Wake County school system leaders are preparing to revise several policies to comply with new state laws, including eliminating policies that outlined an intention to better connect with minority-owned businesses and set goals for awarding contracts to them.
Policies on contracting would instead state the district plans to connect with small business owners.
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That stems from changes outlined in the budget bill enacted earlier this summer. The budget bill eliminated the state's Office of Historically Underutilized Businesses.
Wake school leaders have also already eliminated the district's Office of Equity Affairs.
"WCPSS operates under federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination, and we remain committed to providing a welcoming, supportive, and high-quality educational environment for all students," the district told WRAL News. "While the district remains committed to providing strong educational opportunities to all students, there is no longer an Office of Equity Affairs."
A Wake County school board committee is set to consider the changes to policies around contracting and more on Tuesday afternoon. The other changes also stem from new state laws, largely established in the new state budget.
Other changes include prohibiting alternative meals --- sometimes called "meals of shame" --- for students whose meal debt has reached a certain amount. Wake stopped serving those meals last school year, though it's needed donations to help cover those meals' costs. An alternative meal is often one without protein and limited to just sides of fruits and vegetables.
They also include allowing students to sign out of school up to four hours per week for religious instruction and have it count as an excused absence. A major religious instruction organization, LifeWise Academy continues to expand nationwide, including in North Carolina, pulling students out of school during the day for lessons. Previously, such absences may have been counted as unexcused.
The committee will also include changes to the method for objecting to materials in schools and the review of those objections.
The new challenge process outlined in the state budget would limit challenges only to parents and guardians of students, teachers and people who live within a school's boundaries. That eliminates national advocacy groups' ability to challenge materials. The challenge must indicate the materials are "obscene," age-inappropriate or inconsistent with academic standards. The bill establishes a new community media advisory board — replacing any current one — that will be made up of nine educators at all school levels and three parents at all school levels. The committee must reach a recommendation within two weeks of a challenge, and the school board has the final say at its next meeting.