North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina Senate Bill S580 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
2	2		SESSION 2025
3		-	S 1
4		-	SENATE BILL 580
	3	+	S D
	4	+	SENATE BILL DRS15263-NG-76
	5	+
5	6
6	7
7	8		Short Title: Competency-Based Education Grant Program. (Public)
8	9		Sponsors: Senators Lee and Jones (Primary Sponsors).
9		-	Referred to: ~~Rules and Operations of the Senate~~
10		-	~~March 26, 2025~~
11		-	~~S580 -v-1~~
	10	+	Referred to:
	11	+
	12	+	DRS15263 -NG-76
12	13		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
13	14		AN ACT TO ESTABLISH THE NORTH CAROLINA COMPETENCY -BASED 2
14	15		EDUCATION INNOVATION GRANT AND NETWORK PROGRAM AND TO 3
15	16		APPROPRIATE FUNDS FOR THAT PURPOSE . 4
16	17		The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 5
17	18		SECTION 1.(a) Program Established; Purpose. – There is established the North 6
18	19		Carolina Competency-Based Education Innovation Grant and Network Program (Program). The 7
19	20		purpose of the program is to provide funding and support to schools and districts to support the 8
20	21		transition to competency-based education (CBE) models that focus on mastery of learning rather 9
21	22		than instructional time. The grant aims to promote innovative instructional practices, flexible 10
22	23		assessment models, and systemic shifts to ensure all students progress based on demonstrated 11
23	24		proficiency. 12
24	25		SECTION 1.(b) Program Objectives. – The objectives of the Program are as follows: 13
25	26		(1) Redesign Learning Pathways. – Support schools and districts in developing 14
26	27		personalized, CBE models that allow students to progress at their own pace. 15
27	28		(2) Assessment Innovation. – Utilize formative and performance-based 16
28	29		assessments that measure student mastery of skills and knowledge, including 17
29	30		the use of AI learning tools. 18
30	31		(3) Educator Capacity Building. – Provide common professional development for 19
31	32		educators on instructional strategies and assessment practices aligned with 20
32	33		transitioning to CBE. 21
33	34		(4) Develop Strategies for Statewide Scaling and Best Practices. – Develop and 22
34	35		share resources, implementation strategies, and lessons learned to expand 23
35	36		CBE across North Carolina. 24
36	37		SECTION 1.(c) Phase One. – The first phase of the Program shall begin with the 25
37	38		2025-2026 school year and continue until the conclusion of the 2028-2029 school year. Public 26
38	39		school units shall submit applications and complete any planning or organizational duties during 27
39	40		the 2025-2026 school year with implementation of CBE in participating schools beginning with 28
40	41		the 2026-2027 school year. 29
41	42		SECTION 1.(d) Application. – The Department of Public Instruction shall create an 30
42	43		application for the Program and make the application available to all public school units no later 31
43	44		than 60 days after this act becomes law. Public school units shall submit their applications to the 32
44	45		Department no later than 60 days after the application becomes available. The Department shall 33
45	46		select 10 schools to participate in the Program no later than 60 days after the close of the 34
46	47		application period. When selecting schools to participate in the Program, the Department shall 35
47		-	prioritize schools that show a strong commitment to implementing CBE and innovation in 36 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48		-	Page 2 Senate Bill 580-First Edition
	48	+	prioritize schools that show a strong commitment to implementing CBE and innovation in 36
	49	+	FILED SENATE
	50	+	Mar 25, 2025
	51	+	S.B. 580
	52	+	PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
	53	+	Page 2 DRS15263-NG-76
49	54		assessment. The Department shall develop criteria to determine which schools are most ready to 1
50	55		transition to CBE. The application shall include at least the following: 2
51	56		(1) A comprehensive plan outlining the school's vision for competency-based 3
52	57		education. 4
53	58		(2) A description of instructional and assessment shifts to be implemented. 5
54	59		(3) A budget for use of grant funds and a sustainability plan to continue utilizing 6
55	60		CBE after the conclusion of Phase One. 7
56	61		(4) Commitments from public school units leadership and stakeholders. 8
57	62		SECTION 1.(e) Grant funds; Use; Training. – Grant awards shall be in the amount 9
58	63		of three hundred thirty thousand dollars ($330,000) to each participating school. Participating 10
59	64		schools shall use the sum of ninety-five thousand dollars ($95,000) each school year to receive 11
60	65		training on the implementation of CBE in the school. The remaining grants funds shall be used 12
61	66		for costs associated with the transition to CBE, including travel costs and CBE resources. Grant 13
