Judge sides with NC tourism businesses that coastal county can’t start school Aug. 13
A judge is blocking a popular North Carolina tourism area from defying the state’s school calendar law.
The Carteret County school board had adopted a calendar for the 2024-25 school year that starts classes Aug. 13 — two weeks earlier than allowed under state law. On Wednesday, Superior Court Judge William D. Wolfe issued an order declaring the calendar to be void.
“It is ordered, adjudged and decreed that the proposed calendar for the 2024-25 school year adopted by the defendant and scheduled to begin August 13, 2024 is contrary to statute and is void,” Wolfe wrote in his order. “Defendant is enjoined from adopting or enforcing a school schedule for that school year that fails to comply with the requirements set forth in (state statute).”
Mitch Armbruster, an attorney for three local businesses who sued the school system, said his clients are pleased with the ruling.
“All we asked for in this case was that the school district be required to follow the law, a law which the school board openly admitted they were violating,” Armbruster said in a statement. “We shouldn’t be teaching our children that it is OK to violate the law.”
School board may appeal
Carteret County includes popular coastal tourism spots such as Atlantic Beach, Emerald Isle and Morehead City.
The school district said in a statement Wednesday that it’s disappointed in the ruling. The school board will hold a special meeting on June 13 to consider an appeal.
“To give scheduling certainty to students, their families, and our faculty and staff, the board will consider adopting a new calendar compliant with the judge’s order,” according to the district’s statement. “We do not want to hold our students and families in limbo as to when school will start in August.
“The whole reason for the calendar we adopted in the first place was for the educational benefit of our students.”
Schools vs. the tourism industry
State lawmakers have regulated school calendars for 20 years, since the tourism industry raised concerns about classes starting earlier in August.
The state’s traditional public schools can’t open sooner than the Monday closest to Aug. 26 or close later than the Friday closest to June 11. The calendar law doesn’t apply to other public schools, such as year-round schools, early college high schools and charter schools.
Efforts to modify the law have failed, resulting in at least 29 school districts choosing to not follow the calendar law.
In December, the Carteret County school board unanimously approved a 2024-25 school year calendar that would run from Aug. 13 to May 22.
The district says the schedule will improve academic achievement by allowing high school students to take fall semester exams before winter break
District calls ruling unfair
In April, the owners of Atlantic Beach Surf Shop, Marsh’s Surf Shop and Sanitary Fish Market & Restaurant filed the lawsuit in Carteret County Superior Court.
“These businesses rely on the School Calendar Law in planning, staffing and running their businesses,” according to the lawsuit. “The loss of revenue that would occur to the Businesses from a shortening of the summer season would be significant.”
But the school district said the mid-August start is needed to “promote the best interests of students and students alone.” The district contended that the calendar law is unconstitutional by pointing to how it doesn’t apply to charter schools, early colleges or private schools receiving taxpayer-funded vouchers.
“Our state and federal constitutions require ‘equal protection’ of law,” according to the district’s statement. “Our state constitution requires equal educational opportunities for all. With respect to the real benefits of school calendar flexibility, traditional public school students are not provided equal opportunities with other schools, and this is wrong.”
This story was originally published June 5, 2024 at 3:51 PM.
