Juniors will have to go to new school

Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board eases appeal process

CHAPEL HILL -- A divided school board voted Thursday to open Carrboro High next year with a full flock of juniors.

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board was torn between requiring juniors in Carrboro High's assignment zone to enroll and allowing them greater freedom to stay at one of Chapel Hill's established high schools.

Though the board agreed to lower the bar for juniors requesting appeals, members narrowly decided to require juniors living near the 800-capacity school to attend.

Members Jean Hamilton, Mike Kelley and Annetta Streater -- pushing for juniors to have more choice -- dissented in the 4-3 vote.

The slim majority argued that Carrboro High, which will not open with a senior class, will need enough juniors to sustain a full range of course offerings and a broad athletic program.

The system's two other high schools -- Chapel Hill High and East Chapel Hill High -- also need relief from crowding, school board Chairwoman Lisa Stuckey said.

"The vast majority of kids are going to do just great at Carrboro High," Stuckey said.

But the dissenting board members and a contingent of parents aren't so sure.

They fear that strong relationships with teachers and classmates will be broken and that students' ties to offerings such as marching band and Japanese courses will be stripped away.

"The band and the band family, they're a real unit," said Rick Ambrose, father of a rising junior zoned to attend Carrboro High next year. "When you separate them, you're taking a lot of heart out of these kids."

The board also received a petition signed by about 250 Chapel Hill High students urging the board to let juniors stay put.

Originally, administrators recommended allowing transfers out of Carrboro High only to students who could prove that leaving an athletic, arts or academic program would harm their college or career ambitions.

But the board agreed on a less hard-line approach. Now, students must state their cases in writing by March 1. They'll be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

In the meantime, school leaders must do a better job convincing parents that Carrboro High will be as esteemed as Chapel Hill's two high schools, board member Elizabeth Carter said.

"Parents can't envision things occurring for their students," she said, "if there's no one there to lead the process."