Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 20h

North Carolina is one of 27 states that has been given the designation “needs assistance” two years in a row.

www.wral.com/story/nc-isn...

NC isn’t meeting federal special education requirements. State officials point to the teacher shortage

North Carolina will face more scrutiny from the federal government after failing to meet benchmarks of the federal Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act.

www.wral.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Keung Hui @keunghui.bsky.social · 22h

North Carolina wipes out $6.5 billion in medical debt for 2.5 million residents. Here’s how. The state's Medical Debt Relief Program is resulting in hospitals forgiving the debt for low- and middle-income residents. (Via @lucianaperezu.bsky.social) www.newsobserver.com/news/politic... #ncpol

North Carolina wipes out $6.5B in medical debt for 2.5M residents. Here’s how.

North Carolina’s medical debt initiative, announced in 2024, has delivered more relief than initially expected in a state with a high rate of medical debt.

www.newsobserver.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Center for NC Politics & Public Service @ncpolitics.bsky.social · 1d

It's official: NC will yet again redraw its congressional map, from 10-4 Republican to 11-3 Republican.

But could they go for all 14 districts?

New Substack post from @bowtiepolitics.bsky.social:

#ncpol

open.substack.com/pub/ncpoliti...

In the words of The Joker: "And here we go..." yet again with NC redistricting

The Old North State enters the Nationalized Redistricting War

open.substack.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Sue Sturgis @suesturgis.bsky.social · 21h

Duke Energy officials point to the Trump administration's coal-friendly policies as key to its decision to keep three North Carolina coal plants -- Belews Creek, Cliffside, and Marshall -- online longer than previously intended.

An EPA emissions rollback proposal is key to Duke Energy's plan to delay coal plant retirements

Duke Energy's most recent carbon reductions and resource plan proposal suggests delaying retirements of three NC plants that can burn coal.

www.wunc.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

STAT @statnews.com · 3d

The White House’s mass firing of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention staff on Friday has decimated offices related to injury prevention, respiratory disease surveillance, and chronic disease. www.statnews.com/2025/10/11/c...

‘It’s a massacre’: CDC battered by government shutdown firings

The White House’s mass firing of CDC staff on Friday has decimated offices related to injury prevention, respiratory disease surveillance, and chronic disease, according to four people familiar with t...

www.statnews.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Oregonian @oregonian.com · 5d

Things are happening at Portland's ICE facility tonight.

Read more of our protest coverage here: www.oregonlive.com/crime/2025/1...

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Education Week @edweek.org · 4d

Private School Choice Gets Supercharged in Trump's 2nd Term: At the same time, his administration is pledging to dial back the federal role in education.

Private School Choice Gets Supercharged in Trump's 2nd Term

At the same time, his administration is pledging to dial back the federal role in education.

www.edweek.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 4d

N.C. Rep. Cecil Brockman (D – Guilford) is facing bipartisan calls for his resignation after being charged with multiple sex crimes.

www.theassemblync.com/politics/cec...

Brockman Faces Sex Charges, Calls to Resign

N.C. Rep. Cecil Brockman (D-Guilford) is facing bipartisan calls for his resignation after being charged with multiple sex crimes.

www.theassemblync.com

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Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 4d

Some North Carolina teachers are scaling back or shutting down their classroom libraries in response to a new state law requiring them to catalog all their books, @keunghui.bsky.social reports.

www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e...

New NC law means teachers are providing fewer books for their students to read

The new state requirement that teachers catalog the names of all the books in their classroom is drawing complaints from educators.

www.newsobserver.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Jessica Wakeman @jessicawakeman.bsky.social · 4d

www.wunc.org/education/20...

Under pressure from right-wing groups, NC public universities disagree on whether a syllabus is a public record

Right-wing groups are increasingly requesting copies of syllabi and course materials to assess what's being taught in college classrooms. That means universities like UNC-Chapel Hill and UNC Greensbor...

www.wunc.org

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Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 4d

A year after Helene, what exactly President Trump’s GoFundMe campaign paid for remains unclear, @grist.org reports.

www.bpr.org/helene-recov...

Trump raised $8 million for Helene survivors. Where did it all go?

The campaign bad-mouthed FEMA while using crowdfunding to donate to evangelical nonprofits.

www.bpr.org

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Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 4d

Sixteen school districts in NC have no full-time psychologists, including three counties in WNC: Cherokee, Mitchell and McDowell. Avery and Madison counties only have one full-time psychologist each, @blueridgepublic.bsky.social reports.

www.bpr.org/education/20...

Are the kids alright? Mental health problems spike for students post-Helene

A year after Helene, students are wrestling with heightened mental health challenges, from anxiety and depression to an uptick in sleep issues and “externalizing behaviors” like aggression and substan...

www.bpr.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Caitlin Kelly @caitlinkelly.bsky.social · 6d

“I'm optimistic that, you know, five years from now a majority of kids are going to be in a private school choice program.” www.propublica.org/article/educ...

These Activists Want to Dismantle Public Schools. Now They Run the Education Department.

