Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools families will see two policy shifts take effect for the 2026-27 school year after the board fast-tracked changes Wednesday, Aug. 26, to comply with North Carolina Senate Bill 277.

The board eliminated the words "minority" and "women" from CMS's small business enterprise program, which governs equal access to district service contracts. The terms "historically underutilized business" and "women-owned" were also deleted from the district's purchasing and contracts policy.

Separately, a new state law now allows students with parental consent to leave campus for up to four hours once a week for religious instruction. That change applies to every CMS school, including Ardrey Kell High School, Ballantyne Ridge High School and the district's middle and elementary campuses in Ballantyne.

The board bypassed its normal amendment process, which requires three meetings over roughly six weeks, to get the policies in place before classes began. Board Vice Chair Dee Rankin explained the urgency at the Aug. 26 meeting.

"In order for us to get the policy in before the school year, we had to fast-track it," Rankin said.

Rankin called the mandate "an anti-DEI" measure. She said the small business enterprise program was meant to ensure underserved businesses could receive contracts fairly.

Senate Bill 277 prohibits diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs in public education. The North Carolina General Assembly overrode Gov. Josh Stein's veto of the bill earlier in the summer of 2026, according to WSOC-TV.

At-large board member Liz Monterrey Duval said the language removals have "nothing to do with children" but acknowledged the board must comply. "The public is probably going to be really upset with us. We have to follow these laws," she said at the meeting.

The full board stated it plans to uphold the essence of the former policies. District 1 board member Dr. Charlitta Hatch said the commitment to access and opportunity "does not" change and that the district can still remove unnecessary barriers.

CMS leaders expressed concern that the religious instruction leave policy could cost students valuable classroom time. The Mecklenburg County Republican Party, in a statement to WSOC-TV, said the attendance reform respects religious liberty.

The district has not announced a next meeting date to revisit either policy.