Bob Luebke is joining those who've criticized Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker's call for Wake County mayors to form a committee to review the developing student assignment plan.

In a blog post today, Luebke of the conservative Civitas Institute disputes Meeker's statement that the goal is to form an "objective group." Luebke questions how objective the group will be considering that Meeker and his wife, school board member Anne McLaurin, are both supporters of the old diversity policy.

Look for the Wake County school board student assignment committee to pick up the pace in an effort to have at least some kind of partial plan ready for implementation in the 2011-12 school year.

As noted in today's article, school administrators had developed a timetable based on the board completing the new assignment model late next year for implementation in 2012-13. But members of the board majority said Tuesday they want every effort made to accelerate the plan by a year.

While the assignment committee may not have a full plan, enough could be in  place for changes to be made in the 2011-12 school year.

The Wake County school board is facing a big price tag for new schools and calls to push up implementation of the new student assignment plan.

Administrators said today that Wake needs at least 33 new schools by 2020 to confront a projected 39,500 seat deficit. While no numbers were given today, that's at least $1 billion worth of school construction costs.

One thing to consider is that 33 school figure in based on new elementary and middle schools being on a year-round calendar. Costs would go up if built on a traditional calendar.

CORRECTED TO INDICATE THEY PROJECTED 33 NEW SCHOOLS AND ALL THE NEW ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOLS WOULD BE ON A YEAR-ROUND CALENDAR

The Wake County school board's community relations committee will discuss today online signup to speak at board meetings and other ways to improve communications with the public.

The board had agreed last week to allow for online registration at board meetings. The community relations committee will go over the details today before the new procedure is implemented in October.

Also today, the committee will discuss ways to share information with the public and to discuss proposed design changes to the school district's website.

Wake County school board chairman Ron Margiotta's predictions about next year's election results are newsier than his inclination to not run again.

As noted in today's article, Margiotta told the crowd Thursday at the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce event that he's leaning 95 percent against seeking a third term next year. It's something he's been saying for awhile, including in a December article.

But Margiotta also predicted the majority will pick up two seats next year. He told WRAL that he thinks they'll win the seats now held by Kevin Hill and Anne McLaurin.

Some Wake County school administrators are sweating their futures now that school board members have asked interim Superintendent Donna Hargens to review whether jobs can be eliminated.

As noted in today's article, board members asked Hargens to look at more than a dozen senior administrative positions and come up with a recommendation on those positions next week.

Cutting some of those jobs could help offset the cost of restoring some of the parent counseling positions at Project Enlightenment. The board had also asked Hargens to make a recommendation on those jobs next week.

The recent dustup over Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker's comments is raising questions again about a potential conflict of interest with his wife, Wake County school board member Anne McLaurin.

School board member Deborah Prickett, a lifelong Raleigh resident, called Meeker's comments "inappropriate" that the board majority are not from this area. She added that she's concerned now about Meeker's opposition to building a new high school in Rolesville instead of the Forest Ridge site in Northeast Raleigh.

Prickett raised concerns about how McLaurin receives confidential information about the H6 site during closed sessions. Prickett said she'd like to review the conflict of interest guidelines involving McLaurin and Meeker.

Wake County Republican Party Chairman Claude Pope Jr. is accusing Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker of making "bigoted" and "insulting" statements about the members of the school board majority.

In a press release this evening, Pope takes aim at Meeker for the remarks he made at Monday's East Raleigh Citizens Advisory Committee meeting. At a meeting in which Meeker raised the specter of legal action over the end of the diversity policy, he called board majority members "people who are not from the area, who don't share our values."

“Mayor Meeker has insulted our school board members and all the citizens in Wake County who have moved here from somewhere else,” Pope said.

In another pair of 5-4 votes, the Wake County school board majority got the firm it wanted tonight for the superintendent search and gave initial approval to dropping requirements that the new schools chief be an educator.

The board hired Heidrick & Struggles to do the search at $82,500 plus expenses. It was the most expensive of the four firms that were interviewed by the board's superintendent search committee.

Hazard Young, Attea & Associates, who had been suggested by the minority members as an alternative to Heidrick & Struggles, offered to do it for $35,000. They also wanted $4,500 for consultant expenses.

SEE UPDATE AT END OF POST FOR HANDOUTS FROM TUESDAY'S MEETING

The Wake County school board's superintendent search committee voted 2-1 today to recommend hiring a search firm to help the district find a successor to Del Burns.

Committee chairwoman Debra Goldman and fellow committee member Chris Malone argued that board members lacked the experience to do the search on their own. But committee member Carolyn Morrison cited the cost of hiring a firm and said she’d prefer to first see if any internal applicants want the job.

Under board policy, the district must first look for internal applicants before conducting a national search. But even if the board stops with a local search, Goldman said the search firm can help them identify what characteristics they’re looking for in a new superintendent.