Verified profile

SparkNC: A Verified Profile

In review Last checked October 3, 2026

SparkNC at a glance

SparkNC is a North Carolina nonprofit that runs a statewide network of high school labs where students explore high-tech careers through short, self-paced learning units. Students who complete enough units earn elective credit, and that credit can count toward the state’s computer science graduation requirement.

SparkNC is an option that sits alongside a normal schedule. It is not a school, and students are not required to take part.

Item	Current status
Legal form	501(c)(3) nonprofit, independent since the 2023-24 school year
Network size	Nearly 50 SparkLabs in 30 districts for 2026-27 (SparkNC, August 2026)
State funding, FY2026-27	$4.5 million recurring in the 2026 Appropriations Act (S.L. 2026-41)
Credit	Up to four Learning Accelerator elective credits; CV10 and CV15 count toward the computer science graduation requirement
Evidence	Self-reported participant surveys only; no causal study; final legislative report due Feb. 15, 2027
President	Dana Brinson (named July 2026)

The name is SparkNC, written as one word. If you see “SPARC” in notes about North Carolina career learning, it almost always means SparkNC.

Career-Connected Education Research, Topic 2 of 6, CareerConnectedSchools.org. Last checked Oct. 3, 2026.

How the model works

Origin. SparkNC began inside The Innovation Project, a nonprofit working group of North Carolina district leaders. It launched publicly on June 29, 2022, opened its first labs in summer 2023, and became a standalone nonprofit during 2023-24. The North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is its state partner and passes state funds to SparkNC as a directed grant.

SparkLabs. Each partner district hosts a SparkLab, a room equipped for computing, collaboration and hands-on work. Labs sit in high schools, a virtual academy, community sites such as a Boys & Girls Club and Communities in Schools, and community college campuses. Labs are linked into one interdistrict network, so students in small districts can join activities with students and industry experts elsewhere.

SparkLab Leaders. A full-time SparkLab Leader in each lab guides students, mentors them and connects them with employers. This is a coaching role rather than a traditional subject teacher. Whether the role is a 12-month position: Confirm with SparkNC.

Units instead of courses. Students choose from more than 50 modular learning experiences across eight pathways:

AI and machine learning
Computer systems engineering
Cybersecurity
Data analytics
Design (UX/UI)
Exploring tech fields
Game development
Software development

Units come in on-demand (self-paced online) and experiential (in person) formats. Experiential options include Spark Teamship, where small student teams solve a real business problem with a coach. Teamship was built with the nonprofit District C, which has since moved to the College Board; SparkNC continues Teamship through that partnership. In summer 2026, six New Hanover County teams worked on challenges from nCino. Starting in 2026-27, SparkNC is adding Industry Immersion Days.

Work products. Students build “market-value assets” such as portfolios, certifications and solutions for employers. For example, New Hanover students worked on Live Oak Bank’s question of how its staff could use AI well.

Industry partners. Epic Games and SAS sit on SparkNC’s Business Advisory Council and Board. Other named partners include Live Oak Bank, nCino, Dell Technologies, the NC Technology Association, UNC Greensboro, Wake Tech and Fayetteville Technical Community College.

Credit and graduation rules

Original rule. In the pilot, eight units plus an introductory module and a capstone earned one local elective credit. The transcript shows it as “High-Tech Learning Accelerator” and “achieved mastery” (S.L. 2023-134, sec. 7.62).

2024 change. S.L. 2024-57, sec. 3J.14, effective Dec. 11, 2024, made three changes:

Students may earn up to four credits in total.
Credits may be High-Tech or Health Science Learning Accelerator credits.
Every public school unit in the state became eligible to partner with SparkNC.

Students began earning the additional credits in fall 2025.

Computer science requirement. DPI’s list of 2026-27 courses that satisfy the high school computer science graduation requirement includes:

CV10 SparkNC High-Tech Learning Accelerator I
CV15 SparkNC High-Tech Learning Accelerator II (new for 2026-27)

Participation. SparkNC is optional and self-paced, and students take it alongside AP, CTE or other courses. Ask SparkNC or your district how a partly completed credit is handled on the transcript and whether a student can stop and restart.

Authority after the pilot years. The pilot section names the 2023-24 and 2024-25 school years. A bill to extend the program through the 2031-33 biennium (H832, sec. 15) is still in conference committee. DPI still lists CV10 and CV15 for 2026-27, and the 2026 budget funds SparkNC. Confirm with DPI which rule governs Learning Accelerator credit in 2025-26 and 2026-27. Changing. Last checked Oct. 3, 2026.

