Backers hope magnets stay

RALEIGH -- The popularity of Wake's magnet programs was evident by the hundreds of people who attended a fair Saturday at Southeast Raleigh High School - even as the program's future is uncertain.

The magnet system, which grants special designation and learning opportunities at certain schools, has been a key component of the county school system's effort to create socioeconomic diversity. But the system might be changed or dismantled by the recently elected board majority, which now supports neighborhood schools that would eliminate the kind of cross-town busing magnet schools help foster.

But those who have attended magnet schools are some of the biggest fans, and they were out in force at the annual showcase that puts the schools' unique strengths on display to lure students into the programs.

Joe Stiles has two children who attend Millbrook Elementary, which has an International Baccalaureate magnet program.

"It's been awesome," Stiles said of the program. "My kids are thriving in this school."

He understands the desire for more neighborhood schools and more consistency in school assignments; he just hopes that the new board doesn't move in that direction at the expense of the magnet programs.

"There's the vision of the new board and the reality of where we are now," Stiles said.

Members of the new school board majority have pledged to listen to parents and the community as they carry out their campaign pledges.

Ananya Sen, whose daughter hopes to attend either Ligon Magnet Middle or Carnage Magnet Middle next school year, said she hopes the new board can remove some of the uncertainty about school assignments without reducing the options available to students who would rather not attend their neighborhood school.

Sen said that when her family moved to the Triangle in 2006, they chose to live in Wake County largely because of the school system and the magnet programs it offered.

Kelia Hubbard and Yahna Perry both live in Southeast Raleigh, and their neighborhood school is Barwell Road Elementary.

Both women said they would rather put their children in private school than have them attend Barwell. Hubbard said she's worried that emphasizing neighborhood schools will just lead to a wider gap between the good and bad schools in the county.

If the magnet school option wasn't available, Hubbard said, her only other options would be applying to a charter school or paying for a private school.

"I would be willing to make the sacrifice to send my children to private school rather than go to a bad public school," Hubbard said.

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