North Carolina CS Requirement: A Benefit for Students and Our State

The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction adopted the High School Computer Science Graduation Requirement at the beginning of 2024. This policy mandates that beginning this fall, incoming high school freshmen across the state will be required to have at least one computer science credit to graduate. Every high school in North Carolina will be required to offer at least one computer science course and every middle school will be required to offer at least one introductory computer science course beginning in the fall of 2025.

This policy asks a large amount of both districts and schools. It will require professional development for educators so they can adopt new curriculums, districts and schools to rethink student schedules and potentially purchasing supplies to meet the requirements of the newly adopted curriculums. Districts might also have to hire staff to accommodate the number of students that must take the newly adopted courses.

Numerous high schools and districts have shown a willingness to meet this challenge. According to the State of CS Report from Code.org, 71% of high schools now offer a foundational computer science course to their students, up from 51% in the 2019-2020 school year. Districts such as Guilford, Robeson and Pitt have made a concerted effort to bring computer science to all their middle and high schools, even before the mandate, and numerous teachers in other districts have sought out training to bring computer science to their students.

Despite educator’s best efforts, North Carolina still has numerous hurdles to overcome as they prepare to adopt the mandate. According to the State of CS Report, only 4% of high school students took a foundational computer science course during the 2022-2023 school year, with only a quarter of those students being female. 29% of high schools still do not offer a foundational computer science course. Smaller schools have been affected the worst with only 52% having a foundational computer science course. 

But it is worth weighing the benefits of computer science education against the hurdles that schools and districts must overcome to implement this mandate.

Pursuing a career in computer science can mean financial stability for North Carolina students. There are currently over 16,000 open computer science positions in the state with an average salary of $109,439. This is $43,253 more than the North Carolina median income from 2018-2022 according to US Census Data.

Computer science skills prove beneficial even if a student does not want to be a computer scientist. According to a recent study by Girls Who Code, companies are reconsidering the skill requirements of new employees. 20% of JP Morgan’s workforce and 25% of Goldman Sachs workforce are now considered “technologists.” The report states “Every company is—or is fast becoming—a technology enterprise.”

Studying computer science can have a positive impact across academic disciplines. Studies have shown that students who take computer science are 17% more likely to attend college, perform better in other subjects and excel in problem solving. A Code.org study by the College Board also found that students who study computer science perform better on math AP tests. 

Computer science can also be a creative outlet for students. AP Computer Science Principles requires students to create a novel CS artifact for an AP test. Courses such as Code.org’s CS Discoveries have students design and create their own websites, games and physical computing artifacts. Programs such as Code.org’s Music Lab and Python’s Turtle Library also enable students to bring musical and visual ideas to fruition through programing.

Universal computer science education has benefits that extend beyond the classroom as well. It has the potential to introduce all students to computer science, not just ones who elect to take the courses. This can help to expand and diversify the computer science workforce in North Carolina, improving outcomes for the state’s businesses and economy. According to a study by the Stanford Graduate School of Business, greater gender diversity increased a company’s stock prices. Girls Who Code found that 91% of senior human resource officers they surveyed said that “attracting women with tech experience/education is critical for a company’s success.”

The new high school computer science requirement has the potential to break down racial and gender stereotypes surrounding computer science and expose numerous students to the field. It will be a massive undertaking, but districts and schools are not alone. There are numerous organizations prepared to help, including the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation where we offer curriculum training for Computer Science Discoveries, AP Computer Science Principles, AP Computer Science A and K-5 computer science integration training. Our program also offers strategic planning support for districts and schools looking to build K-12 computer science programs. With the potential benefits to our state’s economy and our student’s education, it is clear why the state chose to adopt the mandate.