NC Senator Bill Cook's Legislative Update: April 16, 2013 | Eastern North Carolina Now

North Carolina General Assembly
Senator Bill Cook     “Update from Raleigh”
District 1 Newsletter: April/16/2013
    The bill filing deadline has passed in both chambers for this long session. That doesn't mean we're slowing down though - 943 bills were filed in the House of Representatives and 724 bills were filed in the Senate. These bills will now be sifted through committees and debated in the chambers. Last week, the Senate passed one very important piece of legislation: The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2013.

The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2013

    Senate Bill 361 - the Excellent Public Schools Act of 2013 - is a comprehensive plan to strengthen student literacy, improve graduation rates, increase accountability in the classroom, reward effective teachers and give parents tools to make better informed decisions about their children's education. This major legislative proposal builds on reforms to North Carolina's public schools and provides opportunities for students to be equipped with skills that prepare them for the future.

    Senate President Pro Tem Phil Berger said, "Our students deserve better than the status quo in education. Change is not always easy, but we must remain focused on solutions that enable our students to reach their full potential. This bill honors our pledge to recognize and reward our state's many outstanding teachers, maintains our commitment to identify and improve struggling schools and - most importantly - upholds our promise to prepare our children for future success." I fully agree with him.

The Excellent Public Schools Act of 2013 will:

    •   Emphasize the importance of literacy by strengthening teacher education programs, licensure requirements and professional development with a special focus on improving students' reading skills. Studies have shown that being able to read by the fourth grade dramatically improves students' chances of graduating from high school.

    •   Enable state employees to volunteer in a public school literacy program for up to five hours per month.

    •   Maximize the amount of instructional time students receive by requiring that all end-of-grade/end-of-course tests be administered within the final 10 instructional days for yearlong courses or final five days for semester courses.

    •   Boost accountability in the classroom by employing teachers through contracts that are renewed based on job performance. The current system fosters mediocrity and discourages excellence by granting unlimited job security to all who teach a few years. But beginning with the 2014-2015 school year, local school boards will have the ability to offer the most effective 25 percent of teachers in their districts four-year employment contracts along with a $500 pay raise each year of the agreement, rewarding those who excel in the classroom. All teachers will be employed through contracts by the 2018-2019 school year.

    •   Continue developing the pay for excellence system to evaluate, identify and reward effective teachers. The plan will incorporate ideas from local school districts and the State Board of Education.

    •   Build on efforts to allow parents to identify high-performing, average and struggling schools in overall student achievement by measuring whether they exceed, meet or fail to meet growth goals. Together with the school grading system implemented last year, this will foster greater transparency, encourage struggling schools to improve and empower parents to determine the best options for their children.

    •   Potentially save taxpayers money and relieve teachers from the burden of learning new tests by requiring the Department of Public Instruction to review the quality and value of new Common Core exams and obtain approval from the General Assembly before buying them.

    •   I am proud to have voted for this important and necessary piece of legislation. I hope to see it pass the House and sent to the Governor shortly.

Sponsorship Update

Since bill filing deadline is passed, there will be no more sponsorship updates, as no new pieces of legislation will be filed. However, you can keep track of all the bills I have sponsored or cosponsored here .

Page Program

If you know a high school student interested in learning more about our state government and how it operates, please have them contact our office about the week-long Senate Page Program. The program is filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. Many weeks are still open through the end of May. Please contact us for the application as soon as possible for the best chance of receiving appointment to your desired week of service.

    Mailing Address:

    300 N. Salisbury Street, Room 525
     Raleigh, NC 27603
     (919) 715-8293     cookla@ncleg.net or bill.cook@ncleg.net