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Academics » Parent's Bill of Rights

Parent's Bill of Rights

Parents' Rights for Their Child's Education
 
Under State law (S.L. 2023-106), parents are allowed to exercise the following rights concerning their child’s education:
  1. The right to consent or withhold consent for participation in reproductive health and safety education programs, consistent with the requirements of G.S. 115C-81.30.
  2. The right to seek a medical or religious exemption from immunization requirements, consistent with the requirements of G.S. 130A-156 and G.S. 130A-157.
  3. The right to review statewide standardized assessment results as part of the State report card.
  4. The right to request an evaluation of their child for an academically or intellectually gifted program, or for identification as a child with a disability, as provided in Article 9 of this Chapter.
  5. The right to inspect and purchase public school unit textbooks and other supplementary instructional materials, as provided in Part 3 of Article 8 of Chapter 115C.
  6. The right to access information relating to the board's policies for promotion or retention, including high school graduation requirements.
  7. The right to receive student report cards on a regular basis that clearly depict and grade the student's academic performance in each class or course, the student's conduct, and the student's attendance.
  8. The right to access information relating to the State public education system, State standards, report card requirements, attendance requirements, and textbook requirements.
  9. The right to participate in parent-teacher organizations.
  10. The right to opt in to certain data collection for their child, as provided in Part 5 of Article 7B and Article 29 of Chapter 115C.
  11. The right for students to participate in protected student information surveys only with parental consent, as provided in G.S. 115C-76.65.
  12. The right to review all available records of materials their child has borrowed from a school library.
I. Notifications of student health
1. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.45(a), at the beginning of every school year, Principals shall notify parents of the following:
(a) Notice of each health care service offered at their child's school and how the parent can provide consent for any specific service.
(b) Acknowledgement that a parent's consent to a health care service does not waive the parent's right to access his or her child's educational records or health records, or to be notified of changes in the child's services or monitoring.
(c) Procedures to exercise the parental remedies provided by N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.60, set forth in Section IV of this policy.
 
2. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.45(a), Principals shall notify parents of the following:
(a) Prior to administration to students in kindergarten through third grade, a copy of any student well-being questionnaire or health screening form and the means for the parent to consent to the use of the questionnaire or form for his or her
(b) Prior to or contemporaneous with changes, notice of changes in services or monitoring related to his or her child’s mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being and the school’s ability to provide a safe and supportive learning environment for that child.
(c) Notice of the change prior to any changes in the name or pronoun used for a student in school records or by school personnel.
3. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.45(b) and (e), school personnel:
a. Are required to encourage a child to discuss issues related to the child's well-being with his or her parent and/or facilitate discussion of the issue with the child's parents.
b. Shall not discourage or prohibit parental notification of, and involvement in critical decisions affecting a student's mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being.
4. Nothing in this policy shall do any of the following:
(a) Prohibit parents from accessing any of their child's education and health records created, maintained, or used by the public-school unit, except as follows:
1. As limited by N.C.G.S. § 114A-10(6)a.
2. When a reasonably prudent person would believe that disclosure would result in the child becoming an abused or neglected juvenile, as those terms are defined in N.C.G.S.§ 7B-101.
(b) Prohibit school employees from notifying a parent about his or her child's mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being, or a change in related services or monitoring.
(c) Encourage or have the effect of encouraging a child to withhold from a parent information about his or her mental, emotional, or physical health or well-being, or a change in related services or monitoring.
II. Student support services training
Student support services training developed or provided to school personnel shall adhere to student services guidelines, standards, and frameworks established by the Department of Public Instruction
 
III. Age-appropriate instruction for kindergarten through fourth grade
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.55, instruction on gender identity, sexual activity, or sexuality shall not be included in the curriculum provided in kindergarten through fourth grade, regardless of whether the information is provided by school personnel or third parties. For the purposes of this section, curriculum includes the standard course of study and support materials, locally developed curriculum, supplemental instruction, and textbooks and other supplementary materials, but does not include responses to student-initiated questions.
 
