2006-07 Board of Education's Plan for Student Success
Download the full 2006-07 BOE's Plan for Student Success (3.2 MB Acrobat File)
Download the 2006-07 BOE's Plan for Student Success Brochure (2.3 MB Acrobat File)
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May 2006 Episode of The School Connection
This special episode of The School Connection provides you with an overview that will help you understand the challenges, opportunities and funding needs facing WCPSS in the coming year.
The 2006-07 Board of Education approved their Plan for Student Success on May 2, 2006.
Executive Summary
Goal 2008, adopted in November 2003 by the Wake County Board of Education, states: "WCPSS is committed to academic excellence. By 2008, 95 percent of students in grades 3 through 12 will be at or above grade level as measured by the N.C. End-of-Grade or End-of-Course tests, and all student groups will demonstrate high growth."
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 sets a target year of 2014 for 100 percent of all students nationwide to perform at or above grade level.
Of all the standards and benchmarks that can be applied to a public school system, there are none more fundamental than the academic achievement of our students. Our mission, to "educate each student to be a responsible and productive citizen who can effectively manage future challenges," is the very reason we exist. Teachers, administrators and support staff are united in accepting the responsibility for helping 120,504 students recognize and realize their potential.
Academic Performance
In 2006, the Wake County Public School System is at a crossroads. Academic demands and expectations are higher than ever. Assessment standards in math are changing, making year-to-year comparisons difficult and likely impacting the percentage of students considered performing at grade level. Our schools' target percentages for students making Adequate Yearly Progress, as measured by the North Carolina End-of-Grade and End-of-Course exams in accordance with No Child Left Behind, rose last year on the path toward 100 percent proficiency in 2014.
Student performance continues to be enviably strong, especially when our district is compared with other large districts across the state and nation, but the progress we have made since the adoption of Goal 2003 in 1998 has reached a plateau. 104 of our schools were recognized as Schools of Excellence or Schools of Distinction in 2005. For the last three years the percentage of students passing End-of-Grade exams has hovered around 91 percent; End-of-Course exam results have been at 83 percent. Overall, achievement gaps have narrowed significantly since 1998, but recent gains in reading skills among ethnic minority students and students in the free/reduced lunch program have been offset by slight declines in math skills. And the number of student subgroups achieving high academic growth (better than a year's progress during a calendar year) needs to increase -- this includes our already high-performing and Academically Gifted students.
Enrollment Growth And Overcrowded Facilities
At a time when our academic efforts must be redoubled, Wake County's continued explosive population growth has strained the school system's infrastructure to an unprecedented extent. A net gain of almost 6,500 students in 2005 boosted our enrollment to 120,504. Almost 23,000 new students have been added to our enrollment since 2000. In that time, we have added 26 new schools. Nine more schools will be opened in 2006-07; more than 7,000 students are expected to arrive as well. Projections by county and WCPSS planners see no end to this growth. By 2025, we will have more than doubled in size with almost 250,000 students.
The student population growth swept past previous estimates, forcing some creative but temporary solutions to house our students. Three modular schools were built in order to serve students before their brick-and-mortar campuses were completed. Additional mobile and modular units were brought into virtually every available space at our existing schools; 24 percent of our elementary students are now in non-permanent classrooms. Funding from our construction program was realigned, with some important renovation projects postponed. The five elementary schools opening in 2006-07 will be on multi-track year-round calendars to accommodate up to 33 percent more students.
At the same time as this growth has taken place, inflation has exacted a heavy toll on our building programs. Three years ago, our bond program planned for school construction costs of $89 to $98 per square foot. Today, cost increases in construction materials and fuel, as well as higher demand for contractors across the state, mean that bids are averaging $163 per square foot. During the PLAN 2000 building program, we were able to find savings from projects that came in under budget. Now, even as our construction needs are increasing, our purchasing power for school construction has been reduced.
A year ahead of expectations, the Wake County Board of Education and the Wake County Board of Commissioners are determining the scope of a new building program with an associated November 2006 bond referendum. There is a general recognition that additional revenue will need to be raised by the county in order to fund the construction of badly-needed schools and to renovate older facilities. The costs of growth, however, are not limited to the construction of school facilities. WCPSS's operations are also greatly affected by the influx of new students, creating additional pressure on the 2006-07 Board of Education's Plan for Student Success.
What Is The Plan For Student Success?
The 2006-07 Board of Education's Plan for Student Success is the budget document that will guide the Wake County Public School System through the coming school year. It also includes a three-year plan for achieving the academic goals established by the Wake County Board of Education and state and federal law. Upon their adoption of the document, it will become the Wake County Board of Education's Plan for Student Success and be presented to the Wake County Board of Commissioners for approval of the local funding needed to support it.
This year, the Board of Education's Plan for Student Success is tightly focused on supporting the infrastructure that enables teachers to teach and students to learn. New initiatives are limited to additional employee compensation -- to allow continued recruitment and retention of, and demonstrate respect for, high quality employees and to ensure that the school system continues to operate efficiently and effectively in the face of rapid growth. Other new programs were deferred this year in recognition of the significant public investment that will be required to support that growth.
Aside from recruitment and retention, the locally-funded portion of the 2006-07 Plan for Student Success is driven by the following factors: enrollment growth, legislated salary and benefit issues, systemwide issues, commitments by the Board of Education, budgetary savings, and revenue adjustments.
