proposal by the end of it. The board would then vote on May 7 on a proposal to send to county commissioners.
In June, Commissioners will likely vote on how much local funding to provide for the school system.
Read More at https://www.wral.com/story/that-s-a-tough-choice-wake-school-board-considers-cuts-adjustments-to-fund-raises/21383197/
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