The mystery of how many kids were and are still being bused for socioeconomic diversity in Wake County won't be answered by the school district anytime soon.

As noted in today's article, school officials responding to the civil rights  probe by the U.S. Department of Education say they don't have the info. Click here to view the district's response.

The feds had asked how many students were bused for socioeconomic diversity in 2007-08 and 2008-09.

How significant is it for the chair of the Wake County school board to vote on all issues?

As noted in today's article, there was some difference of opinion on the issue when the board voted Tuesday to add the issue to its 2011 Legislative  Agenda. This means that the board will ask the Wake delegation to change the state law that dates back to the 1976 merger that only allows the chair to vote to break ties.

“It lets the public know where the board chair stands,” said school board member Chris Malone.

The Wake County school board adopted its 2011 Legislative Agenda tonight after some unusual machinations.

After various motions, the board essentially adopted the draft agenda presented by staff. The big difference is that the board did decide to add a request that the General Assembly pass a law allowing the school board chair to vote on all issues.

The process for getting to the final outcome was convoluted.

Is the Wake County school board looking for a backdoor in case it loses accreditation from AdvancED?

The school board is set to discuss and vote today on its 2011 Legislative Agenda, which lists the issues it will lobby the General Assembly on. One of the items in the draft agenda is to "review the state accreditation process and provide clarification to the school system."

During the AdvancED fight, school board attorney Ann Majestic has broached to school board members the possibility of seeking state accreditation. The problem is it no longer exists in the form that Wake would want.

UPDATE

One issue that will likely wait two weeks is adding allowing the board chair to vote on all issues. The Democratic members objected to voting today, saying they want more information first on why the prohibition was added to the merger law.

There are some pretty unhappy Wake County principals when it comes to their views on the school board and the elimination of the diversity policy.

As noted in today's article, more than 20 percent of Wake's principals either complained about the school board or ending the diversity policy in anonymous responses given to Superintendent Tony Tata. This offers a rare public glimpse at what the people who are charged with implementing the school board's policies think about things.

“The tone for the current board majority is disrespectful to school staff members,” one principal wrote. “Dec. are made contrary to the values/truths about quality education. Local examples (Char. Meck) are ignored, data are ignored and political agendas prevail at the expense of students. What was once a flagship system is now a national joke.”

Some of you guys may have had a chuckle over Saturday's Triangle Politics item about Wake County school board member Chris Malone lobbying for an extra exit in the new school board room in Cary.

Malone and board vice chairwoman Debra Goldman had lobbied the board last week to reconsider the Jan. 25 decision to stick with the staff-recommended design. They were lobbying for changes that could have added anywhere from $1,200 to $60,000 more in costs.

The end result last Tuesday was a one-hour discussion on the shape of the table, members' sightlines, security, audience access and places for the superintendent and board attorney to sit.

Could the wording from the Oct. 5 resolution that killed the zone plan come back to bite the Wake County school board during the accreditation review?

As noted in today's article, Mark Elgart, president of AdvancED, said the review team will question how the school board will follow through on the wording in the Oct. 5 resolution to provide “equity and equal opportunity” for all students. It's part of the review of whether the school board is following its own policies and procedures.

“We’re telling them it’s their right to assign students as they wish,” Elgart said. “But when you have a resolution that says you will ensure equality of opportunity, you have to say how you will do that.”

Because The N&O also prints the Eastern Wake News, readers of the main N&O sometimes miss some Wake County school news out of the east. There were two stories last week in the Eastern Wake News that seemed worth sharing, in the interest of keeping readers informed on what's happening all over our big ol' county.

In the first story (read it here), "Wake County school board member Chris Malone is working behind the scenes to try to bring a STEM school to Knightdale High School."

In the second (read it here), The Knightdale 100 (check them out at http://knightdale100.blogspot.com/ ) is continuing its mission toward improving schools in Eastern Wake County by offering educational forums to residents.

It took a lot longer than Wake County school board members expected Tuesday night to work their way through the 2011-12 student reassignment plan.

As noted in today's article, the school board wound up holding votes on all 50 items instead of doing one vote. It was due to the Democrats objecting to most of the moves that went beyond filling Walnut Creek Elementary School.

School board member Kevin Hill pointed back to the Oct. 5 resolution, which he said meant only making minor adjustments to the third year of the three-year assignment plan.

Following intense lobbying from parents at Daniels Middle School, the Wake County school board has agreed to only reassign 73 out of 170 students into the school.

Citing crowding issues, the board agreed to move in 73 students from Leesville Middle to Daniels. But the board killed plans to move in 97 students from Centennial, East Millbrook and West Millbrook middle schools.

Staff had recommended bringing in those 170 Southeast Raleigh students both to relieve crowding at Leesville and to send kids closer to home.

SEE UPDATE AT END OF POST