{"id":9599,"date":"2011-11-18T12:51:26","date_gmt":"2011-11-18T17:51:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.raleighpublicrecord.org\/?p=9599"},"modified":"2013-03-25T10:13:54","modified_gmt":"2013-03-25T14:13:54","slug":"unlocking-controlled-choice-assignment-part-3-potential-pitfalls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/news\/2011\/11\/18\/unlocking-controlled-choice-assignment-part-3-potential-pitfalls\/","title":{"rendered":"Unlocking Controlled-Choice Assignment Part 3: Potential Pitfalls"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: This story is Part Three of a three-part series. Read <\/em>Part One<\/em><\/a> and Part Two<\/a>. If you have any questions about the controlled-choice assignment plan, feel free to post them on the discussion forum. We will be happy to answer your questions. If we don\u2019t know the answer, we\u2019ll find out from Wake County schools for you.<\/em><\/p>\n

Parental satisfaction and the success of the newly adopted controlled-choice assignment plan rest on one key concept: making each school in Wake County desirable.<\/p>\n

If each school is one that parents want their children to attend, then satisfaction will stay high even if parents don\u2019t get their first choice. Also, school capacity will be naturally spread out, rather than some schools being extremely under-chosen or over-chosen.<\/p>\n

However, if severe inequalities in the where parents want their children to go to schools begin to emerge, it could create a slippery slope towards a system of good schools and bad schools and assignments that parents don\u2019t like.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe opportunity is to create different school cultures that fit different kids,\u201d said Jayne Fleener, dean of the College of Education at NC State University. \u201cYou develop specialized cultures in schools and that allows families opportunities that neighborhood schools wouldn\u2019t allow.\u201d<\/p>\n

The controlled-choice plan acknowledges that \u201cover time some schools will outperform others.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe key,\u201d said assignment task force leader James Overman, \u201cis being on top of it at the very beginning. It\u2019s not something that you want to let go for a year or two.\u201d<\/p>\n

Assuming that strategy works, a hurdle is the high-poverty schools that already exist in Wake County. Since they may already be perceived as undesirable, it may be impossible to get out in front of the problems.<\/p>\n

Twenty-two percent of Wake schools have student populations with more than 50 percent of the student body receiving free and reduced lunch. It is not the plan\u2019s purpose to reduce that percentage over time. In fact, the plan states that the number will likely stay the same.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

A crowd of around 250 people gathered recently at Durant Road Elementary School for an information session to try to wrap their heads around Wake's new choice assignment plan.<\/p><\/div>\n

Non-Participants End Up Where There\u2019s Room<\/strong>
\nAnother snag to look for in the choice plan is when families don\u2019t participate in the choice process to pick schools. In short, parents who don\u2019t make choices on behalf of their children will end up with children being put in schools where there is space.<\/p>\n

The plan goes to great lengths to establish potential methods for informing what it calls \u201chistorically under-represented communities\u201d about the selection process. The examples include everything from calls to emails and in some cases even visiting people\u2019s homes.<\/p>\n

However, the plan relents \u201cit is likely some families will not participate in one or more elements of the choice process for any number of reasons.\u201d<\/p>\n

Learn more about choosing your school during WCPSS sessions taking place now through Dec. 17<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Children of non-participating families will then be assigned to whatever schools have capacity left.<\/p>\n

\u201cIdeally, we\u2019ll be able to follow the priorities,\u201d for assigning those students, said Susan Pullium of the student assignment task force. Ultimately, capacity is the final deciding factor.<\/p>\n

Overman said he doesn\u2019t think the number of non-participants will be significant.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we structure it appropriately, people will not have the option of not participating,\u201d Overman said. \u201cThey\u2019re going to have to participate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Parents must \u201cenroll\u201d their child before he or she can become a student. However, the selection process takes place separately. Overman hopes completing the selection process will be instilled at enrollment.<\/p>\n

If it isn\u2019t, merely being assigned to a school with remaining capacity could be a problem. Schools with remaining capacity will be under-chosen and perhaps undesirable.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf [non-participants\u2019] interests are not represented, then I think that falls on the board. Not all families can make sense of what\u2019s going on. I don\u2019t think any of us benefit from self-interest,\u201d Fleener said.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Fewer people living low-income areas of Wake County participated in the test drive , which could mean fewer people in those areas will participate in the choice process.<\/p><\/div>\n

Dealing with Growth<\/strong>
\nWake County schools are at roughly 90 percent capacity. According to the plan, Wake County schools will have insufficient capacity in five years \u2014 during the 2016-17 school year.<\/p>\n

As the school system reaches full capacity, it\u2019s easy to imagine fewer families will be accepted into their first- and second-choice schools.<\/p>\n

Overman doesn\u2019t think it will be a problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we do a good job aligning our building program and stay ahead of growth,\u201d he said, \u201cI\u2019m not sure why it would reduce the number of people getting their first or second choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Fleener, the greatest concern is making sure all children have access to an excellent education.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t afford to do anything to our schools that make them less than excellent and we need all children to have opportunities to attend excellent schools,\u201d she said. \u201cWe can be the best of the best and we owe it to our children to accomplish that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The success of controlled-choice hinges on keeping all schools in Wake County desirable. At the same time the plan does not attempt to reduce the current 22 percent of schools where more than 50 percent of students receive free and reduced lunch. We look at this and other potential pitfalls of the new assignment plan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24024,"featured_media":9601,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[15,23,55],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9599"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24024"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9599\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9601"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theraleighcommons.org\/raleighpublicrecord\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}