Rep. Belk files bill in North Carolina House to grade schools on achievement and growth

A new bill filed by State Rep. Mary Belk seeks to create a system that grades schools separately on achievement and growth to better identify low-performing schools, according to the North Carolina State House.

The bill, filed as HB 840 on April 9 during the 2025 regular session, was formally listed with the short title: ‘Reward Schools for Student Growth.’

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill establishes a system to separately grade North Carolina schools based on achievement and growth, effective Jan. 1, 2026. It mandates that schools receive two distinct scores and corresponding grades, one for achievement and one for growth. Achievement is assessed through measures like student performance on annual assessments, while growth reflects student progress over time. The achievement grade ranges from A to F, with scores of at least 85 equivalent to an A. Growth grades are determined similarly, ranging from 90 for an A to below 60 for an F. The State Board of Education will calculate overall performance by combining these scores, with achievement accounting for 80% and growth for 20%. This grading will aid in identifying low-performing schools and districts, requiring them to formulate improvement plans, and ensure public distribution of these report cards.

Of the four sponsors of this bill, Belk proposed the most bills (24) during the 2025 regular session.

Bills in North Carolina follow a multi-step process before becoming law. A lawmaker starts by filing a bill, which is assigned to a committee for review. The bill must be read three times in each chamber. If one chamber changes the bill after the other passes it, both must agree on the final version. Once both chambers approve the same bill, it goes to the governor, who has 10 days (or 30 if the legislature is not in session) to sign, veto, or let it become law without a signature.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.

Belk graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte in 2006 with a BA.

Belk, a Democrat, was elected to the North Carolina State House in 2017 to represent the state’s 88th House district, replacing previous state representative Rob Bryan.