Funding history and the 2026 budget

The 2026 Appropriations Act gives SparkNC $4.5 million in recurring funds for FY2026-27, after a 2025-26 year with no new appropriation found.

Period	What happened	Source type
2026-27	The 2026 Appropriations Act (S257, S.L. 2026-41, ratified July 2, 2026, signed July 7, 2026) provides $4,500,000 in recurring funds “to expand and sustain” SparkNC (conference report, item 109)	Legislative conference report
2025-26	North Carolina enacted no comprehensive budget in 2025. Under a continuing budget, recurring funding holds at prior levels and nonrecurring items generally end. No new SparkNC appropriation was found. Existing law let unspent SparkNC grant funds stay available through June 30, 2026.	Session law text quoted in H832; NC Budget & Tax Center
2023-24 and 2024-25	About $3 million a year in nonrecurring funds, sent through DPI as a directed grant	Session law (nonrecurring); WUNC and Learn & Work Ecosystem Library ($3 million)
2021-23 biennium	First state appropriation, as part of North Carolina’s American Rescue Plan ESSER state plan	Legislative report; EdNC

The $4.5 million is recurring, so it carries into future years unless the General Assembly changes it. It is less than the larger package in S1006, the K-12 Innovation and Transformation Act, which Senator Michael Lee said would expand SparkNC to every district.

Bills still pending. Neither of these is law. Changing. Last checked Oct. 3, 2026.

S1006. Would add $6.5 million recurring and $5.78 million nonrecurring for SparkNC, plus $8.855 million recurring for lab facilitator allotments to districts. It would also put Learning Accelerators in statute and let districts choose providers other than SparkNC. It has sat in Senate Appropriations since June 3, 2026.
H832, sec. 15. Would extend the program through 2031-33. It has been in conference committee since Aug. 6, 2026.

Related 2026 budget items. The same budget includes:

$5.3 million nonrecurring for a DPI competency-based education grant program
$4 million nonrecurring for a Mooresville Graded School District competency-based high school focused on healthcare
$225,000 nonrecurring for the NC Collaboratory to evaluate competency-based learning programs

Mooresville became SparkNC’s 29th district in May 2026.

High School Redesign Commission. S.L. 2026-61, sec. 3.12, creates the North Carolina High School Redesign Commission. SparkNC’s chief executive, or a designee, is a member. The commission’s first report is due April 30, 2027.

Private funding. Growth beyond state dollars also comes from private partners. Live Oak Bank outfitted the New Hanover County labs.

What a district pays to start

SparkNC’s legislative reports give the cost of one lab. These are pilot-era figures.

Cost item	Amount	Notes
Lab setup	About $60,000, one time	Furniture, computers, hands-on kits; wiring or internet upgrades are extra
SparkLab Leader	$65,000 a year state implementation stipend in the pilot	More than half of pilot districts added local funds, from a few thousand dollars up to $40,000, to cover full salary and benefits
Learning platform	About $12 per student per year	Covered by the state during the pilot
Technology upgrades	About $7,000 a year	2024 legislative summary
Student events	Up to $3,000 a year	2024 legislative summary

Ask SparkNC what stipend, platform and setup support new districts receive under the 2026-27 funding. Confirm with SparkNC. Last checked Oct. 3, 2026.

Joining. SparkNC invited new districts to apply in July 2026, with a Sept. 1 deadline for opening labs this school year. That window has closed. Contact SparkNC at info@sparknc.org about the next round.

Network growth and reach

The network grew from 16 labs in 2023-24 to nearly 50 labs in 30 districts for 2026-27.

Year	Labs	Districts	Source
2026-27	Nearly 50	30	SparkNC newsletter, August 2026
May 2026	Not stated	29 (Mooresville added)	SparkNC newsletter
January 2026	27	Close to 30 by year end	SparkNC newsletter; WHQR
2024-25	18	17	SparkNC report to the General Assembly, March 1, 2025
2023-24 (pilot)	16	17 districts and one community college	SparkNC report to the General Assembly, 2025; SparkNC legislative summary, 2024

The 17 districts in 2024-25 were Asheboro City, Cabarrus County, Chatham County, Cumberland County, Edgecombe County, Elizabeth City-Pasquotank, Granville County, Guilford County, Lexington City, Mount Airy City, New Hanover County, Rockingham County, Rowan-Salisbury, Scotland County, Vance County, Wake County and Warren County. All 16 pilot districts returned for a second year. SparkNC has not published a full current district list. Confirm with SparkNC.

