Sample zone maps presented and controlled choice discussed

Maybe I missed it, but has there been any talk about how magnet applications will fit into the new model?  Today, if a family wins the magnet lottery with their oldest child in kindergarten, they are virtually assured of a magnet education for all of their children.  Will kids from magnet elementary be given preference for admission to magnet middle?

I live in Cary, right on the Cary-Apex border. The property line of my backyard is the dividing line between Apex and Cary. I have lived in the neighborhood for 20 years, and the neighborhood has gone to Apex High School since the neighborhood was built. Apex High is about 1 mile from my house. My son currently goes to Apex High and my daughter will start high school in the 2011-2012 school year -- just as the new plan goes into effect.

I received an email a couple of days ago from someone "in the know," that said there is a possibility that my neighborhood would be reassigned to a different high school under whatever new plan is introduced. And these maps seem to bear that out. Although not clear, it looks like the maps show us assigned to Cary High School.

At this point in the education of our children, we had hoped that we could just finish out our years at Apex High. We suffered through several ES years at a "rim" school, comforted by the hopes of returning to our neighborhood schools for MS and HS. We felt fortunate when we finally got to MS. After our first year at MS, the school was one of the 22 converted to MYR, and though we weren't thrilled about that, we were comforted by the fact that, once our oldest got to high school, we would only have two years with the kids on different schedules. Now with one in high school, and one nearly there, we felt we were just one year away from having both kids at the same school and on the same schedule. We would never have to worry about school assignment again. Alas, that may not be the case.

While it is still way too early to "circle the wagons," my wife has already had two sleepless nights, the neighborhood petitions have started, and I'm thinking about real estate in Apex. But being the optimist that I am, I am comforted by the hopes that the final plan will change, or the family-friendly board will provide an option for siblings to attend the same school, or a nice, affordable 3 bedroom will open up in Apex :)

still not enough schools in the right places. Choice will be thin in some areas. Bottom line choice is expensive and will come at the expense of academics. 

It seems the "green star" that would indicate Leesville MS was not on any of the maps? Am I looking in the wrong place?

Residents on average each day spend eight hours sleeping, nearly three hours watching TV, about 25 minutes thinking and nearly an hour socializing, according to the study. The average North Carolinian, aged 15 and older, spends nearly three hours working.

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HA HA HA - pretty much describes many of you on this blog.  You know who you are!

Edited to add: from WRAL.com

Two observations ...

1) Is there a zone down route 1 on the lower left corner without a HS?  I don't see a pink triangle unless it is under the ES/MS triangle.  ( to the left of Holly Springs)

2) Look how many schools sit on the lines.  There are going to be a lot of people who will live across the street from a school they can not attend.

Looks like 50% of our HS are on the list ... ( 6% make it on average) ...

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Recalculation Adds Wake High Schools to Best Schools List ....After being inadvertently left off Newsweek magazine’s Best High Schools list, eight Wake County high schools have been added to the roster following a recalculation of the data.

In all, 12 Wake County Public High Schools are on the news magazine’s list of best high schools in the United States. They are:

•Apex
•Middle Creek
•Cary
•Panther Creek
•Holly Springs
•Wakefield
•Millbrook
•Enloe
•Broughton
•Athens Drive
•Leesville Road
•Green Hope

“When we first saw the list, we were alarmed only four of our schools made the list,” said David Holdzkom, assistant superintendent for Evaluation and Research. “Using the Newsweek criteria, we re-examined all WCPSS high schools to see if any met the test used by Newsweek. We discovered eight of our schools had been left off the list in error,” Holdzkom said.

The authors of the story acknowledged the error in their calculations and have reposted the corrected results on their Web page. ....www.newsweek.com/feature/2010/americas-best-high-schools.html

“We have great schools in Wake County, and we want to make sure they get the credit they deserve,” Holdzkom said. Our teachers, administrators and principals have worked hard for these results.”

According to Newsweek, just over 1,600 schools, or about six percent of all the public schools in the U.S., made the list.

I have looked at the maps and it looks like 3 of the maps has my address assigned to different High Schools. How confusing.