62	67		funds shall remain available until the end of the 2028-2029 fiscal year. 14
63	68		SECTION 1.(f) Selection of third party vendor. – The Department shall select a third 15
64	69		party vendor (Vendor) that is an educational support provider with a nationally recognized, 16
65	70		research-based instructional and leadership framework, including a High Reliability School 17
66	71		model, a taxonomy of educational objectives aligned to classroom strategies, and a system for 18
67	72		implementing personalized competency-based education. The provider must have published 19
68	73		extensively in peer-reviewed and practitioner literature, have an established track record of 20
69	74		working directly with K–12 schools and districts across multiple states, and offer professional 21
70	75		development services, implementation support, and instructional resources developed and led by 22
71	76		a founding education researcher with over four decades of influence in curriculum, instruction, 23
72	77		and assessment. 24
73	78		SECTION 1.(g) Department partnership with Vendor. – The Department shall 25
74	79		partner with the Vendor selected pursuant to subsection (f) of this act to develop publicly 26
75	80		available, standards-aligned proficiency scales for all content areas and grade levels to ensure 27
76	81		educators in the participating schools have the tools necessary to successfully transition to CBE 28
77	82		approaches. The Vendor shall provide annual professional development events throughout the 29
78	83		regions of the State to ensure educators can engage in learning about CBE approaches, including 30
79	84		implementation the proficiency scales developed by the Department. 31
80	85		SECTION 1.(h) Department duties. – The Department of Public Instruction shall do 32
81	86		the following as part of the Program: 33
82	87		(1) Develop, in collaboration with the Vendor, a CBE Network to support the 34
83	88		long-term transition to CBE. The CBE Network shall do the following: 35
84	89		a. Provide strategic guidance and policy recommendations for scaling 36
85	90		CBE Statewide. 37
86	91		b. Facilitate collaboration among grant recipients, educators, 38
87	92		policymakers, and CBE industrial leaders. 39
88	93		c. Develop a long-term roadmap for CBE implementation Statewide. 40
89	94		d. Offer professional learning communities and shared online resources 41
90	95		to support ongoing innovation and capacity building. 42
91	96		e. Develop methods of measuring proficiency for all courses offered as 43
92	97		part of the standard course of study in kindergarten through grade 12, 44
93	98		with support from the Vendor. 45
94	99		f. Disseminate developed proficiency measures to all public school units 46
95	100		and post standards developed to align with the proficiency measures 47
96	101		online on a publicly accessible website. 48
97	102		g. Conduct research and evaluation to inform best practices and 49
98	103		continuous improvement in participating schools. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
99		-	~~Senate Bill 580-First Edition~~ Page 3
	104	+	DRS15263-NG-76 Page 3
100	105		(2) Provide support and technical assistance, professional learning opportunities, 1
101	106		and access to the CBE network for all grant recipients. 2
102	107		SECTION 1.(i) Reporting; Participants. – Each participating school shall submit a 3
103	108		quarterly progress report to the Department detailing implementation of CBE in the school. The 4
104	109		Department shall establish the due dates and mechanism for the submission of the progress 5
105	110		reports. Progress shall include available student learning outcome data, including evidence of 6
106	111		progress toward content mastery. 7
107	112		SECTION 1.(j) Reporting; Department. – The Department of Public Instruction 8
108	113		shall submit a final report on the outcomes of Phase One of the Program to the Joint Legislative 9
109	114		Education Oversight Committee by December 1, 2029. The report shall include the following: 10
110	115		(1) A summary of student outcomes reported by participating schools. 11
111	116		(2) Any challenges experienced by participating schools or the Department with 12
112	117		implementation of the Program. 13
113	118		(3) Recommendations for scaling the Program Statewide. 14
114	119		(4) Any other information the Department deems relevant. 15
115	120		(5) Any information requested by the Committee. 16
116	121		SECTION 2. Funding. – It is the intention of the General Assembly to fund the 17
117	122		Program established pursuant to this act with nonrecurring funds for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. 18
118	123		SECTION 3. Effective date. – This act becomes effective when the Current 19
119	124		Operations Appropriations Act of 2025 becomes law and if that bill appropriates funds for the 20
120	125		purposes detailed in this act. 21