Feb. 19, 2009

                       
Reassignments complete

A long, tedious and often contentious debate came to a close this week when Wake County school board members approved a student reassignment plan intended to last until the 2011-2012 school year. (Detailed summary found here.)

Thousands of additional students are expected to enroll in Wake County schools the next few years despite the deteriorating economy. Space is also needed for the roughly 10,000 new who students enrolled in the past two years. Such growth is the catalyst for a three-year plan to build 10 news schools and, in turn, reassign thousands.

The final number of mandatory reassignments was whittled down significantly from its first draft almost six months ago. By removing some students and giving more than 9,000 others the chance to remain at their current schools if they provide their own transportation, the final plan calls for roughly 11,000 mandatory reassignments between next year and 2011-12.

Source: Wake County Public School System data

While the moves will not be spread evenly, they amount to about 3,700 reassignments each year in a district that currently enrolls more than 137,000 students. School officials say roughly two-thirds of the reassignments are driven by growth, but there are five other factors the district considers when moving families. (Click here for detail.)

One of those factors is a desire to preserve diversity in all schools. According to the board’s policy, children who qualify for subsidized lunches should make up no more than 40 percent of any school’s enrollment. The policy also requires no more than 25 percent of the students in any school score below grade level on state-mandated exams.

Defining diversity this way is intended to keep all schools attractive to teachers and families, but it was harshly criticized by some parents who believe it plays a central role in all reassignments. School board member Ron Margiotta, representing southern Wake County, referred to it as “social engineering” in casting one of two dissenting votes.

A single student can meet several of the board’s reassignment factors at the same time, such as maintaining diversity and filling a new school, so it is difficult to pin down a specific number of students reassigned solely for diversity. But in a plan with only 3,700 reassignments on average per year, the diversity figure represents just a tiny percentage of the whole.

That is little solace to parents directly affected by the plan who are looking for a target to attack. At a meeting of about 100 people Thursday evening in Holly Springs, diversity was characterized as the sole reason for reassignments. Several local politicians, as well as the mayors of Apex, Holly Springs, Cary and Garner encouraged the parents to recruit and elect new board members for the fall elections who are “family friendly.”

But in the short term, the recession poses a more immediate threat to the reassignment plan. With the overall economy still mired in uncertainty, county commissioners are unsure if Wake can afford to build the 10 new schools as scheduled. School board members are also waiting for the state Supreme Court to release a decision on whether the district can require students to attend classes on a staggered, year-round schedule.

If either the economy or the court decision upends the new plan, it would likely lead to a new set of reassignments.

Budget targets keep shifting

With budget cuts being discussed at the state and local levels and a federal stimulus package being debated in Congress, most fiscal decisions for the coming school year look like they will come with a long list of conditions and caveats.

Wake County commissioners met last week to confirm cuts discussed late last year that resulted in a $5.7 million decrease in local spending by the school district. That cut was in addition to a $5.5 million state reduction. Since then, neither state nor local officials have offered any good news about the remainder of this fiscal year or next.

It is unclear how much more Wake County schools could cut if state and local revenues continue to decline this year. With such a large percentage of the budget dedicated to personnel and fixed operating costs, school budgets are notoriously difficult to reduce late in the school year.

And it’s not looking good for next year. The state, which provides almost 60 percent of Wake County’s school revenue, is facing an expected shortfall of at least $2 billion in a budget of $21.5 billion. County officials are expecting meager revenue growth and increased costs in 2009-2010.

The proposed federal stimulus bill should soften some of those reductions, but details as basic as the timetable are still undecided. A version approved by the U.S. House last week suggests Wake County could receive as much as $70 million during the next two years, according to a report by the Congressional Research Service.

But parts of the House plan are being changed in the Senate and much of the money is focused on specific programs and categories regardless of local priorities. Sharpen your pencils and keep the erasers handy. There is a lot of figuring left to do.

Gov. Perdue shakes up NC’s school leadership

It typically takes awhile before changes at the top of a state’s public school system affect local districts. But last week’s decision by Gov. Beverly Perdue to appoint one person to lead both the state school board and the Department of Public Instruction was largely welcome news among local school leaders.

Former Cumberland County schools Superintendent Bill Harrison, who also served as the leader of Orange County public schools and several other districts through the years, will now lead the entire K-12 system of 1.4 million students. With one person clearly in charge of both policy and operations, local districts can expect clearer direction from the state regarding both basic operations and long-term efforts.

Due largely to his leadership style and deep interest in education, Gov. Jim Hunt was one of the few state leaders who could overcome the inherent conflicts in the wording of various state laws and constitutional provisions addressing who is in charge of the state’s schools. Perdue’s appointment of Harrison takes a different approach.

Current state schools Superintendent June Atkinson – her role clearly reduced – asked the General Assembly this week to find a permanent solution. While that will trigger more debate, it won’t change the fact that Perdue changed the rules. When local school districts are seeking direction, the place to call is now the office of Bill Harrison.

Noteworthy

…The 2008 North Carolina School Report Cards were released last week, a handy but often overlooked place to find details about individual schools. The site can be found at www.ncreportcards.org.

… The number of students who dropped out of Wake schools declined slightly last year, according to state figures released Thursday. Wake’s annual dropout rate of 4.17 percent is different than graduation rates, which measure how many students who start high school actually get a diploma. That figure, to be updated later this year, shows about 20 percent fail to graduate.