IV. Remedies for Parental Concerns
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.60, a parent may notify the principal at his or her child's school regarding concerns about a public school unit's procedure or practice under this policy. This notification shall be sent to the principal, in writing.
1. Within seven days of the parental concern being made, the principal shall either:
(a) Resolve the parental concern and notify the parent; or
(b) Notify the learning community superintendent of the parental concern and why it cannot, or has not, been resolved to the parent’s satisfaction.
2. Within seven days of being notified, the learning community superintendent shall
(a) Resolve the parental concern and notify the parent; or
(b) Notify the superintendent of the parental concern and why it cannot, or has not, been resolved to the parent’s satisfaction.
3. Within ten days of being notified, the superintendent shall either:
(a) Resolve the parental concern and notify the parent; or
(b) Provide the parent a statement of the reason(s) for not resolving the concern.
1. This statement shall be sent to the parent within 30 days of the initial concern raised by the parent.
2. A copy of this statement shall be sent to the superintendent and to the Office of General Counsel.
 
4. If the concern is not resolved within 30 days of the initial concern raised by the parent, a parent may do either of the following:
(a) Notify the State Board of Education of the concern and request a parental concern hearing.
(b) Bring an action against the Youngsville Academy School Board as provided in Article 26 of Chapter 1 of the North Carolina General Statutes for a declaratory judgment that the unit's procedure or practice violates N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.45, § 115C-76.50, or § 115C-76.55.
1. The court may award injunctive relief to a parent and shall award reasonable attorneys' fees and costs to a parent awarded injunctive relief.
1. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.25, the district shall display on the YACS website the following parental legal rights with regard to their child’s education:
 
a. The right to consent or withhold consent for participation in reproductive health and safety education programs, consistent with the requirements of N.C.G.S. § 115C-81.30.
b. The right to seek a medical or religious exemption from immunization requirements, consistent with the requirements of N.C.G.S. §§ G.S. 130A-156 and 130A-157.
c. The right to review statewide standardized assessment results as part of the State report card.
d. The right to request an evaluation of their child for an academically or intellectually gifted program, or for identification as a child with a disability, as provided in Article 9 of Chapter 115C of the North Carolina General Statutes.
e. The right to inspect and purchase public school unit textbooks and other supplementary instructional materials, as provided in Part 3 of Article 8 of Chapter 115C of the North Carolina General Statutes.
f. The right to access information relating to the Board’s policies for promotion or retention, including high school graduation requirements.
g. The right to receive student report cards on a regular basis that clearly depict and grade the student's academic performance in each class or course, the student's conduct, and the student's attendance.
h. The right to access information relating to the State public education system, State standards, report card requirements, attendance requirements, and textbook requirements.
i. The right to participate in parent-teacher organizations.
j. The right to opt-in to certain data collection for their child, as provided in N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.65.
k. The right for students to participate in protected student information surveys only with parental consent, as provided in N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.65.
l. The right to review all available records of materials their child has borrowed from a school library as set forth in Board policy 3210.
 
2. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.30(c), the district shall provide to parents, students, and school personnel, at the beginning of each school year, a parent guide for student achievement that meets the following requirements:
 
a. Includes, at a minimum, the State Board requirements developed as provided in subsection (a) of N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.30 and all Board policies and Superintendent regulations related to parent involvement, pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.30.
b. Is understandable to students and parents.
c. Is provided in writing to the parent.
d. Is discussed at the beginning of each school year in meetings of students, parents, and teachers.
 
3. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. §§ 115C-76.20, 115C-76.25, and 115C-76.35, the Superintendent shall create a Regulation accompanying this Policy that creates processes to accomplish the following:
 
a. Inform parents of their legal rights and responsibilities with regard to their child's education.
b. Provide to parents, on an annual basis, the parent's guide for student achievement as set forth in section 2 above.
c. Allow parents to exercise their legal rights for their child’s education, as enumerated in N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.25(a) and Section 1 above.
d. Make the parental rights contained in in N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.25(a) and Section 1 above available to parents electronically or by displaying the information on the district’s website.
e. Provide links to parents for community services.
f. Establish opportunities for parental involvement in the development, implementation, and evaluation of family involvement programs.
g. Establish opportunities for parents to participate on school advisory councils and in school volunteer programs and other activities.
h. Provide for parental participation in their child's education to improve parent and teacher cooperation in areas such as homework, school attendance, and discipline that aligns with the parent guide for student achievement required by N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.30 and Section 2 above.
i. Require principals to effectively communicate to parents the manner in which textbooks are used to implement the school's curricular objectives.
j. Establish a process for parents to learn about the nature and purpose of clubs and activities offered at their child's school, including both curricular and extracurricular activities as defined by Policy 1310/4002.
 
