Sen. Jerry Tillman
Sen. Jerry Tillman

The Senate just passed the conference report that would repeal the Common Core standards. The vote was 33-12. All it lacks is an affirmative vote by the House, which will likely come next week, before going to the desk of GOP Gov. Pat McCrory.

The bill sets up an 11-member advisory commission to recommend new academic standards for North Carolina public schools. The commission will be allowed to consider all standards, including the Common Core standards. It would make its recommendation to the State Board of Education, which would have final approval.

Sen. Jerry Tillman, R-Randolph, who sponsored the bill, said the conference report is primarily the Senate version of the bill. Tillman said the new standards would be “more rigorous in most places.”

Sen. Josh Stein, D-Wake, said that the Senate version of the bill is better than the House version, but said the changes would produce instability for educators.