More to come later, but the Wake County school board approved tonight the 2013-14 bell schedules.

The board approved a few changes from this document presented two weeks ago. The revised plan now means 17 schools are shifting for this fall, with six shifting by 30 or more minutes.

The new changes include starting Walnut Creek Elementary at 9:15 a.m., ending a program in which it operated 45 minutes longer than other elementary schools. The plan also starts the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy and Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy.

The board also dropped a change to Baucom Elementary School.

UPDATE

Click here to view the 2013-14 bell schedules adopted by the school board.

The Wake County school system is looking for public feedback on the proposed bell schedule changes for the 2013-14 school year.

Parent can go here to view the proposal and here to provide online feedback. The school board wants feedback before the March 19 vote.

During Tuesday's school board meeting, Bob Snidemiller, senior director of transportation, said they left 91 percent of schools unchanged to provide consistency. He said they're proposing changes at 15 schools to promote transportation efficiency.

The Wake County school board is going to fight it out in the General Assembly against the county commissioners over proposed legislative changes.

As noted in today's article, members of the school board's Democratic majority objected to the legislative changes backed by the GOP majority on the county commissioners. The school board will fight letting commissioners take over ownership of schools, give money to help charter schools build facilities and their support for adding at-large school board seats.

Democratic board members said they were defending the school system by hiring a lobbyist to oppose the commissioners' 2013 state legislative agenda.

The bad blood continues to flow between the Wake County Board of Commissioners and the school board.

As noted in today's article by Martha Quillin, Republican commissioners accused the school system of misleading taxpayers about its fund balance. The GOP majority also tabled approval of a land purchase for a northeast Raleigh middle school and accused the school board of engaging in politics in wanting them to approve buying the former YWCA building in Raleigh.

GOP commissioners said they were speaking for the taxpayers. But Democratic commissioners said Republicans were endangering development of the next school bond issue and harming relations with the school board.

The former YWCA building could turn into a new Wake County elementary school as opposed to future expansion space for the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy.

The Wake County Board of Commissioners voted this afternoon to approve the $1 million purchase of the YWCA building that had been requested by the school board. The commissioners also approved reallocating money for renovations for the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy and the Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy and to modify the MOU for the CTE high school.

But it was the vote over the YWCA building that was the most contentious decision. Approval came on a 4-3 vote when Republican Commissioner Joe Bryan joined the Democrats in voting yes.

It may be a tough sell for the Wake County school system to get county commissioners to approve funding for the single-sex leadership academies and the purchase of the former YWCA building.

As noted in today's article by Thomas Goldsmith, Republican commissioners wanted more details before approving use of $1.657 million to renovate the former Thompson School as the site of the Wake Young Men’s Leadership Academy. There were also questions about using $2.9 million to renovate buildings at the Gov. Morehead School for use by the Young Women’s Leadership Academy.

But there seemed to be an especially heavy dose of skepticism about spending $1.1 million to buy the former YWCA building on Hargett Street.

Of the 20 speakers signed up for tonight's public comment session, nearly all the speakers at the Wake County school board meeting want to talk about the two single-sex leadership academies.

A large number of students and parents from the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy and Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy are in the audience. Speakers want to talk about approving the schematic designs for renovations for the two schools and the lease for the WYMLA to stay at the Governor Morehead School for the Blind.

Some families at the two schools are worried that the firing of Superintendent Tony Tata, who was a big backer of the program, could jeopardize the future of the program.

UPDATE

The board agreed to spend $3.4 million to renovate the former Thompson School in downtown Raleigh so the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy can relocate there next year.

The board approved spending $4.7 million to renovate part of the campus of the Governor Morehead School for the Blind that's housing the Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy.

Before the votes, board member Jim Martin spoke to the students about issues such as the need to explain to others why school diversity is valuable and that per-pupil funding shouldn't be cut.  Students had talked about the diversity at the all-application school.

After the closed session tonight, the board voted to authorize negotiating a 20-year lease with the Morehead School to house the Wake Young Women's Leadership Academy.

The new CTE high school and plans to relocate the Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy to the former Thompson School building may finally being forward despite the recent bickering between the Wake County school board and county commissioners.

As noted in today's article, the commissioners approved Monday this memorandum of understanding to lease the former Coca-Cola bottling facility in South Raleigh and renovate it for opening for the 2014-15 school year as the CTE school.

Now the school board will hold a public hearing today on the CTE high school and vote on a resolution requesting commissioners go ahead with the deal.

UPDATE

Amid concerns raised by some board members, a vote will be held Oct. 30 on whether the school should be open to sophomores, juniors and seniors or just juniors and seniors.

The firing of Wake County Schools Superintendent Tony Tata has resulted in joint meetings between the school board and county commissioners on the next school bond issue being put on hold.

In this letter dated Friday, Board of Commissioner Paul Coble writes to school board chairman Kevin Hill that there's "no reason" now to hold the joint meetings until the commissioners get resolution on issues that have been put "up in the air" by Tata's firing.

Coble wants the school board to pass a resolution on the new/revised student assignment plan. He also wants the school board to pass resolutions affirming their support, for at least the next seven years, for the  Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy and for the CTE high school.

UPDATE

Click here for the article in Tuesday's paper.

Costs are going up for Wake County's two new single-sex leadership academies while the delayed sale of the school system's office buildings is cutting into its ability to use its unspent bond money.

Last week, Don Haydon, Wake's chief facilities and operations officer, presented this handout of spending from the current school construction program showing they're projecting $5.1 million in savings. He said it's more than previously projected because they're able to get lower bids now for projects.

But before the board talks about how to spend that $5 million, Haydon said that they need to sell the district's vacated office buildings, including the former headquarters on Wake Forest Road in Raleigh.