4. Parental Requests for Information
 
A parent may request in writing from the principal of the school in which his or her child is enrolled any of the information the parent has the right to access, as provided in this policy. The Superintendent shall adopt a regulation for the process of parent requests for information under this policy, and shall include the following:
a. The process by which a parent may request the information from the Principal.
b. A principal, within 10 business days of receipt of the request, shall either (i) provide the requested information to the parent or (ii) provide an extension notice to the parent that, due to the volume or complexity of the request, the information will be provided no later than 20 business days from the date of the parental request.
c. If the principal (i) denies or fails to respond to the request for information within 10 business days, or (ii) fails to provide information within 20 business days following an extension notice, the parent may request in writing any of the information the parent has the right to access, as provided in this policy, from the superintendent, along with a statement specifying the time frame of the denial or failure to provide information by the principal.
d. If the superintendent denies or does not respond to the request for information within 10 business days, the parent may appeal the denial or lack of response to the Board of Education no later than 20 business days from the date of the request to the superintendent.
 
5. Appeal to Board of Education
 
If an information request is appealed to the Board within the time limit set forth above, the Board will place the parent’s appeal on the agenda for the next meeting of the Board occurring more than three business days after submission of the appeal.
 
6. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.40(e), a decision of the Board under that statute and this policy is final and is not subject to judicial review.
 
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.40(e), a decision of the Board under that statute and this policy is final and is not subject to judicial review.
 
7. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.40(d), the district shall display the procedures for requests for information and appeals on the YACS website.
 
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 115C-76.40(d), the district shall display the procedures for requests for information and appeals on the YACS website.
I. Selection of Instructional Materials
The Superintendent shall adopt a regulation accompanying this policy that sets forth the objectives and procedures for selecting library media center and supplementary materials. Pending review of instructional and supplemental materials for selection or objection, all materials shall remain in circulation unless or until a final decision has been made.
 
II. Parental Review of Instructional Materials
 
Parents have the right to learn about their child's course of study and the source of any supplementary instructional materials, and to inspect and review all textbooks and supplementary instructional materials that will be used in their child’s classroom.
 
