Rep. Brockman files bill in North Carolina House to fund teacher assistant program

A new bill filed by State Rep. Brockman seeks to provide additional teacher assistant positions to select public school units for kindergarten through third grade, according to the North Carolina State House.

The bill, filed as HB 709 on April 2 during the 2025 regular session, was formally listed with the short title: ‘K-3 Literacy and Improvement Act.’

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

In essence, this bill establishes the Additional Teacher Assistant Grant Program aimed at providing the dollar equivalent of teacher assistant positions to select public school units, specifically targeting kindergarten through third-grade classrooms. The program stipulates one teacher assistant for every kindergarten, first, and second-grade class, and one assistant for every three classes in third grade. The Department of Public Instruction is tasked with creating an application process within 30 days of the bill’s enactment, allowing local school units and charter schools to apply within a 60-day window. A total of 16 public school units will be chosen—one local school administrative unit and one charter school from each of the state’s eight educational districts. The program is funded with $14.8 million in nonrecurring funds each year for the 2025-27 fiscal biennium. This act becomes effective July 1, 2025.

Of the four sponsors of this bill, Terry M. Brown Jr. proposed the most bills (28) 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.

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

Brockman, a Democrat, was elected to the North Carolina State House in 2015 to represent the state’s 60th House district, replacing previous state representative Marcus Brandon.