RALEIGH - Wake County school leaders announced today that they will continue to ask parents for permission to send their children to year-round schools until they hear otherwise from the state Supreme Court.

The school system began to move away from getting permission from all parents after the Court of Appeals ruled earlier this month that consent was not needed for year-round schools. But school leaders have postponed plans since the Supreme Court stayed the appellate decision last week until they decide whether to hear the case.

After meeting behind closed doors at a special meeting, the school board voted to continue to seek consent from newcomers to attend year-round and modified-calendar schools. But, according to the vote, they will stop seeking consent if the Supreme Court decides not to hear the case or ends the stay.

School leaders had planned, after the appellate decision, to not ask permission from families who move into the district after June 1.

"We will continue to ask for consent," said Beverley Clark, vice chairwoman of the school board.

Chuck Dulaney, assistant superintendent for growth and planning, estimated that around 1,200 students who move into Wake over the summer could now be asked for their permission.

But board members also decided today against making one potentially controversial change. School leaders will continue to assume that parents who don't return consent forms by a June 1 deadline are giving permission for their children to attend year-round or modified-calendar schools.

Prior to the appellate decision, the board had voted in April to send consent forms to around 7,700 students whose parents hadn't previously given permission. In that form, failure to return the document would have been considered not providing consent.

After the appellate decision, the board decided to send a second form to those same families saying that failure to return the document would now be considered the same as giving consent.

School board members decided today against sending out a third form. They said they felt comfortable that the second form would still comply with legal requirements for seeking consent from parents.

"We didn't want to confuse parents by sending another form," Clark, said.

School board members have stressed that they had only agreed to seek consent from existing families because the appellate decision had come so late in the assignment process. They've warned that those families who don't give consent on the forms will be returned to year-round schools in 2009. But that would change if the Supreme Court overturns the appellate decision.

The district says year-round schools accommodate more children, helping the county deal with runaway growth. Wake's decision last year to convert 22 schools to the year-round calendar and to open all new elementary and middle schools on that basis prompted Wake CARES, a parent group, to sue.

Wake CARES argued that it was against state law to require students to attend year-round schools. School leaders said they had all the authority they needed.

The school district's plans were thrown into doubt in May 2007 by Howard Manning Jr., a Wake County Superior Court judge, who required parents' permission. More than 90 percent of parents gave consent, but still, many year-round schools had empty seats and several traditional-calendar schools became overcrowded.

On May 6, a three-judge appellate panel unanimously reversed Manning's decision.

Last week, Robert Hunter, the attorney for Wake CARES, asked for a temporary stay and for the Supreme Court to hear the group's appeal. According to court officials, the earliest the Supreme Court could decide to grant the motion to hear the case is June 11.

The Supreme Court's stay surprised school officials, leading to today's special meeting.

Citing the need to preserve attorney-client privilege, the board voted 5-1 to go behind closed doors to discuss the situation with Ann Majestic, the board's attorney. Ron Margiotta was the lone dissenter.

"It's a matter of great importance to the public," Margiotta said. "We're not obligated to go into closed session."