Leesville Road Middle could go year-round

RALEIGH -- Growth isn't following the course Wake County school leaders expected, forcing changes in how they'll deal with crowding in the next five years.

On Tuesday, school administrators proposed converting Leesville Road Middle School in North Raleigh to a year-round calendar in 2009. That change is being considered because enrollment in middle and high schools is expected to grow faster than projected.

But at the same time, staffers say elementary school enrollment isn't expanding as quickly as projected. This means the opening of some new elementary schools could be delayed to temporarily house middle school students in the buildings.

The seemingly contradictory measures being proposed could become the basis of the next school construction bond issue that voters will decide on.

"We want the board to know how we're thinking about dealing with the situation," said Chuck Dulaney, assistant superintendent for growth and planning.

Before they proceed further, Dulaney said, they're waiting to see whether the state Court of Appeals will allow Wake to make students attend year-round schools. Additionally, Dulaney said, they want to wait for the board to finalize the student reassignment plan.

The school board held the first of three public hearings on the reassignment plan Tuesday night at Sanderson High School. The board could vote on the reassignment plan Feb. 5.

The rate and type of growth is causing school officials to change plans because the pressure points of growth aren't where planners thought they would be.

Wake grew by 5,930 students this year, 2,084 students fewer than expected. Administrators have blamed the slowdown on factors such as the downturn in the housing market.

At the same time they're expecting 7,000 fewer elementary school students than projected in 2012, they also project a shortage of 1,000 high school classroom seats. Dulaney said middle schools will also be short of needed classroom seats because mobile classrooms will be shifted from them to ease crowding at high schools.

This means they're looking at converting Leesville Middle School, which would add to the 19 elementary schools and three middle schools that moved to a year-round calendar in July.

Year-round schools can hold more students than traditional-calendar schools by splitting students into four groups, with three in class at all times.

Dulaney said converting Leesville Middle would also help provide more year-round seats for families in northwest Raleigh who have children at year-round elementary schools.

Parents at Leesville Middle split over an earlier proposal to move to a year-round calendar. Conversion appealed to parents who had children who would attend year-round elementary schools. But families who had children in traditional-calendar high schools opposed the idea.

"It would be controversial, but it's something we need to consider," said school board member Patti Head, whose district covers Leesville.

The expected surplus of elementary school seats means Wake can delay opening some new schools. For instance, they can delay assigning elementary students to the new school on Akins Road in Fuquay-Varina in 2009 for a year so that they can assemble and house Holly Grove Middle students until their building is ready.

But it will still require adding more mobile classrooms to house the new students. For instance, Apex High could get 32 modular classrooms and Fuquay-Varina High could get 24 modular classrooms.

The potential changes, especially the conversion of Leesville Middle, frustrated North Raleigh parent Lisa Boneham.

"This just continues to amaze me how they're handling the whole situation," said Boneham, who will have two children at Leesville Middle in 2009. "What planning are they doing?"