Did NC school district ‘defy’ Parents’ Bill of Rights? House leader seeks answers
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- State lawmaker demands Griffin testify after Libs of TikTok alleges defiance
- CHCCS says it complied and created detailed staff guidance beyond statute
- Board previously rejected required pronoun notifications and set guidance
CORRECTION: The Chapel Hill-Carrboro School Board amended the district’s policy in January 2024 to include the state’s prohibition on K-4 classroom instruction about gender identity, sexuality or sexual activity. Previous stories said the board rejected the K-4 instruction ban.
Almost two years after state lawmakers criticized the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools board over its implementation of the Parents’ Bill of Rights, a conservative activist account on social media has reignited claims that the board isn’t complying with state law.
In a post to X on Thursday afternoon, the account Libs of TikTok accused Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools board Chair George Griffin of “bragging” about refusing to comply with North Carolina’s Parents’ Bill of Rights, or Senate Bill 49, which was passed in 2023.
State House Majority Leader Brenden Jones, a Republican from Tabor City, quoted the post and wrote that Griffin and the CHCCS system should “be ready to testify before the House to explain why you think you can openly defy state law.”
Jones, via his legislative assistant Mason Powell, told The N&O in an emailed statement that the N.C. House Select Committee on Oversight and Reform “is currently gathering more facts regarding the actions of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools in violation of SB 49.” Jones is a chair of the committee.
“Rest assured, a hearing will be held soon to ensure CHCCS is held accountable and compliant with state law,” Jones said.
Griffin was speaking at a candidates forum last month when the topic of the CHCCS system voting on a new policy to comply with the Parents’ Bill of Rights in 2024 came up, CHCCS spokesperson Andy Jenks said in an emailed statement to The N&O.
Jenks did not specify which forum, but the Chapel Hill-Carrboro PTA Council and other community partners held a candidate forum for the CHCCS board on Sept. 29 at the Chapel Hill Public Library.
“We got down to the nitty-gritty of it as a school board, and there were two of those 12 items that we determined were just blatantly discriminatory,” Griffin said at the forum. “There wasn’t any sense in it or anything. And after some prolonged discussion, the board voted to tell the General Assembly ‘No thanks, we’re not doing this.’”
In January 2024, the CHCCS board voted not to require its schools to notify parents if their students went by a different name or pronouns at school, The N&O reported.
Instead, the board asked district administrators to develop written guidance for how educators should handle name and pronoun change requests in a way that protects students and staff.
Jenks did not respond to The N&O’s request to make Griffin available for interview but wrote that the CHCCS system is in compliance with state law.
“At the time, we took steps to go beyond the minimum requirements of the statute,” Jenks said, “and instead of just adopting the blanket policy language, we developed detailed, nuanced guidance for school staff in order to foster collaboration with families and protect the social-emotional wellbeing of our students.”
What does NC Parents’ Bill of Rights say?
The N.C. General Assembly passed the Parents’ Bill of Rights in 2023 after Republicans overrode then-Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto. Among other provisions, the bill:
- Required educators to tell parents if students change their name or pronouns at school
- Barred schools from teaching about gender identity, sexual activity and sexuality until the fifth grade
- Allowed parents to review and object to textbooks and instructional materials used in their child’s school
- Allowed parents access to their child’s school library records
- Required parents to give permission for their child to participate in “protected information surveys” that ask about issues like sexual behavior and mental health — except the federally funded Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System and the National Youth Tobacco Survey
N.C. Senate Majority Leader Phil Berger, a Republican from Rockingham, also quoted the Libs of TikTok post and added: “This is completely unacceptable. School districts should be working with parents, not against them.”
This story was originally published October 24, 2025 at 5:55 PM.
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