Under Trump, the Department of Education has been bringing in activists hostile to public schools. It could mean a new era of private and religious schools boosted by tax dollars — and the end of publ...

www.propublica.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Jordan Green @byjordangreen.bsky.social · 7d

Adam Smith, an ex-Green Beret who led Savage Freedoms — a civilian relief operation praised by Trump but flagged by a FEMA worker for prompting a state medical team evacuation — is running for Congress in NC-11, covering the area of western NC hardest hit by Helene
www.rawstory.com/raw-investig...

Ex-Green Beret suspected of leading armed militia mounts GOP run for Congress

A special forces soldier turned motivational speaker who led a civilian disaster response to Hurricane Helene last fall, generating an Army investigation into whether he was leading an armed militia g...

www.rawstory.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 7d

For the last 19 years, North Carolina has been in a death penalty limbo.

But on Friday, Gov. Josh Stein signed Iryna’s Law, a bill named after a Ukrainian refugee stabbed on a Charlotte train. Republican state legislators hope the law will restart executions.

www.theassemblync.com/politics/cri...

A Revived Death Penalty?

Republican state legislators hope a new crime law will restart the death penalty. Legal experts say it won’t be that easy.

www.theassemblync.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 8d

MLB last expanded 27 years ago but is nearly certain to select two new teams by 2029, when Commissioner Rob Manfred retires. For seven years, a growing coalition of advocates has built a case for Raleigh.

www.theassemblync.com/culture/spor...

Raleigh Tries to Break Its 54-Year Baseball Losing Streak

Fast-growing Raleigh appears to be a good candidate for a Major League Baseball team. But even a minor league club has eluded it.

www.theassemblync.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Phyllis Jordan @phylliswjordan.bsky.social · 8d

Brain Development Signals Reading Challenges Long Before Kindergarten @the74.bsky.social www.the74million.org/zero2eight/b...

Brain Development Signals Reading Challenges Long Before Kindergarten

Developmental trajectories of children with and without reading disabilities start to diverge around 18 months, rather than at 5 or 6 years old.

www.the74million.org

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Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 8d

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is trying the former Swain County sheriff in tribal court, Lucas Thomae reports. carolinapublicpress.org/72833/former...

Former Swain sheriff answers to tribal court in significant moment for Cherokees

Due to 2022 change in federal VAWA law, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is trying former Swain Co. sheriff Cochran in tribal court.

carolinapublicpress.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

88.5 WFDD @885wfdd.bsky.social · 11d

Don Phipps will begin as WS/FCS superintendent on Dec. 1 for a 15-month term. #WFDD #education #NCeducation

WS/FCS names new superintendent to start Dec. 1

Don Phipps, the current superintendent of Caldwell County Schools, will assume the role Dec. 1 and serve for 15 months.

www.wfdd.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Liliana Segura @lilianasegura.bsky.social · 12d

“I am in utter shock and disbelief the government has punished my father for simply doing his life’s work of journalism,” said Oscar Guevara...“My father should have never had to face over 100 days in detention. He is the center of our family. He is the reason our home feels like home.”

Mario Guevara To Be Deported After Appeals Court Denies Stay | American Civil Liberties Union

The government detained him for over 100 days in retaliation for his reporting on law enforcement

www.aclu.org

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 12d

UNC-Chapel Hill has hired K&L Gates, a law firm with ties to Republican state legislators, to lead its investigation into the School of Civic Life and Leadership, people familiar with the probe said.

The Politically Connected Law Firm Leading Civics School Investigation

UNC-Chapel Hill hired the law firm K&L Gates, which has represented General Assembly Republicans, to review the School of Civic Life and Leadership.

www.theassemblync.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

Keung Hui @keunghui.bsky.social · 13d

NC State University sues Monsanto, manufacturer of PCBs, over Poe Hall contamination. NC State alleges Monsanto marketed PCB mixtures to the building industry as being safe despite knowing they were toxic. (Via @koriedean.bsky.social) www.newsobserver.com/news/local/e... #nced

NC State sues Monsanto, manufacturer of PCBs, over Poe Hall contamination

Poe Hall has been closed for nearly two years after the toxic chemicals were discovered.

www.newsobserver.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 13d

SALE: You can get The Assembly through next year's midterm elections for just $26! That's more than 50% off — claim your discounted subscription today.

www.theassemblync.com/subscription...

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Carli Brosseau @carlibrosseau.bsky.social · 13d

Few, if any, schools have benefited more from NC's Opportunity Scholarship program than Grace Christian School in Sanford. It has received more public funding than any other private school in the state for three straight years.

businessnc.com/a-sanford-pr...

A Sanford private Christian school leads the pack as lawmakers turbocharge the state’s voucher program. - Business North Carolina

When state lawmakers launched the North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship in 2013, they promoted the program as one that would encourage school choice in the form of private school tuition for low-inco...

businessnc.com

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Reposted by Carli Brosseau

The Assembly @theassemblync.bsky.social · 14d

The Assembly and @propublica.org are reporting on the impact of Hurricane Helene in western North Carolina, and we know recovery is far from over. We want to hear from you about your rebuilding story. www.theassemblync.com/environment/...

Are You Still Rebuilding After Helene? We Want To Hear Your Story

ProPublica and The Assembly are reporting on rebuilding after Helene. We want to hear from you about your experience.

www.theassemblync.com

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