CARY - More than 60 parents, children and public officials rallied in front of town hall Saturday morning, the latest gathering to oppose a reassignment plan being considered by the Wake County Board of Education.

Parents think the district's plans to more evenly distribute low-income students in the county will create instability in their lives, because it could force children to go to schools farther from home. They fear it would prevent students from being a part of a cohesive community and that the extra travel would cut into valuable study and family time.

Seven-year-old Litao Tu's parents worry about his bus ride if he is transferred from Oak Grove Elementary School to Adams Elementary.

Litao's ride now covers 2.5 miles and one traffic light, his father, Cong Tu, said at the rally. If he's moved to Adams, the distance would double and include 14 traffic lights, Tu said, tripling the travel time because of the stops and congestion.

"Kids who spend too much time on buses will spend less time on studies," Tu said, which also means less time with parents, teachers and classmates.

Cary Town Council members Erv Portman, Don Frantz, Gale Adcock and Mayor Pro Tem Julie Robison attended the rally to support the parents, as did school board member Ron Margiotta, Apex Mayor Keith Weatherly and state House Rep. Nelson Dollar.

Many parents at the rally have children at Oak Grove and Davis Drive elementary schools. They wore school shirts and held signs that read: "We have a voice. Give us a neighborhood choice!" and "Long bus commutes hurt everyone." They chanted: "We want to stay! Don't bus away!"

Katie Sommers, who organized the rally, has a 7-year-old son in Oak Grove who could be reassigned to Adams.

She said she has worked hard with teachers, the principal and the staff at Oak Grove to devise plans to meet her son's needs, and she is frustrated that she might have to start all over again.

"My son, in particular, needs the staff and support. As a parent who has invested in the school and tries not to ask for extra resources for my son -- to see that taken away, it's very frustrating," Sommers said. "He knows everyone from the principal to the lunch ladies ... that's very important to his well-being."

She said she thinks that the school district has become so large that it has desensitized the school board. She understands the need for diversity, she said, but she thinks students and their parents should have a say in where they're assigned.

The school board is weighing a proposal that would reassign students to balance the number of children in each school who receive subsidized lunches. Some schools have fewer low-income students than others.

Also, Wake County's population is growing rapidly, causing the need for annual reassignment, some school board members say. The district has grown by 29,541 students in the past five years, and it projects that 6,441 more will arrive in 2008, when three new schools are set to open.

"Someone has to be assigned to those schools," said board chairwoman Rosa Gill, who said parents could still sway the board at one of three public hearings.

No 'neighborhood'

But Gill said she doesn't agree with the notion of "neighborhood schools."

"The schools belong to all residents of the county. There is no such thing as a neighborhood school. Defining a neighborhood is based on who's defining it," she said. "We do try to assign kids to a school that's as close to their home as possible, but we don't call it a neighborhood school."

The proposed reassignment applies only to elementary schools. The latest plan would move 3,689 students to schools closer to home and 3,135 students to schools farther from home.

Board member Margiotta was the lone dissent in the 6-1 vote last month that led to the development of the reassignment plan.

"To me, there are three parts that make up a community: schools, church and the community," he said. "You take one of those out of that mix and you hurt the family structure. ... I think it's wrong for bureaucrats to say they know what's best for families than the families themselves."

PUBLIC HEARINGS

The final vote on the Wake County public schools reassignment plan is scheduled for Feb. 5. The Wake County Board of Education will hold three public hearings before then:

* Jan. 15, Sanderson High School, 5500 Dixon Drive, Raleigh

* Jan. 17, Green Hope High School, 2500 Carpenter Upchurch Road, Cary

* Jan. 24, Middle Creek High School, 123 Middle Creek Park Ave., Apex