CHARTER ADVISORY BOARD INSISTS ON FIVE NEW WAKE CHARTERS: The N.C. Charter Schools Advisory Board voted a second time Monday to recommend approval for North Raleigh Charter Academy and Wake Preparatory Academy to open in 2020. The State Board of Education had sent both charters back to the advisory board for further review because of the last-minute concerns raised by Wake schools. North Raleigh Charter Academy is a K-8 charter school that would be managed by Charter Schools USA, a for-profit company that operates several schools in the state, including Cardinal Charter Academy in Cary. Wake Prep would be a K-12 school in Wake Forest that’s managed by a charter school operator who made millions of dollars building, selling and leasing properties to the schools he runs in Arizona. The state board is required under state law to decide by August whether to approve the two new schools. Last week, the board had voted to approve 10 charter schools to open in 2020, including three in Wake.
https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article231315848.html

BUDGET SHOULD MAKE NC BETTER, NOT BOOST PARTISANSHIP AND SETTLE SCORES: Sen. Brent Jackson’s impulsive scheme to spend $250 million and move the state Department of Health and Human Services (and the nearly 5,000 who work for the agency) from Raleigh to Granville County is crystal clear evidence of the arrogance of the Senate’s leadership. The propaganda operation in the Senate leader’s office has shifted into high gear. It has sifted out miniscule tidbits in the budget and inflated them into happy talk. Regardless the propaganda, the budget speaks for itself. It is about partisanship, ideological rigidity and revenge. It is not about a better North Carolina. We deserve better. 2020 can’t come soon enough.
https://www.wral.com/editorial-budget-should-make-n-c-better-not-boost-partisanship-and-settle-score...

JIM WOMACK LEADS LIST OF CONTENDERS TO REPLACE ROBIN HAYES: North Carolina Republicans are gathering for their annual convention and regrouping after some electoral setbacks, an absentee ballot probe and legal troubles for the outgoing state chairman. More than 1,000 people are expected to attend the GOP convention beginning Friday in Concord. Delegates on Saturday will choose a successor to Robin Hayes as chairman. Hayes said he wouldn't seek re-election the day before being indicted on charges related to attempts to bribe the state's insurance commissioner on behalf of a wealthy donor. Announced candidates to succeed Hayes include Michael Whatley, Jim Womack and John Lewis. Republican majorities at the legislature are no longer veto-proof after November's elections. A new election also was ordered in the 9th Congressional District after investigations of a political operative working for then-GOP nominee Mark Harris.
https://www.wral.com/nc-republicans-look-to-regroup-pick-leader-at-convention/18437292/

GOVERNOR COOPER PREDICTS "BORN ALIVE" VETO WILL BE SUSTAINED: As for the "born-alive" abortion survivors bill, the House is slated to attempt an override vote on his veto Wednesday. The Senate already voted to overturn the veto, but Republican leadership faces more difficult numbers in the House, where they hold a majority but will need to pull more Democrats to reach the three-fifths threshold needed. "I think the veto will be sustained," Cooper said. "We need to move on from these divisive social and political issues and talk about the real issues facing the people of North Carolina: education, health care, bringing good-paying jobs." Override vote will be held at 2 p.m. in the NC House.
https://www.wral.com/governor-weighs-in-on-state-budget-abortion-veto-other-issues/18431106/

SURVIVORS OF MASS SHOOTINGS SUFFER FROM PTSD, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES: In one week in March, two student survivors of the Parkland school shooting killed themselves. Around the same time, the father of a 6-year-old killed girl in Newtown died of an apparent suicide. He had created a foundation in his daughter's name to support research on violence prevention. Austin Eubanks, a Columbine student who was shot and watched his best friend die in the school massacre, died last month, possibly of an overdose. He struggled with opioid use after the attack and later became an addiction recovery speaker. A memorial fund established in his name is seeking funds for a trauma-informed program for families and victims of mass violence. After the Parkland suicides, Hunschofsky says, many people sought mental health help for the first time. "They just told me, 'I thought I was OK, but after this happened, maybe I'm not. Maybe I do need to talk to someone.'" The community's wellness center, established after the Parkland shooting, extended its hours.
https://www.wral.com/mass-shootings-create-rippling-network-of-stricken-survivors/18426269/