Reversing the conversions?

Criteria For Conversion Of Elementary Schools From A Traditional Calendar To The 45/15 Multi-Track Calendar
From: WCPSS Growth and Planning Department
Approved By: The Board of Education On July 18, 2006

Staff will consider all the criteria shown below when developing recommendations for conversion of
schools from traditional calendars to multi-track calendars, but will be guided by the relative
importance of the groupings as listed.
The most important criteria will be capacity.
• How much capacity (space for new students) will be gained through conversion of a school? Can
the capacity gain be optimized through adjustment of mobile/modular classrooms, and does the
capacity gain provide space for special needs students as well as general enrollment growth?
• Is the student population growing in the base area of the school? Will the capacity gained through
conversion be utilized without reassignment or movement of mobile classrooms?
The second most important group of criteria involve the size of the school, the impact of conversion on
healthy school demographics, and the impact of conversion on the instructional program of the school.
• Does the school have sufficient projected membership to organize at least one class at each grade
level on each track?
• Will conversion of a school, and any necessary associated student reassignment, have a negative
impact on the district’s efforts to maintain a healthy demographic mix at all schools and on all
tracks?
• Will conversion of a school have a negative impact on the instructional program of the school or
the instructional services provided to the population served by that school?
The third most important group of criteria includes the history of interest in year-round education
shown by the community and the potential for enrollment growth in the areas assigned to the school.
• How many students residing in the base area of the school currently attend year-round schools
through the application process and how many students from the base area applied to year-round
but were not selected?
• Is the staff of the school interested in converting to the 45/15 calendar for instructional reasons?
The fourth group of criteria includes consideration of availability of alternatives for families and
teachers, availability of middle school matching calendars, the impact of conversion on student
assignment, and the ability of the school facility to support year-round multi-track utilization.
• Is there a traditional calendar school that could be made available to parents and teachers who can’t
make the year-round calendar work for their family?
• Does a school have a year-round middle school feeder option or can such an option be created?
How much reassignment would be associated with creation of a middle school feeder option?
• Will conversion to a year-round calendar require reassignment of some of a school’s base area
because of the large number of students that might return from existing year-round schools? If so,
how much reassignment is required?
• Will conversion of a school enable the Board of Education to remove a cap on enrollment or return
spot nodes to the base assignment area of the school?
• How will conversion of a school impact the needs of transfer students at that school?
• Does the school facility have obstacles that would inhibit or restrict effective multi-track
programming? For example, are there physical obstacles to the movement of materials on carts
between classrooms? If so, can those obstacles be addressed through minor facilities modifications
such as construction or reconfiguration of ramps or sidewalks? Will renovation plans create poor
learning conditions? Will poor air-conditioning create poor learning conditions?

"The plan would cover the 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 years. But Chuck Dulaney, assistant superintendent for growth and planning, said nothing would keep the board from making additional moves if circumstances change."

Isn't the 3 year plan supposed to be a set-in-stone plan that will provide you with stability for at least the next 3 years? 

Where is the stability? 

When I read Mr. Dulaney say "nothing would keep the board from making additional moves if circumstances change" what I hear is "we'll still continue to make moves as we see fit".

Again, WHERE IS THE STABILITY?

How is this new 3-year plan ANY different than the old "we'll move you as often as we want to" assignment policy??

I haven't seen so much written in a long time that I agree with - so refreshing. I'm a GHE parent and I'm not alone that feels like I'm going through some sort of Chinese water tortue with YR. I don't think we have a chance until the bond is defeated of anything changing. I don't think we stand a chance of the Supreme Court taking our case and then the board will be able to dictate who goes where and make people do it. (At least Julie will finally be happy). I believe this talk of converting schools back to traditional is just a way to gain some public support. In my wildest dreams I can't imagine them changing any of us back when they will lose total face and their face is all they care about - certainly not how parents feel - that is a joke! Anyway, all for one one for all is definitely the only way to have power. I just hope they haven't been completely successful in dividing and conquering neighborhoods (grassroot neighborhood action has always been where we have been successful )- we seem very fractured right now which is right where they want us at their mercy!! I hope I'm wrong - at least reading this blog makes me feel not alone.

"If you push for an all or nothing scenario, you will most likely get nothing."

Thanks for your input, but not interested because WE HAVE NOTHING NOW!
I know you Baucom and Leesville folks are on top of the list, notice how I keep at least agreeing with that, but under you is tied ALL the rest of us who are NO different. We have our issues that are JUST as equal to YOUR issue(s), but they're just titled differently.

