Wake County school board member Debra Goldman says she's taking on the role of board "watchdog."

During last week's board meeting, Goldman, a Republican, repeatedly raised concerns about the way she felt the new Democratic board majority was operating. She accused the board of committing several policy violations and not passing the "smell test" on email discussions.

"You’ve referred to me as the watchdog and I will pick up that mantle and go forward with it," Goldman said during the meeting.

Student assignment is just one of many items that will be discussed during today's Wake County school board meeting.

A dozen items are on the agenda for the work session that starts at 1 p.m. Student assignment is listed as the last item but could be moved up.

Other work session topics include setting up joint meetings with the county commissioners, the return of school board committees, staff handling of public information requests and enrollment projections for operating and capital budgets.

Items on the agenda for the regular meeting that starts at 5:30 p.m. include approving the Jim Black land deal and selling the school system's Noble Road facility. This is also the first meeting where public comment will be restored to three minutes per speaker.

Get ready for what looks to be a rocky budget season between the Wake County Board of Commissioners and the Wake County school board.

As noted in today's article by Thomas Goldsmith, the commissioners will vote today on appointing Republicans Joe Bryan, Paul Coble and Tony Gurley to the budget, finance and education committee. Click here to view the committee assignments. The document mistakenly says 2011 and not 2012.

Bryan, nominated to chair the committee, says the GOP majority on the board of commissioners will likely stick with its pay-as-you-go philosophy of maintaining services based on the lowered revenue streams of recession years. The county is projecting slow revenue growth for the upcoming fiscal year.

The question of whether the Wake County school board should return to the county around $15 million in excess fund balance is likely to be a big issue during the budget process next year.

In a nutshell, the school system's undesignated fund balance, colloquially called its rainy day fund, has grown so much in the past few years that board policy dictates that about $15 million be returned to county commissioners.

But with next year's budget being tight, is that the right call? Also, it would take a two-thirds majority to waive policy to keep the $15 million so would a bi-partisan coalition agree to that decision?

SEE UPDATE AT END OF POST, WHICH NOW INCLUDES LINK TO TUESDAY DISCUSSION ON RICK & DONNA MARTINEZ SHOW ON WPTF

Outgoing Wake County school board chairman Ron Margiotta had some advice to give to the incoming board members and those who will remain on the board after his Dec. 6 departure.

During his final meeting as chairman on Tuesday, Margiotta urged the new board members to work well with county commissioners, Superintendent Tony Tata and staff. Margiotta also urged the new members to not meddle in the operation and affairs of schools.

Margiotta also urged the new Democratic members who knocked him and the Republican majority out of power, to think outside the box and "not simply rely on old solutions."

Regardless of who wins Tuesday's runoff election, the Wake County school board will have a lot on its hands after the new members are sworn in Dec. 6.

As noted in today's article, three big issues are student assignment, the budget and the next bond issue. One question is how those issues might be approached differently depending on whether the school board has a Republican or Democratic majority.

For instance, it's safe to say that the new student assignment plan will be modified as it goes along.

The new Wake County student assignment plan will lead to changes in how new schools are built and filled.

As shown in this handout from Tuesday's school board meeting, the plan would have elementary schools open K-3 instead of the current system of opening K-5. Middle schools would only open with sixth-grade instead of the current practice of also having seventh-grade. New high schools would still open with only ninth- and 10th-grades.

The schools would pick up their additional grades as the kids age up.

It's now in the hands of the Wake County Board of Commissioners to decide on reallocating unspent 2006 bond money to help fund the $130.3 million school construction program recently approved by the school board.

The commissioners are being asked today to approve in concept the plan that would fund projects such as a new high school in Apex, a new elementary school in Wake Forest, two single-sex leadership academies, the Hilburn K-8 conversion, off-campus ninth-grade centers for Panther Creek and Garner high schools and modulars at several other high schools.

Critics of the school board majority focused most of their complaints on the leadership academies, the Hilburn project and the Panther Creek ninth-grade center. In the case of Panther Creek, school officials say the ninth-grade center is needed to deal with crowding while critics complained a relatively new school was getting more money while older ones like Apex High were not.

Today's vote is for first reading only. The meeting starts at 2 p.m. in the  Wake County Courthouse, Room 700.

You would have gotten two pretty different views on the last two years if you had attended Tuesday's District 8 forum for Wake County school board candidates.

As noted in today's article, school board chairman Ron Margiotta touted a list of accomplishments that he said showed Wake was going in the right direction. Susan Evans argued that Margiotta and the board majority had made Wake a laughing stock.

Among the issues they expressed disagreement on were balancing school enrollments, the decision not to ask for more school funding from county commissioners this year and the recent approval of the single-sex leadership academies.

SEE UPDATE AT END OF POST

Wake County school board candidate Heather Losurdo announced Friday that she had been endorsed by the four Republican members of the Wake board of commissioners.

In her press release, Losurdo said her "campaign is proud to announce the endorsement by these majority members of the Wake County Commission: Chairman Paul Coble, Vice Chairman Phil Matthews, Joe Bryan and Tony Gurley."

Losurdo has already been endorsed by GOP school board members Chris Malone, Ron Margiotta, Deborah Prickett and John Tedesco in her bid to win the District 3 seat from incumbent Kevin Hill. Jennifer Mansfield is also running for the seat.