North Carolina

What the state requires

A full-credit course focused solely on Economics and Personal Finance (EPF), with a passing grade, is required for graduation (G.S. §115C-81.65(b)); NCDPI lists EPF as one of the four required social studies credits in the Future-Ready Course of Study.

Students entering ninth grade in the 2020–21 school year and later (S.L. 2019-82 §2(b)). "Class of 2024" is a derivation — neither the statute nor NCDPI names a class year.

The detail, every line cited

How it may be delivered

STANDALONE ONLY for the high-school credit: the statute requires a full-credit course 'focused solely on Economics and Personal Finance.' No embedded option. Separately, §115C-81.65(a) requires personal financial literacy instruction for ALL students, embedded in the K-8 social studies standards.ncleg.gov

Full citation

G.S. §115C-81.65(a)-(b); HB 924 enrolled text

Credit value

one full course credit — the largest quantum in any state pack — counted as one of the four required social studies credits within the 22-credit Future-Ready Course of Studydpi.nc.gov

Full citation

NCDPI high school graduation requirements; G.S. §115C-81.65(b)

Below high school

No separate middle/elementary course or checkpoint. §115C-81.65(a)'s general instruction duty is met through the K-12 Social Studies Economics strand — specifically grade 4 (4.E.2.1-2.2) and grade 5 (5.E.2.1-2.3); no dedicated PFL objectives appear in grades 6-8.ncleg.gov

Full citation

G.S. §115C-81.65(a); NC Social Studies SCOS Economics strand

State-mandated assessment

NONE — NCDPI's required assessments (EOGs; EOCs in Biology, English II, NC Math 1 and 3; others) include no social studies or EPF test.dpi.nc.gov

Full citation

NCDPI state tests listing

Who may teach it

The only stated requirement is PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: G.S. §115C-81.65(c) requires the State Board to ensure EPF teachers receive the PD necessary — to the extent funds allow, a course provided by the North Carolina Council on Economic Education, preferably before teaching (a teacher may begin while awaiting an opportunity). No course-specific license-area mandate is published. Informational only.ncleg.gov

Full citation

G.S. §115C-81.65(c); S.L. 2019-82 §2(a)

Standards framework

NC Standard Course of Study — Economics and Personal Finance: 5 strands, 12 standards, 43 clarifying objectives (codes EPF.E, EPF.IE, EPF.MCM, EPF.FP, EPF.CC). Statute directs EPF content to include the Voluntary National Content Standards in Economics (2nd ed.) and the 2013 National Standards for Financial Literacy, plus postsecondary planning/paying.dpi.nc.gov

Full citation

NCDPI Economics and Personal Finance content standards. WARNING: the documents carry a March 11, 2026 stamp that is an accessibility-remediation republication date, NOT an adoption date; the actual SBE adoption date is unpublished

State agency contact

NCDPI K-12 Social Studies Section owns EPF: Lori Carlin, Ph.D., Section Chief — Lori.Carlin@dpi.nc.gov, (984) 236-2823; Bernadette Cole (admin) (984) 236-2822; consultants Justyn Burgess, Tom Daugherty, Michelle McLaughlin, Phylisha Sanders. No financial-literacy-designated consultant.dpi.nc.gov

Full citation

NCDPI social studies section staff listing

Not yet verified · 3

We publish only what we can cite to a primary source. These fields are still being verified for North Carolina, and they are listed rather than filled in with something plausible.

• Instructional-hour rule
• State course codes
• Funding a district may cite

Facts on this page last verified 2026-08-09; every pack is re-verified on a six-month cadence, and anything we cannot cite is marked rather than guessed.

The district awards the credit — no platform can. Ours is designed to align with the state’s learning standards, and it produces the documentation a district needs to award credit: the course object with its federal course code, a pass determination that shows its arithmetic, an hour ledger that counts only observed instructional minutes, and a verified record of demonstrated mastery for every student.

See the platformThe one-page brief for North Carolina