We've been fighting this fight together, if you break off now and fight for your own ONLY then you do NOT help the cause. I'm sure we're ALL at the point of "who cares about the cause", but as Lisa B. says, I can dream can't I! :c )

On a reality based note,
the court has NO intentions of ruling in our favor, so don't deceive yourself with that waste of time, OR those wastes of robe wearing liberals.
I am VERY aware that the farm animals working for Del and Chuck have ZERO intentions of EVER admitting they are as dumb as dirt and have followed the David Koresh style of leadership that Chuck and Del have delivered for so long, SO smashing their bond is the ONLY way to get their undivided attention. Don't fool yourself any longer that it will not help because it will! Once it is defeated they will have mutiny on their hands and the CC's will have hard decisions to make and they JUST may not be even the slightest friendly towards the boe's future issues. Even more against than currently!
When the bond IS defeated then the oodles of idiots NOT paying attention because it doesn't affect them WILL be affected and maybe then THEY will wake up too!

Unconverting some schools will simply be pig feed for them to get YOUR vote because THEY did something for YOU! Not for the good of the children or for education, absolutely not!

We MUST stand together and shove their threats and tease of unconverting some, MAYBE, after you approve the bond via the Ann Goodnight style, back up their poop shoots!

Enough of the lies, enough of the spin, enough of the waste of millions every year and enough of the David Koresh style of leadership. We want human beings with hearts and souls to take over and correct the wrongs that THESE idiots have forced upon our children and our families!

If you don't have kids in the system, and don't get it, just shut up and vote NO for the bond. We'll explain why later!

I'm a VOLUNTARY YEAR-ROUND PARENT SINCE 2002.
Does anyone know what happens if BOE unconverts schools? Do I have to reapply for year-round seat or will my child automatically be transferred back to our original year-round school?

There is no real pressure on Rosa and the rest of the BoE(eR) at this moment. Currently, they blame the need of MYR on the CC, growth, not enough funds for new schools, etc. They blame the failure of the YR schools on the parents opting out (thanks Ms. Patrick for confirming this one). If you don't buy that, then they'll blame it on the economy or something else. If the YR ruling goes against them, they'll just continue to make traditional choices so undesirable many will just go along with the YR schedule. If you become upset about overcrowding issues at the traditional schools, they'll just blame that on the CC, the need for more funds, and threaten more problems if we don't pass the next bond. If the YR ruling is in favor of MYR, its a whole new game for them. Life as you know it is over. They'll never be any conversions back to tradition and every new school WILL by MYR. Most middle schools will go YR to increase the pressure to make all ES go YR. That's the facts L&G.... if you don't get all your friends and neighbors to throw out this BoE(eR) AND the current Wake GA reps stopping at large elections and the break up of WCPSS, we are stuck with either the status quo or worse.

Realistically, the BOE is not going to do ANYthing one way or the other until the court has settled the issue. If the court rules for the BOE, they will fill up the MYR schools very quickly.

If the court rules against the BOE, then they may be forced by political pressure to unconvert some schools IF enrollment continues to drop.  Logically, if the diversity program is the number one priority, then the lack of diversity that results when they can't force low-income people into MYR would lead to their unconverting the schools ASAP.  At this point though, they've taken so much stick over MYR and have so much 'face' invested, that it will take far more political pressure plus dropping enrollment to make them back down.

Whatever the BOE does after the court rules, though, is at this point secondary to the fact that everyone is waiting for the court to rule.  So in my opinion, that's where all the sound and fury should be directed right now - at the dilatory judges who have a lack of urgency when comes to making the decisions that affect all of your lives.

"it is apparent that one or two schools should NEVER have been on the list"
NONE should have EVER been on the list!

Good for you and your points about YOUR school, but what about mine? What about theirs? What about this one? What about that one? Baucom and Leesville aren't special, we're ALL equal, isn't that what THIS was all about?

It's ALL or none. If you want to lobby for the return of traditional consistency & normalcy, lobby for THEM ALL TO BE UNCONVERTED, NOT JUST YOURS and NOT JUST SOME!

dianeh has it exactly right, I'll keep pounding it until enough hear it, get it and vote NO against the next bond.

They've NEVER listened to you before, now MAKE THEM!

So , Chuck Dulaney can't go against planning assumptions that have already been adopted by the school board & county commissioners to convert back MYR schools. - THE PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS HAVE BEEN WRONG FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS!!!!! Where is the accountability? Parents have no voice in WCPSS. The only way to be heard is to Vote No on the next school bond.

But, of course they won't, they have too much political capital invested. As a result, they're now running a political capital deficit, as the County is increasingly skeptical to the crazy whims of WCPSS.

Rosa would like to us to think that the Board is in control. The inmates have long been running the asylum and that's why we're here. Ron is the ONLY board member with the fortitude to do what's right, (PF -- parent-friendly) and not what's most PC.

Go Ron!