The Durham Public Schools Board of Education on Feb. 21 approved a resolution designating Feb. 24–28, 2025, as Durham Public Schools Crown Act Week, voted to create an ad hoc committee to develop procedures for a standing policy committee, and received extended public comment raising transportation, aftercare and staffing concerns as the district develops its budget.

The Crown Act Week resolution, presented to the board by a district staff member, affirms the district’s support for protections against hair-based discrimination and urges school administrators to use inclusive resources during the week. The board voted 6–0 to adopt the resolution.

During the public-comment period, parents and community members pressed the board for detailed plans on express bus stops and the district’s family responsibility zones (FRZs), which change where students are eligible for door-to-door bus service. Several commenters said the lack of precise stop locations and schedules is forcing families — particularly single-parent households, families of younger students and families with work constraints — to scramble for transportation or aftercare. “Where will express stops be? What times will they operate? What are the expectations of parents at pickup and drop off?” asked Chad Heffley, identified as a parent of students at Rogers-Herr Middle and Hope Valley Elementary in a written public comment read into the record.

Multiple public commenters also urged the board to restore master’s-level pay for school social workers and increase compensation for other student-support staff. Jocelyn Dawson, speaking in favor of master’s pay for social workers, described practical supports her school’s social worker provides, including outreach to families in multiple languages and coordinating clothing and food assistance. Other commenters asked the board for greater transparency on Title I allocations after a change in how the district calculates economically disadvantaged percentages, saying local data such as homelessness and migrant status are no longer counted in some Title I metrics.

Board members and staff spent the meeting discussing a draft legislative agenda the board plans to send to Durham’s General Assembly delegation. Members asked that the agenda explicitly request removal (or expansion) of caps that limit state funding for exceptional children (EC) and English-language learner (ELL) programs and to include teacher affordable-housing legislation and opposition to voucher expansions. District staff quantified the local impact of the funding caps: removing the EC cap would represent roughly $5.5 million in additional state funding for the district, while the ELL cap limits the district by an amount the superintendent’s staff estimated at about $6.1 million based on current enrollment counts.

On policy-development processes, the board voted to authorize the chair to work with the district attorney and staff to convene an ad hoc committee of the whole to draft procedures and a standing policy committee structure. The motion passed 6–1. Attorney remarks in the meeting described options other districts use: defining the committee’s purpose, membership appointment methods, ex-officio roles for the superintendent and chair, and ensuring compliance with North Carolina open-meetings law.

District finance staff gave an early look at the superintendent’s recommended budget timeline and pressures. The budget presentation listed several fiscal challenges: an unbalanced current-year base budget, inflationary pressures, uncertain enrollment and charter-school movement, and federal funding uncertainty. Staff told the board the district spends roughly $5–6 million per month in federal funds (including child nutrition) and is monitoring possible federal changes. For the coming fiscal planning, finance staff estimated continuation costs that initially totaled several million dollars in compensation, retirement and insurance assumptions and utility and insurance increases; staff said those figures will be refined as state revenue forecasts are finalized.

The board also approved routine items by roll call earlier in the meeting (agenda adoption, minutes and the consent agenda) and ended the session by approving a personnel report. After the meeting the board scheduled the ad hoc committee’s first meeting by poll.

Votes at a glance

- Agenda approval — moved by Ms. Byer, seconded by Ms. Umstead; outcome: passed (6–0).
- Minutes (01/28/2025) approval — moved and seconded on the record; outcome: passed (6–0).
- Consent agenda — moved by Ms. Byer, seconded by Ms. Carter Otten; outcome: passed (6–0).
- DPS Crown Act Week resolution — moved by Ms. Harrold Goff, seconded by Ms. Umstead; outcome: passed (6–0). The resolution designates Feb. 24–28, 2025, as DPS Crown Act Week and directs administrators to support school-level activities and resources during that week.
- Ad hoc committee to develop policy-committee procedures — moved by Ms. Beyer, seconded by Ms. Umstead; outcome: passed (6–1). The board authorized the chair to convene an ad hoc committee (committee of the whole or a composition the chair and board agree on) and asked staff and legal counsel to support drafting procedures for a standing policy committee.
- Personnel report (02/21/2025) — moved by district staff and seconded on the record; outcome: passed (unanimous).

What happened next

Board members directed staff to continue refining the superintendent’s recommended budget and to return with more specific cost estimates for options discussed publicly, including compensation supplements for teachers with master’s degrees, potential adjustments to bus-driver pay or bonuses, and the fiscal impact of aligning staffing ratios with state funding recommendations. The board also asked staff to provide additional information on social-worker staffing ratios and on the effects of any proposed master’s-pay policy on recruitment and retention.