Judge in year-round case has been schooled

He has worked with Wake schools in the past; both sides expect fair hearing

The Wake County school system is no stranger to Superior Court Judge Howard Manning Jr.'s courtroom.

Manning has often held Wake County up as an academic model for other school systems to follow as he's overseen the landmark school funding case known as Leandro. He'll deal with Wake again today as he hears arguments that will affect where thousands of students will go to school this fall and what schedules they'll use.

"I believe he will judge this fairly," said Patti Head, chairwoman of the Wake school board. "He knows Wake County has a good school system. But I don't believe they [opponents] are saying we've not a good system."

Donald W. Stephens, the senior resident Superior Court judge in Wake, assigned Manning to hear the lawsuit filed by the parent group Wake CARES to block the school system from converting 22 schools to a year-round schedule.

Today, Manning will hear arguments from Wake CARES for an injunction halting the conversions. He'll also hear the Wake school system's arguments for dismissing the lawsuit.

"We're thrilled that we'll get our day in court," said Kathleen Brennan, one of the founders of Wake CARES.

Manning declined comment because the case is pending. But he heads into the dispute knowing more about education than any other judge in the state, due to his work as the trial judge in the long-running Leandro case.

"He's a judge who knows about the classroom and is up to speed," said Wake school board member Carol Parker.

Started in 1994, Leandro originally was a lawsuit by five poor school systems who argued that the state wasn't providing them enough money to ensure that their children got a quality education.

After being tapped by the state Supreme Court to hear the case, Manning has been holding hearings since 1998.

Manning has made decisions that have affected the education of all students in the state. He has ruled that all students are entitled to have a caring, qualified teacher. He has said every school should have sufficient resources and be led by a competent principal.

The state is pumping millions of dollars into education to comply with Manning's decisions.

Throughout Leandro, Manning has often cited the Wake school system as an academic role model for the state.

Manning knows Wake better than most school systems. He was a lawyer for the Raleigh City schools in the 1970s before the merger with the Wake County system in 1976.

Manning said, "We've got the Rolls Royce running" when referring to testimony from Wake school officials, according to The Charlotte Observer.

"Wake County high schools are doing well and the system is benefitting from stable leadership and community support," Manning wrote in a 2005 Leandro report. It's the same report in which he accused the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system of committing "academic genocide."

'Does his homework'

Wake school officials have been a familiar part of Manning's courtroom. Former Wake Superintendent Bill McNeal can recall being grilled by Manning when he testified in the Leandro case.

"He does his homework," said McNeal, who is now executive director of the N.C. Association of School Administrators. "I think he admires those who also do their homework."

This kind of give-and-take is something that the maverick judge is known for in his interactions in the courtroom and in his written rulings. Even as the state Supreme Court affirmed nearly all of Manning's decisions, they remarked about the "free-wheeling nature" of his court order.

"He's not an enigmatic judge," said Jack Boger, dean of UNC-Chapel Hill's School of Law.

No advantage seen

Wake school officials say they don't think Manning's previous assessments of the district will give them an advantage.

"He's very fair-minded and he cares very much about public education," said Wake Superintendent Del Burns.

Wake CARES' leaders also say they expect Manning to decide the case impartially.

"From what I understand, he seems to be fair and family friendly," Brennnan said.

Boger also said Wake CARES doesn't have to worry. He said Manning is open-minded.

Regardless of how Manning rules, those who have been attorneys or witnesses in his courtroom say both sides had better be prepared today.

"He's not shy about asking questions," Boger said. "That's what makes him so colorful. A lot of judges like to hang back. Judge Manning is very hands on."