Voices rally for school board

Parents organize to counter critics

Some Wake County parents are banding together against critics of year-round schools, calling them a "vocal minority" that has gotten too much attention.

Several dozen parents have joined Support Wake Schools, a group formed last week to unite people who believe that they represent most families in the school system. They're upset that the parent group Wake CARES sued the school system, and they say Wake CARES doesn't represent their interests.

"I feel that there is a silent majority out there that supports the policies of the school system or at least have come to accept them," said Chris Decker, a Cary parent who started Support Wake Schools. "I just reached a boiling point and felt the need to speak out."

The parents have formed an online message group, shown up at public meetings and contacted elected officials expressing their backing for the school system.

Last week, Wake CARES, which claims to have at least 3,000 active members, hailed as a victory for parents a judge's ruling that the school district couldn't assign students to mandatory year-round schools. The ruling forced the system to revise plans to convert 22 schools to a year-round calendar this summer. Now they're using voluntary instead of mandatory assignment as they appeal the ruling.

Letters will go out Friday asking more than 30,000 students whether they want to stay at year-round and modified-calendar schools this fall or leave for traditional-calendar schools.

Decker, 35, a software technologist at SAS with two children at a converted school, said the ruling threw into doubt the plans of thousands of families who had accepted year-round schools.

Even though Superior Court Judge Howard Manning Jr. said Wednesday that the district is complying with his order, families still face many uncertainties. Depending on how many families opt out, those staying at year-round schools might have to change the schedule or "track" they're on for the coming year. If too many families leave a year-round school, the district might have to put it back on a traditional calendar.

"Wake CARES is a small minority that's very vocal and being heard," said Holly Springs parent Sandy Ezzell, who isn't a member of Decker's group. "They're not right. They say they're sorry if it causes tumult. But I don't think they're sorry."

Ezzell is worried that she might have to change her summer vacation plans. Her oldest child attends Holly Springs, one of the elementary schools being converted.

Cary parent Jennifer Gilmore is also worried that her son might be forced back to a traditional calendar school if enough parents don't take the year-round option. She said any change in schedule would affect her free-lance writing work, vacation plans and other family issues.

With so many people affected, Gilmore said Wake CARES should have backed away from the lawsuit at this late date.

"They care passionately about what they believe," said Gilmore, who isn't in Support Wake Schools. "At this 11th hour, you sometimes have to accept defeat for the greater good."

School board members say the overwhelming response they've gotten from parents since last week's ruling has been support for the conversion plan. "One of the pleas I hear from people is let's get it started for next year," said board member Carol Parker.

Dawn Graff, a co-founder of Wake CARES, said the group shouldn't be blamed.

"We didn't implement or propose the policy, so we don't feel responsible for that," said Graff. "If they didn't want to be in a year-round school, they had the right to protest like we did."

Decker said most people like him had come to accept the conversions. He has two children at Highcroft Drive Elementary.

"You have a group of people who are in the majority who are a go-with-the-flow crowd," Decker said. "While they may not like it, they will learn to adjust."

(Staff writer Kinea White Epps contributed to this report.)