House Bill 26 - Education Omnibus Summary

• Transfers governance of the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT) from a Board of Trustees to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, who will hold full authority over employment and contracts, with a Board of Advisors providing advisory functions.

• Changes NCCAT admission eligibility to allow all teachers regardless of years of teaching experience, removing the previous priority given to teachers with 15 or fewer years of experience.

• Authorizes the Department of Public Instruction to contract with Gooru, Inc. for up to three years using COVID-19 pandemic relief funds to provide the Gooru Navigator software program for evaluating student learning and performance.

• Redirects $160,000 in recurring fiscal year 2022-2023 funds from the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and Research to instead purchase attainment data from the National Student Clearinghouse and share it with eligible sectors and partners.

• Requires the Superintendent to study school achievement scores and performance metrics, reporting findings by April 15, 2023, and to submit recommendations for changes to the school evaluation model by February 15, 2024.