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Read. Follow. Verify.North Carolina creates Cultivation of Excellence Pilot Program to give Cleveland County Schools flexibility in staffing and teacher licensing
Last action · April 10, 2025: Ref to the Com on Education - K-12, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House (House action)Sponsors: Paul Scott and 2 others
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What This Bill Would Do
North Carolina establishes the Cultivation of Excellence Pilot Program for Cleveland County Schools, allowing the district to adjust kindergarten through third-grade staffing levels, employ unlicensed teachers under specific conditions, and hire qualified kindergarten teaching assistants for classrooms beginning with the 2025-2026 school year through December 31, 2031.
Cleveland County public schools gain the authority to hire non-licensed college graduates as up to 50 percent of a school's teaching staff, provided they complete mandatory preservice training in student management and special education.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Cleveland County Schools
The school administrative unit is granted operational flexibility for staffing, hiring, and budget transfers under the pilot program.
Students in Cleveland County
Students experience altered classroom staffing structures, varying teacher credentialing standards, and potential behavioral intervention programs.
Teachers in Cleveland County
Current and prospective educators are subject to modified district employment standards, compensation model changes, and new peer staffing ratios.
Key Facts
- Cleveland County Schools may participate in the Cultivation of Excellence Pilot Program from the 2025-2026 school year until its repeal on December 31, 2031.
- The district is exempt from standard class size restrictions in kindergarten through third grade under G.S. 115C-301(c).
- Unlicensed individuals may be employed as teachers provided they are college graduates if teaching core academic subjects (mathematics, science, social studies, and language arts).
- Unlicensed teachers are capped at a maximum of 50 percent of teachers at any individual school and no more than 25 percent systemwide.
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- Unlicensed teacher hires must complete preservice training in disability identification, positive behavior management, de-escalation communication, and safe seclusion and restraint.
- The local unit may employ individuals meeting kindergarten teaching assistant qualifications as teaching assistants in the NC Pre-K program.
- The board may transfer and approve transfers of funds between the teacher assistants allotment category and the textbooks and digital resources allotment category.
- The State Board of Education must terminate the pilot if it determines the district failed fiscal management standards or violated state/federal law, and submit a report within 30 days.
- The Cleveland County Board of Education must report annually by December 15 to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee and the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
- The General Assembly states its intent to provide funding to implement a teacher compensation model and student behavior intervention programs for elementary and middle schools.
Frequently Asked Questions
What flexibility does Cleveland County Schools receive regarding teacher licensing?
What reporting requirements are mandated for the pilot program?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
3 actions- Apr 10, 2025HouseRef to the Com on Education - K-12, if favorable, Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 10, 2025HousePassed 1st Reading
- Apr 9, 2025HouseIntroducedFiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Local Flexibility for Teacher Credentialing
The bill relaxes standard state educator licensure requirements by allowing a local school district to hire uncertified college graduates up to specified percentage caps.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.ncleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance60How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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