Chairman of the North Carolina State Board of Education Eric Davis and North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice "Mo" Green released the following joint statement on Governor Stein’s veto of Senate Bill 254:
We are deeply concerned by the Charter School Review Board (CSRB) provisions in Senate Bill 254 and appreciate Governor Stein’s veto of this unconstitutional bill.
Charter schools are public schools. Several provisions in Senate Bill 254 unconstitutionally propose to transfer core responsibilities of oversight, accountability and rulemaking for charter schools from the North Carolina State Board of Education (SBE) and North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction – the constitutionally established authorities entrusted with the responsibilities to supervise and administer our state’s public school system - to a non-constitutional body, the CSRB.
The state constitution entrusts these duties and responsibilities to the SBE and state superintendent. This bill would severely hinder the SBE and state superintendent's ability to execute their constitutional mandates in service of all public school students. Even more importantly, these provisions threaten the SBE and state superintendent’s ability to ensure that all public-school students, regardless of setting, receive the education to which they are constitutionally entitled.
We believe in the promise of high-quality charter schools as innovative public schools that can meet student needs in diverse ways, and we remain committed to strengthening relationships with charter school leaders, engaging families and fostering collaboration across all North Carolina public schools.
As a direct result of the state superintendent’s efforts, starting this summer, charter leaders are attending district superintendents’ meetings and vice versa to further strengthen those relationships. The draft strategic plan, which is scheduled for approval by the SBE in August 2025, outlines further efforts to make that commitment a reality, including creating a cross-sector Innovation Leadership Council (including charter leaders, public school district leaders, lab school leaders and NC Department of Public Instruction staff) to guide knowledge transfer and scale-up promising innovative efforts.
These and other collaborative efforts will enhance the educational opportunities that all public schools can provide for students. But collaboration requires shared purpose and consistent oversight. This bill will push us in the opposite direction—toward fragmentation, confusion, loss of accountability and diminished public trust. We look forward to working with lawmakers to ensure that our public school system remains strong, accountable and worthy of our communities’ confidence.