A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to appropriate funds to provide additional professional development COURSES for teachers.
Whereas, the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‑19) has impacted participation by our teachers in and the delivery of professional development opportunities offered through the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching (NCCAT); and
Whereas, teacher effectiveness is the most important factor in delivering positive student outcomes; and
Whereas, the State of North Carolina is committed to reaching as many teachers as possible with high‑quality and cost‑effective professional development to increase teacher effectiveness; and
Whereas, online learning allows resources to stretch further through the ability to scale. Online learning reaches a large number of teachers and results in travel savings, reduced substitute teacher pay, and other benefits. Online learning allows teachers to stay in their classrooms while they learn new skills to improve student achievement; and
Whereas, strategically and systematically designed online professional development courses can offer unique benefits to teachers, including flexibility and convenience, broad access to information and learning opportunities, and the opportunity to interact with peers across the State; and
Whereas, the North Carolina Virtual Public School (NCVPS) is nationally recognized and the second‑largest state‑led virtual school in the nation. NCVPS delivers supplements to middle and high school course catalogs and serves the professional development needs of North Carolina's teachers; and
Whereas, the NCCAT focuses on providing North Carolina's teachers with high‑quality professional development to serve teachers in all 115 local school administrative units; and
Whereas, NCVPS and NCCAT, in partnership, provide North Carolina teachers with a rich suite of professional development options. NCVPS has the infrastructure and the skill set to design and deploy online courses in a variety of formats. NCCAT understands the learning needs of North Carolina's teachers and provides high‑quality content targeted at those needs; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑12 is amended by adding a new subdivision to read:
"(47)	Professional Development Courses. – The State Board of Education, in consultation with the Professional Educator Preparation and Standards Commission, shall offer at least five professional development courses for teachers in local school administrative units. Each course shall be based on at least one of the following three instructional models:
a.	Instructor‑led, asynchronous learning with live class sessions. – A learning experience in which all content, instruction, and interaction is delivered online. Participants complete the course as a cohort, receive individualized feedback from the instructor, and have the opportunity to communicate directly with one another. Enrollment is limited to between 25 and 35 participants.
b.	Self‑paced, asynchronous learning. – A flexible learning experience based on the needs of the participants. A participant may access courses individually and at his or her own pace. Each course includes logistical and operational support, individualized feedback from the instructor, and extensive peer‑to‑peer interaction. Enrollment may exceed 35 participants.
c.	Office hours; question and answer sessions. – Small learning experiences focused on specific techniques, strategies, and tools for teachers. Lectures are limited to 15 minutes with the remainder of the session devoted to discussion, including questions and answers."
SECTION 2.(a)  Appropriation. – There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Public Instruction the sum of three hundred fifty thousand three hundred ten dollars ($350,310) in nonrecurring funds for the 2020‑2021 fiscal year to develop and implement the professional development courses required by this act, including costs for on‑site equipment and personnel, registrations, technical support, and hosting fees.
SECTION 2.(b)  State Budget Act Applies. – The provisions of the State Budget Act, Chapter 143C of the General Statutes, are reenacted and shall remain in full force and effect and are incorporated in this act by reference.
SECTION 2.(c)  Additional Limitations and Directions. – Except where expressly repealed or amended by this act, the provisions of any other legislation enacted during the 2019 Regular Session of the General Assembly expressly appropriating funds to an agency, a department, or an institution covered under this act, shall remain in effect.
SECTION 2.(d)  Applicability of House Bill 966, 2019 Regular Session. – If House Bill 966, 2019 Regular Session, becomes law, and any provision of that act or a provision of the Committee Report described in Section 42.2 of that act conflicts with this act, this act shall control.
SECTION 3.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2020.