Today’s NC Political News briefs
State actions involve election oversight, a new approach to measuring student skills and expanded health services in rural schools.
North Carolina agencies are preparing for an election-oversight meeting while directing new federal funding toward education assessments and school-based health services.
Elections board schedules complaint hearing and rule review
The State Board of Elections will meet at 9 a.m. Thursday in Raleigh. Its tentative agenda includes county board vacancy appointments, an evidentiary hearing on a complaint involving a Pitt County elections board member, an update on agency rulemaking and the periodic review of existing rules. Part of the meeting is scheduled to occur in closed session. The meeting may also be observed online or by telephone. Official source
State receives nearly $4 million for student-skills assessment
The Department of Public Instruction received a $3,990,756 federal grant to expand its Skills for the Future initiative from October 2026 through September 2029. The project will directly serve 6,000 students and train 250 educators. Four thousand participating students are expected to receive Future-Ready Transcripts documenting skills including critical thinking, collaboration and communication. The project will use AI-assisted scoring with human review, calibration studies and bias monitoring. Official source
State allocates $1.25 million for rural school health centers
NCDHHS awarded $1.25 million through the North Carolina Rural Health Transformation Program to five organizations operating school health services. The money may be used for new locations, telehealth, mobile services and additional personnel. Approximately 30,000 children and youths currently receive care through about 90 school-based health centers statewide. The five recipients are Appalachian District Health Department, Blue Ridge Community Health Services, FirstHealth of the Carolinas, Mountain Community Health Partnership and Wilson County Health Department. Official source
