WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – Over two months after New Hanover County commissioners approved the 2025-26 budget, which included a 30.6-cent tax rate and removed 14 school nurse positions, a majority of commissioners now say they support a budget amendment that would fully fund school nurses.
Commissioners Rob Zapple, Stephanie Walker and LeAnn Pierce said on Wednesday they support having a nurse in every single county school. As it stands with school starting this week, a majority of schools are sharing nurses as a result of the roughly $1.6 million in funding being slashed during the budget process.
Pierce, along with Dane Scalise and Bill Rivenbark, had pushed the budget across the finish line. She said she’s since heard from a number of concerned parents, worried about the potential impact of removing nurses from schools. While she noted the current nurse staffing is actually on par with pre-pandemic numbers, she said it’s important to her that each school has its own nurse…