DRIVER’S EDUCATION
The state of North Carolina requires anyone under the age of 18 to complete a driver education course consisting of at least 30 hours of classroom and a minimum of 6 hours of behind the wheel instruction. To be eligible to register for a class session, you must be 14 years and 6 months old by the first day of class. Once a student is eligible they will need to go to https://www.abss.k12.nc.us/o/wahs/page/driver-s-education and fill out the Future Driver’s Education Class Form. During the school year Clover Garden students take their Drivers Education Class at Western High School. Students may register for a different school during the summer session. There is no charge for the class or the Behind the Wheel instruction. Typically the classes run for eleven days from 3:20 pm to 6:20 pm and there are no Friday classes. During the summer session there are no absences allowed and a student must attend all sessions and pass all tests to receive credit for the course. Transportation to and from the class session is the parent’s responsibility.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
Once the student has successfully completed the classroom phase of the driver education, the students from each class are placed in order by their date of birth from oldest to youngest and will be driven in that order. You should receive a call within 30 to 90 days of the classroom completion from your instructor to set up your behind the wheel schedule. The instructors will do their best to work with your schedule. Most instructors drive afternoons, evenings, and on Saturday. Some instructors drive mornings before school. There is no one-on-one instruction, and there will be a total of two to three students in the vehicle. Students will be picked up and dismissed from the school campus. It is the parent’s responsibility to provide transportation to and from driver education. It typically takes three to four days to complete the behind-the-wheel phase. On the last day of driving, the instructor will issue a completion certificate. This certificate does not expire. You will need to obtain a Driver Eligibility Certificate from your high school registrar that verifies that the student meets the requirements of the Adequate Progress Law. This certificate expires in 30 days.
ADEQUATE PROGRESS LAW
On August 1, 1998 North Carolina’s Dropout Prevention and Adequate Progress Law came into effect. This law was passed to help motivate and encourage better grades and high school completion. Students must pass 70% of their courses to receive or maintain their permit and/or license.