Ten North Carolina school districts from Transylvania to Tyrrell will share more than $392 million in state lottery-funded grant awards for school construction and renovation projects.
The grants, aimed at districts in economically distressed counties, will fund new or replacement school buildings, including seven elementary schools, two high schools and one Career and Technical Education Center. The projects include complete renovations of two existing schools, and replacement of 14 existing schools.
These awards distributed through the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund (NBPSCF), represent the largest annual allocation of capital funding from state lottery revenues. The NBPSCF was created by the General Assembly in 2017 to provide application-based grants, supplementing the state’s lottery-supported Public School Building Capital Fund and the Public School Building Repair and Renovation Fund, from which all 115 districts receive annual allocations.
North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction Maurice “Mo” Green shared that the needs-based grants help districts serve students, educators and communities with updated, and in some cases entirely new, schools that add immeasurable benefits to student growth and learning.
“This funding is critical to support, sustain, and nurture continued excellence in North Carolina’s public schools,” Green said. “Students across the state will receive much-deserved safe, modern, and accessible learning environments through the Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund. I'm incredibly thankful to award nearly $400 million to these districts as this is an important step forward in our journey to provide exceptional learning spaces for all North Carolina students and educators."
Awards Include:
- Caswell County Schools – $18.8 million
- Complete renovation of Oakwood Elementary School to address major safety and operational issues affecting the learning environment.
- Duplin County Schools – $32.4 million
- Complete renovation of East Duplin High School to enhance student learning and ensure a safe, modern educational environment.
- Greene County Schools – $42 million
- Replacement of West Greene Elementary School to address increased enrollment and meet modern education, safety and accessibility standards.
- Hertford County Schools – $7.1 million
- Renovation of Riverview Elementary School to construct a new gymnasium and new classrooms connected to the main school building, to address security and aging infrastructure.
- McDowell County Schools – $42 million
- Construction of a new East Marion Elementary School to consolidate aging East Global Magnet and Marion Elementary schools.
- Richmond County Schools – $42 million
- Complete replacement of L.J. Bell Elementary School to address aging facilities and ensure safe and effective learning environments.
- Rockingham County Schools – $42 million
- Construction of a new Reidsville Elementary School to consolidate two under-resourced elementary schools.
- Transylvania County Schools – $62 million
- Complete transformation of the Brevard High School campus to consolidate Davidson River Alternative School with Brevard High School while constructing a new CTE facility.
- Tyrrell County Schools – $62 million
- Construction of a new PK-13 CTE facility to replace outdated and flood-prone buildings with a modern structure.
- Wilson County Schools – $42 million
- Construction of a new Wilson Elementary School to consolidate two outdated elementary schools into a safe, environmentally modern and accessible building.
Awards are capped at $42 million for elementary school projects, $52 million for middle school projects and $62 million for high school projects. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction reviewed and evaluated grant applications in accordance with the criteria identified in statute, including county development tier designation, ability to generate new revenue, debt-to-tax revenue ratio, to which projects will address critical deficiencies, consolidation and replacement of multiple existing facilities, and counties that have not received a grant in three years.
In total, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction received 92 applications totaling nearly $2 billion in requested funding. The NBPSCF grant program is funded annually through budget appropriations of North Carolina Education Lottery revenue.