Shortages of teachers, infrastructure and technology workers will hamper schools’ ability to provide the best education, facilities and tools to children, Wake County Public School System Superintendent Robert Taylor said Thursday. Pay increases will help, he said, but a full reversal of the trends could take years and a much bigger effort than incremental raises.

 Wake superintendent: Teacher shortage trend could take years to reverse

More than 21% of North Carolina's four-year-olds enrolled in the state's pre-kindergarten programs during the 2022-2023 school year, up from the prior year but still below the state's pre-pandemic highs, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research.

North Carolina ranks 29th in public pre-K enrollment, new report shows

Durham County budget increases funding for pre-K students

Compared to pre-pandemic prices, ground beef is up 35%, chips are up 45%, bread is up 57% and a 12-ounce can of soda is up 66%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which tracks trends on common grocery store items.

WRAL Investigates: 'Greedflation' and other drivers behind inflation at the grocery store

A look at inflation at the grocery store

FILE -- Participants at the registration booth by the entrance of the eighth annual Eichsfeld Day “Family Fest,” organized by the National Democratic Party for right-wing extremists, in Leinefelde, Germany, Sept. 1, 2018. As leaders commemorate the end of World War I, some of the same forces that threatened democracy and peace 100 years ago are resurgent today. (Mauricio Lima/The New York Times)

Can Europe’s Liberal Order Survive as the Memory of War Fades?