State education officials are preparing requests to the North Carolina General Assembly for initial relief to public schools affected by Helene in western North Carolina. State lawmakers are expected to hold an emergency legislative session as early as next week.
There are more than 20 school districts and about 20 charter schools in counties within the federally declared disaster area. Several districts are still without power or internet, according to State Superintendent Catherine Truitt, and officials don't know how many schools are damaged.
“There are some schools that folks can't even get to yet,” Truitt told the state board of education.
Truitt presented her legislative requests to the state board Thursday. She said she's been in touch with superintendents in affected counties, but there are still many unknowns.
“These superintendents are having to print off rosters of students and call families to see who's still with us, and that is a job that I cannot even begin to imagine that our school leaders and teachers must do,” Truitt said. “So it is with gravity that I present these asks to you all and the legislature.”
DPI to request flexibility for school calendars, remote instruction and employee pay
Some of the legislative requests from the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) will be policy waivers. Truitt said the first priority is allowing schools to pay employees while they are closed or if an employee can't come to work.
“The main concern that our district leaders are sharing is that they want to make sure that all of their employees remain whole financially,” Truitt said.
DPI also plans to request flexibility to let schools make up lost days beyond their normal calendar or offer more days of remote instruction than is currently allowed by state law.
Education officials are using legislation from Hurricane Florence in 2018 as a reference. After Florence, schools were allowed to waive up to 20 days of missed instruction.
State education officials are also exploring options to provide waivers for class size requirements, attendance, and athletic eligibility, so that students who miss more days of school due to their individual circumstances can be eligible to play on school sports teams.
DPI to request $150 million in first round of state funding for school repairs
When it comes to funding requests, Truitt is making an initial ask of $150 million from the state for repairs and mold mitigation at schools that are salvageable. That’s in addition to funds school administrators will be able to access from federal relief, insurance claims, and an existing repairs and renovations fund that’s provided annually by the state.
“They're starting with something,” Truitt said. “But of course, it's not enough.”
Truitt gave the example of Yancey County Schools that lost an entire elementary school building because of Helene.
“We don't know yet how many other buildings will be rendered useless,” Truitt said. “So, this is separate from the need to replace an entire school building.”
Truitt said the cost of replacing a single school is estimated at $42 million for an elementary school, and higher for a middle or high school. She said the $150 million ask should be considered a first-round request for facility repairs.
An additional request for up to $16 million would go toward paying school nutrition staff while schools are closed this month, since those staff are typically paid from the sale of school meals.
“It's important that it be presented that this is essentially a first cut, but not likely the last cut,” said the state board’s Vice Chair Alan Duncan.
