The 2025-26 NC General Assembly long session is underway. The General Assembly meets for its “long” session beginning in January of each odd-numbered year, when it passes a budget for two fiscal years. Each year, more than 50% of the state’s budget allocations go toward funding for education in North Carolina. One way that our community can have a direct impact is to reach out to elected officials in the General Assembly and advocate for policies and statutes that are pro-public schools and funding that fully supports public education needs. The contact information for State House and Senate Representatives that represent Pitt County is included below. Writing, calling, and emailing those individuals on a regular basis and sharing specific requests truly make an impact and let them know what matters to the citizens in their district.
Recently the NC Department of Public Instruction and State Board of Education released their joint legislative request. At the February State Board of Education meeting State Superintendent Mo Green said: “It is well known that education is the greatest equalizer of lifelong success and it is imperative that we sufficiently fund education for the betterment of not only our citizens, but also our state’s future. As North Carolina’s public education authority, it is our duty to ensure that our schools are cultivating excellence, and I believe these legislative priorities and budgetary asks support our mission at NCDPI and keep students at the center of our work.” The joint legislative requests included higher teacher pay, additional aid for schools in western North Carolina impacted by Hurricane Helene and for a moratorium on the expansion of the Opportunity Scholarship Program. The joint legislative request also includes a number of items in four budgetary buckets:
– Student and School Support includes items such as school meals at no cost to students, increases in the number of school health personnel, and additional support for exceptional children.
– Academic Support and Coaching includes greater support for low performing districts, expansion of the state’s “science of reading“ program, and new resources to support mathematics instruction in grades K-8.
– Technology which includes critical items such as recurring funds to refresh student devices, many of which were purchased with expired federal COVID-releif funds. PCS is a 1-1 district meaning each student has access to a device.
– Compensation Pathways which refers to expansion of the state’s Advanced Teaching Roles Program, including recurring funding for teacher salary supplements and additional grant awards.
Another topic that could be included in the current long session is school calendar flexibility. According to North Carolina law, traditional public schools are not allowed to start the school year sooner than the Monday closest to Aug. 26 and end later than the Friday closest to June 11. School and district leaders have long asked for more calendar flexibility, claiming the required window limits a district’s ability to meet the needs of its community. The General Assembly has regulated school calendars for 20 years, largely due to the tourism industry’s concerns that starting earlier would hurt businesses. In recent years there has been some bipartisan support within the North Carolina House to provide school calendar flexibility. Representative Gloristine Brown and Representative Timothy Reeder are going to sit down for a discussion as a part of the PCS Connect Podcast Series in March specifically talking about school calendar flexibility.
Pitt County General Assembly Representatives –
Representative Gloristine Brown – District 8
Mailing Address: 300 N. Salisbury Street, Rm. 403
Raleigh, NC 27603-5925
Email: Gloristine.Brown@ncleg.gov
Main Phone: 919-715-3023
Representative Timothy Reeder, MD – District 9
Mailing Address: 300 N. Salisbury Street, Rm. 416B
Raleigh, NC 27603-5925
Email: Timothy.Reeder@ncleg.gov
Main Phone: 919-733-5757
Senator Kandie Smith – District 5
Mailing Address: 16 West Jones Street, Rm. 1113
Raleigh, NC 27601
Email: Kandie.Smith@ncleg.gov
Main Phone: 919-715-8363