Student reach, pilot years. These figures come from SparkNC’s March 2025 report:

More than 3,000 students had access to a lab.
2,401 students logged activity on the platform between August 2023 and February 2025.
School-based labs reached 6% to 50% of eligible students at their schools. District-wide or virtual labs reached 1% to 18%.
210 students earned the High-Tech Learning Accelerator credit in 2023-24.

Community college sites. Wake County placed two labs at Wake Tech’s RTP and East campuses in 2024-25. A July 2026 news article described Fayetteville Technical Community College’s lab as the only SparkLab on a community college campus. These accounts conflict. Confirm with SparkNC.

What the evidence shows

Study design. No randomized or quasi-experimental study of SparkNC was found. All published results are descriptive: self-reported surveys of participating students, with no comparison group. They show how participants feel about the program. They do not show whether SparkNC changes what students go on to do.

Evaluator. The Program Evaluation and Education Research (PEER) Group at NC State’s Friday Institute for Educational Innovation is SparkNC’s external evaluator.

Survey results reported to the General Assembly (March 2025). All are descriptive self-report.

Finding	Survey
78% reported a positive change in interest in high-tech careers	Year 1 implementation findings
72% of students with little or no prior interest reported a positive change	Year 1 implementation findings
81% of students already very or extremely interested became more interested	Year 1 implementation findings
94% reported increased interest after the July 2023 Tech Creatives Summit	Summit survey
83% would recommend SparkNC; 90% found the lab easy to find and engaging	Spring 2023 Year 1 Implementation survey
94% said their SparkLab Leader is someone they trust	First-year survey
82% said leaders were supportive and used their feedback; 75% felt able to make an informed college or career decision	December 2024 survey

Later figures from SparkNC (January 2026). SparkNC reported that interest in tech careers “jumped by 67%,” that 75% of students feel better prepared to make career decisions, that students rated their sense of belonging 4.03 out of 5, and that 59% hold market-value assets. These are SparkNC’s own descriptive figures. The newsletter does not give survey size or method.

Outcome study in progress. SparkNC told legislators in 2025 that its evaluator would use the state’s EPIC data to check whether 2023-24 pilot students later enroll in STEM courses, once 2024-25 data became available in early 2026. In March 2024, the Friday Institute said it would deliver a full program evaluation in 2025. No such public report was found. The law now sets the final report for Feb. 15, 2027.

How to describe SparkNC. Describe it as a well-measured program with encouraging participant feedback and no outcome evidence yet. Do not claim it raises STEM course-taking, credential attainment or tech employment until the 2027 report is published.

Leadership and contacts

Dana Brinson became SparkNC’s President in July 2026.

Person	Role	Status
Dana Brinson	President (formerly Vice President of Strategy)	Named by the Board, July 2026
Dr. Lynn Moody	President Emerita (formerly President; earlier Senior Director of Partnerships)	July 2026
Joe Ableidinger	Co-founder; Executive Vice President	July 2026. SparkNC’s team page still lists him as Executive Director.
Dr. Callie Womble Edwards	Associate Director of Program Evaluation and Education Research, Friday Institute	Spoke for the evaluation in 2024; confirm she is still the lead

SparkNC: sparknc.org, info@sparknc.org
Partners to ask about implementation: Wake Tech (community college lab sites); Fayetteville Technical Community College (campus lab serving grades 8 to 12); the College Board team that now runs District C (Spark Teamship)

Review status and sources

Status. Verified Oct. 3, 2026 against North Carolina legislative records, DPI’s 2026-27 computer science course list, SparkNC’s own pages and newsletters, and news coverage. 63 claims were checked: 44 confirmed, 5 corrected, 9 new findings, 2 unconfirmed, 3 removed. Last checked Oct. 3, 2026.

Open questions

Question	Who to ask
Which rule governs Learning Accelerator credit in 2025-26 and 2026-27, given that the pilot section names 2023-24 and 2024-25 and the H832 extension has not passed	NC DPI (CTE, computer science)
How SparkNC is using the $4.5 million recurring for 2026-27, and what stipend, platform and setup support new districts receive	SparkNC
The exact 2023-24 and 2024-25 appropriation amount in session law text (reported as $3 million a year)	NC Fiscal Research Division
Whether SparkNC operated on carried-over funds or other money in 2025-26	SparkNC
Whether Wake Tech’s labs or FTCC’s lab is the community college site, or both	SparkNC
The current full list of 30 districts and nearly 50 labs	SparkNC
Whether SparkLab Leaders are 12-month positions; how partial credit and stopping work	SparkNC
Whether the EPIC-based STEM course-taking analysis is complete and when it will be public	Friday Institute PEER Group; SparkNC
Status of S1006 and H832	NC General Assembly

Sources

Legislative and agency

SparkNC

News and secondary

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