Have you ever wondered how much the average public school teacher is paid in salary and benefits, how much public schools receive in lottery funding, or how many students are enrolled in charter schools? If you do, you’re not alone. Those questions are often on the minds of policymakers, parents and anyone who cares about K-12 public education in North Carolina.
There are lots of questions, but where can you find answers?
The best place to look is an annual publication of the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NC DPI) called Highlights of the North Carolina Public School Budget. Highlights is an indispensable source of data about public schools and how money is being spent. That’s important because K-12 public education is the largest budget item in the state budget.
Despite the fact that North Carolina and its public schools lack a state budget, the 2026 Highlights was released last week. And, as always, it didn’t disappoint.
I’ve been using Highlights for nearly 20 years. I find it to be one of the most valuable publications NC DPI publishes. It’s chock full of useful information. It also tracks many programs and budgets on a year-to-year basis so you can see how things change over time. Want to know about data from ten years ago? No problem. DPI provides a helpful archive of Highlights from previous years.
Next time you have a question about North Carolina public schools and don’t know the answer and where to look, Highlights is a good place to start.
