North Carolina 2025 Session Status: In Committee 9 D cosponsors

SB 643 — Expand and Enhance the Teaching Fellows Program.

Last action — Passed 1st Reading

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 25, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 26% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 9 sponsors

    1 primary, 8 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (9 D).

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

20 added · 21 removed

Plain-language change summary

Senate Bill 643 has undergone a few significant changes in its latest version. The number of years for which individuals can work in exchange for forgivable loans after completing their teaching programs has been adjusted from eight years to four years. This change is important because it potentially makes the program more accessible and attractive for new teachers, encouraging them to enter the profession while ensuring they have a shorter commitment period to fulfill for loan forgiveness.

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FILED SENATE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA Mar 25, 2025 S.B.
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA SESSION 2025 S 1 SENATE BILL 643 Short Title:
643 SESSION 2025 PRINCIPAL CLERK S D SENATE BILL DRS35243-MTa-52 Short Title:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO EXPAND AND ENHANCE THE NORTH CAROLINA TEACHING FELLOWS PROGRAM.
Rules and Operations of the Senate March 26, 2025 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT TO EXPAND AND ENHANCE THE NORTH CAROLINA TEACHING FELLOWS PROGRAM.
– An elementary or secondary school located in North Carolina that is governed by a local board of education, charter school board of directors, regional school board of directors, or University of North Carolina laboratory school board of trustees.
– An elementaryor secondaryschool located in North Carolina that is governed by a local board of education, charter school board of directors, regional school board of directors, or University of North Carolina laboratory school board of trustees.
*DRS35243-MTa-52* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 2.
*S643-v-1* General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 2.
The purpose of the Program is to recruit, prepare, and support students residing in or attending institutions of higher education located in North Carolina for preparation as highly effective teachers in qualifying licensure areas in the State's public schools.
The purpose of the Program is to recruit, prepare, and support students residing in or attending institutions of higher education located in North Carolina for preparation as highlyeffective teachers in qualifying licensure areas in the State's public schools.
– There is established the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program Trust Fund to be administered by the Authority, in conjunction with the System Office of The University ofNorth Carolina.
– There is established the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program Trust Fund to be administered by the Authority, in conjunction with the System Office of The UniversityofNorthCarolina.
All funds(i)appropriatedto, orotherwisereceivedby,theProgram for forgivable loans and other Program purposes, (ii) received as repayment of forgivable loans, and (iii) earned as interest on these funds shall be placed in the Trust Fund.
All funds(i)appropriatedto, orotherwisereceivedby, theProgram for forgivable loans and other Program purposes, (ii) received as repayment of forgivable loans, and (iii) earned as interest on these funds shall be placed in the Trust Fund.
Page 2 DRS35243-MTa-52 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 c.
Page 2 Senate Bill 643-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 c.
Recruitment activities shall include (i) targeting regions of the State with the highest teacher attrition rates and teacher recruitment challenges, (ii) actively engaging with educators, business leaders, experts in human resources, elected officials, and other community leaders throughout the State, and (iii) attracting candidates in qualifying licensure areas to the Program.
Recruitment activities shall include (i) targeting regions of the State with the highest teacher attrition rates and teacher recruitment challenges, (ii) actively engaging with educators, business leaders, experts in human resources, elected officials, and other communityleaders throughout the State, and (iii) attracting candidates in qualifying licensure areas to the Program.
(3) Experience, accomplishments, and other criteria demonstrating qualities positively correlated with highly effective teachers, including excellent verbal and communication skills.
(3) Experience, accomplishments, and other criteria demonstrating qualities positivelycorrelated with highlyeffective teachers, including excellent verbal and communication skills.
DRS35243-MTa-52 Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (4) Provides curricular and co-curricular enhancements in leadership, facilitates learning for diverse learners, and promotes community engagement, classroom management, and reflection and assessment.
Senate Bill 643-First Edition Page 3 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 (4) Provides curricular and co-curricular enhancements in leadership, facilitates learning for diverse learners, and promotes community engagement, classroom management, and reflection and assessment.
(g) AwardsofForgivableLoans.–TheProgramshall provideforgivableloanstoselected students to be used at up to 10 selected each postsecondary constituent institution of The University of North Carolina with an approved educator preparation program and up to four selected private institutions for completion of a program leading to initial teacher licensure as follows:
(g) AwardsofForgivable Loans.–TheProgramshall provideforgivableloanstoselected students to be used at up to 10 selected each postsecondary constituent institution of The University of North Carolina with an approved educator preparation program and up to four selected private institutions for completion of a program leading to initial teacher licensure as follows:
Page 4 DRS35243-MTa-52 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 a.
Page 4 Senate Bill 643-First Edition General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 a.
– For every year a qualifying teacher remains a qualifying teacher, the Authority shall forgive the loan amount received over one year of enrollment in an educator preparation program and any interest accruedonthat amount.TheAuthority shall forgivetheloan and any interest accrued on the loan if, within 10 years after graduation from a program leading to teacher licensure, exclusive of any authorized deferment for extenuating circumstances, the recipient serves as a teacher in a North Carolina public school for every year the teacher was awarded the forgivable loan, in any combination of the following:
– For every year a qualifying teacher remains a qualifying teacher, the Authority shall forgive the loan amount received over one year of enrollment in an educator preparation program and anyinterest accruedonthat amount.TheAuthorityshall forgivetheloan and any interest accrued on the loan if, within 10 years after graduation from a program leading to teacher licensure, exclusive of any authorized deferment for extenuating circumstances, the recipient serves as a teacher in a North Carolina public school for every year the teacher was awarded the forgivable loan, in any combination of the following:
The Authority shall also forgive the loan if it finds that it is impossible for the recipient to work forup to eight fouryears,within10yearsaftercompletion oftheprogram leading to teacher licensure, at a North Carolina public school because of the death or permanent disability of the recipient.
The Authority shall also forgive the loan if it finds that it is impossible for the recipient to work forup to eight fouryears,within 10 yearsaftercompletion oftheprogram leadingto teacher licensure, at a North Carolina public school because of the death or permanent disability of the recipient.
If the recipient completes a program leading to teacher licensure, payment of principal and interest shall begin no later than the first day of September after the completion DRS35243-MTa-52 Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 of the program.
If the recipient completes a program leading to teacher licensure, payment of principal and interest shall begin no later than the first day of September after the completion Senate Bill 643-First Edition Page 5 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025 of the program.
Page 6 DRS35243-MTa-52
Page 6 Senate Bill 643-First Edition
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Action History

  1. Passed 1st Reading

  2. Ref To Com On Rules and Operations of the Senate

  3. Filed

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 8 co-sponsors · 170 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (8)

Not signed on (170)

170 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 170 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

finance education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors SB 643?
SB 643 is sponsored by Joyce Waddell (Democratic), Gladys A. Robinson (Democratic), Natalie S. Murdock (Democratic), Mujtaba A. Mohammed (Democratic), Jay J. Chaudhuri (Democratic), Woodson Bradley (Democratic), DeAndrea Salvador (Democratic), Paul A. Lowe, Jr. (Democratic), and Kandie D. Smith (Democratic).
What is the current status of SB 643?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced March 25, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
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