January 8, 2010

Top News

Online Survey on School Calendar Options Planned

Parents will soon be asked to complete an online survey about school calendar options currently used in Wake County Public School System. The results of this survey will assist the Board of Education in making decisions that may impact school calendar assignments as early as 2010-11.

Parents of all current WCPSS students will be able to complete this survey. A survey may be completed for each child enrolled in the school system.

When completing the survey, parents will need to enter their student’s NCWISE identification number to begin. This number will be provided to parents in a letter that will be sent home from the child’s school during the week of January 11. Entering the student’s identification number helps to ensure that the school system receives only one survey response per student.

Once parents receive the letter from their school, they are asked to complete the online survey. If for some reason a parent has not received this letter by Friday January 15, the parent should contact their child’s school. Parents unable to complete the survey online may obtain a paper copy from their child’s school. The survey will be available online until Monday, January 25 at 12 p.m. That is also the deadline for returning paper surveys.

Answers will be kept confidential by the WCPSS Evaluation and Research Department, and individual responses will not be shared with the child’s school or anyone else.

The school system website will also provide a webpage for public comment about school calendar options that will be available during the survey period.

Board Resolution on Calendar Choices

At its Jan. 5 meeting, the Board of Education approved a resolution on calendar choices. The resolution offered by board member Deborah Prickett reads:

“We strongly oppose the mandatory assignments of students to year-round calendar schools and support calendar choice for all families. Beginning with the 2010-11 school year, there will be no mandatory year-round assignments. Every effort will be made to accommodate families into the calendar of their choice, whether it is year-round of traditional, at a school within proximity of their residence. We will no longer deny calendar applications based on socio-economic status. We will use each and every seat efficiently.”

Board Receives Update on Year-round Schools

At its Jan. 5 committee of the whole meeting, Board of Education members received an update from Assistant Superintendent Chuck Dulaney on year-round schools. Dulaney shared a few summary statistics:

• 33,157 students were in 42 year-round elementary schools in grades K-5
• 10,925 students were in 9 year round middle schools in grades 6-8
• Utilization of seats available in the 42 year round elementary schools was 85 percent
• Utilization of seats available in the 9 year-round middle schools was 91 percent
• Six of the elementary schools are only in their first or second year of operation
• The 44,082 students are on the following tracks:
  
  • Track 1 - 28 percent
  • Track 2 - 17 percent
  • Track 3 - 22 percent
  • Track 4 - 32 percent

The full report is available on the Growth and Planning Department website at www.wcpss.net/growth-management/calendar-choice/

Board creates two new committees

At its Jan. 5 meeting, the Board of Education approved establishing two new ad hoc committees. Board chair Ron Margiotta asked for the creation of the Economically Disadvantaged Student Achievement Task Force and the Student Assignment Advisory Committee and the board approved.

The Economically Disadvantaged Student Achievement Task Force would work with the school superintendent and staff to review and evaluate current board policies regarding student discipline and suspensions and recommend changes that will positively impact the learning environment and maximize individual student educational performance. The group would also review the End of Grade and End of Course test scores, specifically the lagging performance of minority and economically disadvantaged subgroups, with the intent of identifying and recommending ways to improve student test results. The group would review the school system’s graduation rates, specifically the performance of minority and economically disadvantaged subgroups, with the intent of identifying and recommending ways to improve these rates.

The Student Assignment Advisory Committee would be charged to review the present three year assignment plan that went into effect and to go beyond and look for long term assignment plans. This committee will interact with the WCPSS Growth Management staff in gathering information and make recommendations back to the board in helping to decide on assignment policies.

Margiotta said he would ask board members about their interest in serving on the committees and then make appointments. He said it would be good to have public representatives on the committees, also. He said board members would identify public representatives to serve on the committees.

The committees will continue until recommendations have been implemented and substantial positive results have been demonstrated.

WCPSS Teacher Honored at the White House

Hunter Magnet Elementary teacher Carol Wooten was in the White House Jan. 6 being congratulated by President Obama as one of the more than 100 science, math, and engineering teachers and mentors honored with the prestigious Presidential Award for Excellence.

As a winner of the Teaching Award, Wooten received a $10,000 award from the National Science Foundation to be used at her discretion and this expense-paid trip to Washington, D.C. for the White House awards ceremony and several days of educational and celebratory events, including visits with members of Congress and science agency leaders.

“The Presidential Award acknowledges my diligence and enthusiasm for teaching science,” said Wooten. “Through collaboration with other skilled educators from across the country, I plan to enhance my teaching strategies and continue lifelong learning. I will be able to further promote inquiry-based science education and science notebooks at a local, state, and national level. I am truly honored to represent Hunter Elementary and North Carolina as a Presidential Award recipient.”

