TED RICHARDSON - trichardson@newsobserver.com
John Tedesco, center, is sworn in as a new Wake County school board member by The Honorable Fred G. Morrison Jr., left, and with Pastor Abel Grande, right, holding the Bible, at the school system's central administrative buildiing on Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009. Four new board members were sworn in at the ceremony.
The new Wake County school board majority approved a sweeping
series of changes today, including dropping the weekly Wednesday early
dismissals and taking the first steps toward neighborhood schools and
ending mandatory year-round schools.
The changes, which were added at the last minute to today's meeting
agenda, capped the election this fall of four new school board members
who are critics of existing policies. It was a heated meeting in which
new board members said they're carrying out campaign promises while old
members complained that the changes were being rushed.
"This is just the beginning," said Chris Malone, one of four new school board members sworn in today. "I will strive to make sure that the promises I made become a reality. The next four years as they say will be interesting times."
The four new members have joined with current board member Ron Margiotta
to form a new majority on the nine-member board.
In the most potentially sweeping change, the new majority put forward a
policy that calls for promoting neighborhood schools in student
assignment. It would eliminate the current policy of trying to balance
the percentage of low-income students at schools.
In a compromise with the minority, the board voted to send the policy
first to a committee instead of taking an immediate vote today.
Another change that met heated discussion was the board agreeing to end
the weekly Wednesday early dismissals at the end of this school year.
Teachers are using that time for planning sessions.
Sending home students early every Wednesday has drawn complaints from
many parents about the inconvenience it creates to families. But
supporters say it helps teachers do a better job of educating students.
As part of the resolution, administrators were asked to find a way to
incorporate the planning time next school year without burdening
families.
Other items approved include:
* Stop spending money on the Forest Ridge High site in northeast Raleigh
while a review of alternative sites is conducted.
* Surveying parents to help identify which year-round schools should be
converted back to a traditional calendar.
* Appointing the law firm of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak and Stewart
to audit the district's legal services. Lawyers from the firm gave
campaign donations to Malone.
* Electing Margiotta as the new board chairman. He deposed Kevin Hill,
whose term wasn't set to end until June.
The items were added to the agenda today on a 5-4 vote. The new minority
complained about not knowing about the items ahead of time.
"I don't feel the community nor Wake County will move forward with a divided board," Hill said. "I don't believe the process we're about to undertake this evening will do that."
The board voted after hearing from more than 20 speakers, most of whom
urged that the current policies not be changed. The tone got so heated
at points that Margiotta threatened to call in security.
"I beg of you to slow down and make careful informed decisions and not political ones," said North Raleigh parent Anne Sherron, who serves on the advisory committee that now advises administrators on school assignments.
At one point, several teachers walked out of the meeting in protest of
the new board's actions
"Help us trust you because right now we don't," said Jennifer Lanane, president of the Wake County chapter of the N.C. Association of Educators, who represent 5,000 school employees.
