Month: February 2026

4. State task force visits child care center at Davidson-Davie Community College: ‘We need to duplicate that on every campus’

Liz Bell/Education NC The child care center at Davidson-Davie Community College (Davidson-Davie) helps student parents stay in school, attracts faculty to the college, and provides hands-on learning to prospective teachers, college administrators told members of the North Carolina Task Force on Child Care and Early Education last Wednesday. The college is one of about 15 […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

6. Bipartisan commission gets to work on upgrading 28-year-old NC elections systems

Caroline Yaffa/WRAL News North Carolina’s election technology is long overdue for an upgrade, state officials say, and a bipartisan commission met for the first time Tuesday to dive into the nitty-gritty of modernizing the systems. In the end, officials say, election results should come faster, voter data should be better maintained, and the systems that […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

7. A deep dive into UNC-Chapel Hill’s biggest expansion in over 200 years

Lauren Rhodes/WUNC News The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is preparing for its biggest expansion since the university’s founding in 1789. Carolina North, a satellite campus, could turn 250 acres of primarily empty land into a “live, work, play and learning” space. Located 1.6 miles north of UNC-Chapel Hill’s main campus, the first […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

8. National Democrats make serious play in Western North Carolina

Cory Vaillancourt/Smoky Mountain News In a move that underscores shifting political terrain in Western North Carolina, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has placed a candidate in North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District on its radar — an unusual step for a district long considered safely Republican. Calling Jamie Ager “a top-tier candidate,” a Feb. 23 press […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

9. Retired, former Belk employees bid farewell to Sanford store

Mark Rogers/The Sanford Herald There were hugs, laughter, stories and even a few tears Sunday as retired and former employees said goodbye to an old friend — the Belk store at Riverbirch Corner Shopping Center. The store closed recently and now sits empty as Casto Development Co. plans to replace the center’s current infrastructure, adding […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

10. CHCCS Board of Education approves site plans for Carrboro Elementary replacement project

Emma Cooke/WCHL Chapelboro Amid discussions from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education about which elementary schools to close in light of declining student enrollment and funding challenges, Carrboro Elementary School will not be in consideration. Instead, the school district is making headway on its plans to replace the existing school building northwest of downtown Carrboro […]

Written by on February 25, 2026

Project Kitty Hawk grads to date: 96

To date, 96 people have graduated from the online degree programs some of the UNC System’s campuses are offering through Project Kitty Hawk. That includes 73 from N.C. Central University and 22 from East Carolina, according to data Project Kitty Hawk chief Andrew Kelly’s presenting to the system Board of Governors later this week. The […]

Written by on February 24, 2026

Duke seeking seeking excessive return, advocacy group says

An environmental group is making the case that Duke Energy’s latest rate request is asking too much of the utility’s customers and too little of its stockholders. Duke’s filing seeks a 10.95% return on equity, which the Environmental Defense Fund says is the third-highest that any U.S. power company has asked for since late November […]

Written by on February 24, 2026

Cook raises $42K for District 60 primary

State Rep. Amanda Cook, D-Guilford, appears to hold a sizable fundraising lead in her battle to hold on to the District 60 House seat she gained in November after former Rep. Cecil Brockman resigned. Cook told the State Board of Elections she’d raised $42,181 as of the end of 2025. The only other candidate in […]

Written by on February 24, 2026

Get to know Rep. Eric Ager

We’re pulling a Colin Campbell-era feature off the Tribune shelf and resurrecting the regular “get-to-know” series of capsule profiles of legislators, agency heads and lobbyists. Rep. Eric Ager has represented southeast Buncombe County since 2023. His district includes such towns as Montreat, Black Mountain, Fairview and Arden. He’s been one of the go-to legislators this […]

Written by on February 23, 2026

Kidwell, Armstrong close in fundraising

Financially, the incumbent and challenger in one of the state’s most-watched primaries are tightly matched. District 79 incumbent state Rep. Keith Kidwell, R-Beaufort, reported to the State Board of Elections that he’d raised $66,163 for his re-election campaign as of the end of 2025. His challenger, farmer and seed-store operator Darren Armstrong, reported raising $55,480. Neither […]

Written by on February 23, 2026

Budd backs streamlining FAA new-plane certifications

U.S. Sen. Ted Budd has joined eight of his colleagues in sponsoring a bill they hope will streamline the process for certifying new kinds of battery-powered aircraft. The group is bipartisan and includes three Democrats, among them lead sponsor U.S. Sen. Peter Welch of Vermont. Welch’s state is home to Beta Technologies, a company that’s […]

Written by on February 23, 2026

1. Few men on campus. NC college gender gap longstanding and growing.

Kate Denning/Carolina Public Press Where are all the men? That’s the question the James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal is asking in its new policy brief analyzing enrollment data, which found that women outnumber men at every UNC System institution but one — not including the North Carolina School of Science and Math, which […]

Written by on February 23, 2026

2. PBM reforms promise relief for NC’s independent pharmacies

Jaymie Baxley/NC Health News Cole’s Pharmacy, a family-owned drug store in Person County, closed in early February after nearly 70 years, leaving many residents in and around Roxboro with a longer drive for medications and fewer local health care options. Robbie Carver, who managed the pharmacy with his sister, said the increasingly unpredictable reimbursements and […]

Written by on February 23, 2026