Wooten teaches fifth grade mathematics, science, and social studies at Hunter Magnet Elementary. She has worked in the Wake County Public School System since 1998.

Wooten has won acclaim for the hands-on, problem-solving experience she provides in the classroom. She is known for her repertoire of instructional abilities associated with best practices and student success. She values student writing in science notebooks, an area she has pursued in curriculum development activities and presentations. Wooten's skill in challenging students' misconceptions of the subject matter is reflected in the reasoning and new knowledge recorded in their notebooks, which has demonstrated to other teachers what students can achieve through science writing exercises.

Families may tour Magnet Schools

K-8 parents considering elementary or middle school magnet options will have the opportunity to tour the schools.

Parents will be able to visit and tour magnet schools getting a first hand look at school locations and facilities.

Magnet Middle School tours are 9:00 am and 12:00 pm on Tuesday, Jan. 19.
Magnet Elementary School tours are 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 21.

Magnet school applications may be submitted online from Feb. 1 - 21.

For more information contact the Magnet Resource Center at magnetcenter@wcpss.net, 501-7900, or www.wcpss.net/magnet. The WCPSS Magnet Center offers Parent Information Sessions every 1st and 3rd Tuesday at 10:00 a.m.

Minority Business Enterprise Program

At the Jan. 5 meeting of the Board of Education, three construction contracting companies were recognized for successfully including minority businesses in construction projects as called for in school board policy.

Staff recognized Barnhill Contracting Company for its 39% MBE participation effort at River Bend Elementary, Balfour Beatty Construction for its 38% at Cary High, and Clancy & Theys Construction Company for its 28% at Herbert Akins Road Elementary.

Board Policy 7260 addresses Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Participation in Construction Contracts and requires staff to actively seek and identify MBEs and to monitor participation in the school system's construction contracting program.

2008-09 School Recycling Awards

At the Jan. 5 meeting of the school board, Wake County Environmental Program staff recognized schools for their success in the Feed-The-Bin School Recycling Program. The 2008-09 award recipients are:

• Leesville Road High for Highest Total Pounds of Recycled Paper: (28,141 pounds).
• Partnership Elementary for Highest Pounds of Recycled Paper per Student: (26.8 pounds per student).
• Morrisville Elementary for Largest Increase in Paper Recycling (from the previous school year): (from 2,556 pounds to 6,586 pounds).
• Anita Hynus, Musical Arts Teacher/Junior National Honors Society Coordinator, Martin Middle School for Outstanding Recycling Coordinator.

The program is currently in use at 157 schools. The Feed-The-Bin Program received the American Forest and Paper Associations School Recycling Award this past year. Wake County was selected from 120 applicants across 36 states.

In the photo, WCPSS and Wake County employees stand outside the board room after presentation to the school board. On the front row are Christina Larkins, WCPSS Conservation Coordinator, Rebecca Dunston, Chrissie Koroivui and Liana Yirka of Wake County and Sneha Atwal, director of WCPSS Environmental Health and Safety. On the back row are Matt Roylance of Wake County and Brent Henry, director of the NC Cooperative Extension Services.

Interlocal Agreement at Cary Elementary

At its Jan. 5 meeting, the Board of Education gave its approval to an interlocal agreement with the Town of Cary at Cary Elementary.

In August 2003, the board conveyed 1.9 acres of land to the Town of Cary containing the former Cary Elementary School building. The Town plans to renovate the former school for use as the Cary Community Arts Center. The renovation design includes expansion of the building toward school property, which will require several easements, and an encroachment agreement between the board and town.

During construction, it will be necessary to reroute the carpool drop-off and pick-up route. Board and town staffs and consultants, together with the Cary Elementary Principal, have collaborated to analyze the impacts to school property and operations, and have identified solutions that will safely minimize adverse impacts and limit liability to the extent reasonably possible.

Upon completion of construction, in approximately 17 months, the traffic flows will return to current patterns.

The terms and conditions of the Interlocal Agreement implement the solutions identified, contain an agreement to negotiate the terms and conditions of the necessary easements and encroachment agreement, and contain an agreement to negotiate a joint use agreement related to shared parking on school property.

WCPSS is now on YouTube and Twitter

Introducing two additional ways to stay up-to-date with the Wake County Public School System:
Search our library of videos on YouTube for your school, your favorite teacher, or simply browse around and discover interesting video stories and resources within the Wake County Public School System. Receive timely Tweets of news and information - follow WCPSS on Twitter.