Wake schools' diversity may ebb

Year-round shifts could alter balance

Diversity is a nice concept to Donna Sorrell, but keeping her son out of a year-round calendar and at a school she hopes will be closer to home is more important.

That's why Sorrell is thrilled by a judge's ruling that the Wake County school system needs parental consent to send students to year-round and modified-calendar schools.

She'll use that right to keep her son out of Leesville Road Elementary School in North Raleigh, one of 22 schools converting to a year-round calendar this summer. She wants a traditional-calendar school closer to her home in East Raleigh.

"I just want him to be closer to home," said Sorrell, who lives in the Washington Terrace housing complex about 13 miles from Leesville. "Why does he have to go to school so far away?"

The court ruling put a lot of power in the hands of parents. But it could also weaken Wake's nationally recognized school diversity policy.

Wake has tried to limit the number of low-income students in schools, usually by busing poorer families around the county. But the court ruling might lead families such as Sorrell's that live in lower-income neighborhoods to leave affluent schools. It might also encourage affluent families to leave schools in lower-income communities.

"It's not a good situation for us to be in, but I don't know what we can do about it," said Carol Parker, a school board member, of the ruling's possible effects on the diversity of schools.

Wake wants to convert 22 schools to a year-round calendar to keep up with growth. Year-round schools can hold more students by keeping buildings in constant use. To fill as many seats as possible and to have some control over diversity, the board assigned students rather than make attendance voluntary.

But a judge ruled this month that Wake can't require students to attend year-round schools. School officials have sent consent forms to the parents of more than 30,000 students assigned to year-round schools asking if they wanted to stay. If they say yes, they will be guaranteed a seat at that year-round school.

If they say no, they will be guaranteed a traditional-calendar seat; but they won't know where it will be until the board votes June 19.

School administrators reported that 80 percent of the forms from two-thirds of the schools were returned as of Thursday. An updated total will be released this week. They said 90 percent of those responding chose to stay at year-round schools. No information was available on how those responses would affect diversity.

Forms that aren't returned will be considered a "no" to year-round schools. As a result, the school system will work through Friday contacting families who don't return the forms.

Families who ask for a traditional-calendar seat could be sent to a school farther from where they live. But parents whose children are already being bused a long way for diversity might be more willing to take the risk of saying no to a year-round school.

Diversity at risk?

The district's diversity goals could be weakened by the year-round ruling.

"The board approved a plan that provides a good level of diversity," said Chuck Dulaney, assistant superintendent for growth and planning. "What's uncertain is how many parents will choose their traditional-calendar option."

Since 2000, Wake has tried to limit the number of students receiving subsidized lunches at each school to 40 percent of enrollment. That goal is based on research showing that all students suffer academically when the poverty percentage gets too high. On average, low-income students don't do as well academically as affluent students.