Where Funds Come From (Operating Budget)
Where Funds Are Spent
Growth
Staffing and supplies will be needed to start-up and support five new year-round elementary schools and two new high schools. Along with the new campuses will come increased costs in maintenance, utilities, custodial, and landscaping. In addition, a second smaller school will be opened on the campus of East Wake High with some grant support from the New Schools Project. We anticipate a 6 percent increase in the student population, requiring additional teachers and staff. We also project a 4 percent increase in charter school enrollment, with associated per-pupil funding transferred to those schools. We expect increases in special student populations, including Special Education, Limited English Proficiency, and Academically Gifted students. Additional buses (and mileage), modular classrooms, and technology will be needed. Three central offi ce departments directly affected by enrollment growth -- Security, Growth Management, and Evaluation and Research -- have hit critical mass and need additional support.
Legislated Salary and Benefit Issues
Local funding supplements state funding to fund teaching, support, and administrative positions in WCPSS. When the state legislature adjusts salary and benefits for teachers and state employees, local funding must also follow. While the actual changes are yet to be determined by the General Assembly, we anticipate total average salary increases of 5 percent for certified staff and school administrators, 2.5 percent for non-certifi ed staff and central office administrators, and 0.5 percent for central offi ce administrator performance pay. Employer matching contributions to the state retirement plan will likely increase by 3.7 percent, and hospitalization costs will likely rise by 12 percent.
Systemwide Issues
Fiscal Accountability: Costs for insurance, MAXIMO integration with Oracle Financials software, and legal fees are projected to increase. There will be costs associated with the forensic audit conducted by Summerford Accountancy, PC, in 2006. The Finance, Human Resources, and Internal Audit departments will be adjusted to increase fiscal accountability.
Data Integrity: The system's information storage and retrieval infrastructure will be reinforced, with emphasis on network servers and central impacts, data retrieval, tape management software maintenance, Secure Sockets Layer/Virtual Private Network (SSL/VPN) redundancy, and disaster recovery services.
Rate Increases: Inflation and other fee increases will have an impact here, including utility rates,leases, software licenses and maintenance, and impervious surface fees.
Board of Education Commitments
The Wake County Board of Education has made only one commitment outside the staff's budget planning process: an Early College program in partnership with Wake Technical Community College and WakeMed to begin in the 2006-07 school year.
New Programs
The 2006-07 Plan for Student Success focuses new resources on salary increases for recruitment and retention.
Budgetary Savings and Revenue Adjustments
WCPSS department budgets have been carefully scrutinized for potential reductions in program costs, and one-time costs from the previous year have been removed. Projected revenues from other local sources have been adjusted, including fines and forfeitures, indirect costs, tuition, E-Rate, parking fees, and interest. The school system's fund balance will be carefully monitored to determine the proper amount to appropriate, and the school system has worked closely with the county staff to project revenue available from county appropriations for 2006-07.
A Vision For The Future
The Wake County Public School System has achieved its current level of academic excellence due to years of strategic planning based on specific goals and objectives, all aligned toward the achievement of Goal 2003 and Goal 2008. These overriding academic goals helped unify our teachers and staff and energized our students, particularly on the march toward Goal 2003, where student performance increased by almost ten percentage points. Progress has been more stable since 2003, when enrollment growth surged and school system resources became increasingly constrained as a result.
In the Superintendent's Message for last year's Plan for Student Success, I wrote:
[E]fficiency isn't enough to reach Goal 2008. Hard work, dedication, and care for students aren't enough for our teachers and those who support them in the daily effort to reach each of our [then-]114,000 students. Additional resources are required.
The same constraints on our school system last year are with us today -- even more so. Legislated costs and unfunded mandates, costs due to extreme growth and inflation, an increase of students with special needs, and discretionary budget reductions have eroded our flexibility to provide additional services for students. It is a testament to the skill and tenacity of WCPSS teachers, staff and students, and the involvement of parents, volunteers and the business community, that we have maintained our current level of success.
Without a doubt, the greatest challenge facing the Wake County Public School System today is growth. The foundation and infrastructure of our schools must be reinforced. Campuses must be built and educators must be retained and recruited in order to meet the influx of students whose families were attracted to the excellence of our schools and the vibrancy of our communities.
What must not be lost, however, is the recognition that public education's mission does not change even in the face of such challenges and crises. The fullest academic potential of each child must be awakened -- whether from humble or prosperous backgrounds, regardless of walk of life, no matter where that child is on the intellectual journey. Our schools must nurture and develop the gifts within all our children, setting them on the path to careers and contributions to whichever community they will call "home" as adults. We must support highly qualified teachers and their ability to bring out the best in each child.
Our schools are measured based on teaching and learning, and Wake County's economic vitality can only be strengthened by ensuring they will remain up to the task. To rephrase the mission of the Wake County Public School System, we must help our schools "effectively manage future challenges" of enrollment growth and rising academic standards. It is about more than the fundamentals involved in managing 147 schools and their support structure and planning for future enrollment growth -- although efficiency and excellence in those tasks is essential for WCPSS's future health. It is about keeping the end goal in mind.
Each child, every child, has value.
Our schools, and our community, must preserve and defend that value.
Bill McNeal
Superintendent