Today is a critical day for North Carolina’s children. The NC Supreme Court will rehear the Leandro v. State of NC case. 

We declare our collective support for state investments to fully fund the Leandro Plan. We believe in North Carolina’s constitutional guarantee that every child deserves a sound, basic education. 

The Leandro Plan is a smart, common-sense way to support public schools and promise a better future for every child in North Carolina. Your child would have access to high-quality pre-K, an excellent teacher, a highly trained principal, adequate resources at school, fair tests, and training for education and work opportunities. 

Families across North Carolina face real and growing needs. The Leandro plan would help fix what you talk about at your kitchen table, from your child’s bus driver or teacher shortage to increasing mental health support at school. It will help all North Carolina families, but especially those most on the margins: working class families living in poverty, multilingual learners, students with disabilities, and rural students. 

This is about children, not partisanship. Politicians did not pick the plan. No political party was prioritized over another. The Leandro plan is based on research from independent experts and input from North Carolina educators, parents, and community leaders from across the state. The plan is evidence-based and supported by those who work most closely with children, meaning it includes best practices to improve our early childhood system and public schools that we know actually work. 

We can make it a reality in North Carolina. Our state has billions of dollars in unused revenue. If the State Supreme Court does not mandate the transfer of the money to our children’s schools, we as state legislators can fix it. Democratic legislators will be filing a bill supporting the entirety of the Leandro plan during the short session in April. 

We must fulfill our constitutional duty to the children of North Carolina. 

Signed, 

North Carolina House Democratic Caucus Members

North Carolina Senate Democratic Caucus Members