The team at EdNC has been reporting on the impact of the budget impasse — from what’s happening at the legislature to what’s happening in your schools and colleges and communities. You may have received separate emails from us this week about different budget items, particularly some that would benefit community colleges. We are pausing those emails while a mini-budget bill works its way through the General Assembly this week. We want it to be clear what is happening in real time versus the impacts of not having a budget leading up to the mini-budget bill process.
Liz Bell is out and about our state this week reporting on early colleges. The Insider reports this morning, early college funding “isn’t included in a “mini-budget” bill moving in the House this week to fund the community college system…. That means the two early colleges that opened this year, Stanly STEM Early College and Halifax Early College, aren’t operating at full strength.”
Rupen reports for EdNC on the impacts of disasters. He has been following up on Hurricane Florence and keeping us posted on Hurricane Dorian, especially the students on Ocracoke who went back to school this week. In September, Gov. Roy Cooper signed Senate Bill 429, which includes these provisions:
SECTION 1.3. Reallocation of Community College Funds. – Notwithstanding any provision of S.L. 2018-136 or the Committee Report described in Section 6.1 of that act to the contrary, of the funds allocated to the North Carolina Community College System Office for repair and renovation of local community college facilities damaged by Hurricane Florence, the sum of one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) is reallocated to offset the full time equivalent (FTE) losses at affected community colleges due to enrollment declines caused
by Hurricane Florence.
SECTION 2.1. Allocations. – The funds appropriated and reallocated in Part I of this act in the Hurricane Florence Disaster Recovery Fund shall be allocated as follows:
(1) $6,400,000 to the North Carolina Community College System Office to offset the full-time equivalent (FTE) losses at affected community colleges due to enrollment declines caused by Hurricane Florence. When calculating the enrollment growth budget request for the 2020-2021 fiscal year, the North Carolina Community College System Office shall adjust the FTE to reflect the FTE lost due to Hurricane Florence.
A mini-budget on rural broadband, House Bill 387, passed the the Senate on October 2 and the House yesterday.
Stay tuned for more on the education budgets.
The North Carolina Birth-3rd Grade Interagency Council will meet Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Board Room 150, N.C. Department of Transportation, 1 S. Wilmington St., Raleigh.
The Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission (PEPSC) will hold its monthly meeting Thursday, Oct. 10, at 9 a.m. in the 7th Floor Board Room, Education Building, 301 N. Wilmington Street, Raleigh.
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