The Superintendent’s regulation shall establish a procedure for parents to learn about their child’s course of study and the source of any supplementary instructional materials. This policy and the Superintendent’s regulation shall be available for in-person review by parents at the school site and publicly available on the school’s website. The Superintendent’s regulation shall establish a means for parents to object to textbooks and supplementary instructional materials consistent with the requirements of N.C.G.S. § 115C-98, and to object to library media center materials.
§ 115C-81.30. Reproductive health and safety education provided by local school
administrative units.
(a) Each local school administrative unit shall provide a reproductive health and safety
education program commencing in the seventh grade. Materials used in this instruction shall be
age-appropriate for use with students. Law enforcement agencies, criminal justice agencies, and
nongovernmental organizations with experience in sex-trafficking prevention and awareness
may provide materials and information. Information conveyed during the instruction shall be
objective and based upon scientific research that is peer reviewed and accepted by
professionals and credentialed experts in any of the following fields: sexual health education,
adolescent psychology, behavioral counseling, medicine, human anatomy, biology, ethics, or
health education. Reproductive health and safety instruction provided by the local school
administrative units shall do the following:
(1) Teach that abstinence from sexual activity outside of marriage is the
expected standard for all school-age children.
(2) Present techniques and strategies to deal with peer pressure and offering
positive reinforcement.
(3) Present reasons, skills, and strategies for remaining or becoming abstinent
from sexual activity.
(4) Teach that abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain means of
avoiding out-of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases when
transmitted through sexual contact, including HIV/AIDS, and other
associated health and emotional problems. As used in this section,
"HIV/AIDS" means Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune
Deficiency Syndrome.
(5) Teach that a mutually faithful monogamous heterosexual relationship in the
context of marriage is the best lifelong means of avoiding sexually
transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS.
(6) Teach the positive benefits of abstinence until marriage and the risks of
premarital sexual activity.
(7) Provide opportunities that allow for interaction between the parent or legal
guardian and the student.
(8) Provide factually accurate biological or pathological information that is
related to the human reproductive system.
(9) Teach about the preventable risks for preterm birth in subsequent
pregnancies, including induced abortion, smoking, alcohol consumption, the
use of illegal drugs, and inadequate prenatal care.
(10) Teach about sexually transmitted diseases. Instruction shall include how
sexually transmitted diseases are and are not transmitted, the effectiveness
and safety of all federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved
methods of reducing the risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases,
and information on local resources for testing and medical care for sexually
transmitted diseases. Instruction shall include the rates of infection among
pre-teen and teens of each known sexually transmitted disease and the
effects of contracting each sexually transmitted disease. In particular, the
instruction shall include information about the effects of contracting the
Human Papilloma Virus, including sterility and cervical cancer.
(11) Teach about the effectiveness and safety of all FDA-approved contraceptive
methods in preventing pregnancy.
(12) Teach awareness of sexual assault, sexual abuse, and risk reduction. The
instruction and materials shall:
G.S. 115C-81.30 Page 2
a. Focus on healthy relationships.
b. Teach students what constitutes sexual assault and sexual abuse, the
causes of those behaviors, and risk reduction.
c. Inform students about resources and reporting procedures if they
experience sexual assault or sexual abuse.
d. Examine common misconceptions and stereotypes about sexual
assault and sexual abuse.
(13) Teach about sex trafficking prevention and awareness. Each local school
administrative unit shall:
a. Collaborate with a diverse group of outside consultants where
practical, including law enforcement with expertise in sex-trafficking
prevention education, to address the threats of sex trafficking.
b. Collaborate with a diverse group of outside consultants, including
law enforcement with expertise in sex trafficking, on a referral
protocol for high-risk pupils and minors.
(b) Each local board of education shall adopt a policy and provide a mechanism to
allow a parent or a legal guardian to withdraw his or her child from instruction required under
subdivisions (10) through (13) of subsection (a) of this section.
(c) Parental Review and Consent. – Each school year, before students may participate
in any portion of (i) a program that pertains to or is intended to impart information or promote
discussion or understanding in regard to the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases,
including HIV/AIDS, or to the avoidance of out-of-wedlock pregnancy or (ii) a reproductive
health and safety education program, whether developed by the State or by the local board of
education, the parents and legal guardians of those students shall be given an opportunity to
review the objectives and materials as provided in G.S. 115C-81.25(d). Local boards of
education shall adopt policies to provide opportunities either for parents and legal guardians to
consent or for parents and legal guardians to withhold their consent to the students'
participation in any or all of these programs.
(d) Information on Contraceptives and Abortion Referral Services. – Students may
receive information about where to obtain contraceptives and abortion referral services only in
accordance with a local board's policy regarding parental consent. Any instruction concerning
the use of contraceptives or prophylactics shall provide accurate statistical information on their
effectiveness and failure rates for preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases,
including HIV/AIDS, in actual use among adolescent populations and shall explain clearly the
difference between risk reduction and risk elimination through abstinence. The Department of
Health and Human Services shall provide the most current available information at the
beginning of each school year.
(e) Prohibition on Distribution of Contraceptives. – Contraceptives, including condoms
and other devices, shall not be made available or distributed on school property.
(f) School Health Coordinators. – School health coordinators may be employed to
assist in the instruction of any portion of the comprehensive school health education program.
Where feasible, a school health coordinator should serve more than one local school
administrative unit. Each person initially employed as a State-funded school health coordinator
after June 30, 1987, shall have a degree in health education.
(g) Duty of Local School Administrative Units. – Each local school administrative unit
shall provide a comprehensive school health education program that meets all the requirements
of this section and all the objectives established by the State Board. Each local board of
education may expand on the subject areas to be included in the program and on the
instructional objectives to be met. (2017-126, s. 5.)