This week, I participated in several events. On Monday, March 1st, I attended COVID-19 and K-12 Education, a virtual event co-sponsored by Polis: Center for Politics and the Center for Child and Family Policy. The presenters were: Leslie Babinski, a Duke Professor; and Everton Blair, a Gwinnet County School Board Representative. They addressed issued related to COVID-19, the impact on the education system, and where we go from here. On Wednesday, March 3rd, I volunteered at a WCPSS Vaccination Event at Southeast Raleigh High. It was exciting to see hundreds of WCPSS staff be able to receive a vaccine. I appreciate all the volunteers who are making these events possible. On Thursday, March 4th, I attended an Every Child NC virtual event and listened to a powerful panel of students and educators share their experiences and information regarding the importance of the Leandro decision and its requirements. On Friday, March 5th, I participated in a Read Across America event with Ms. Knight's 2nd grade class at Combs Elementary. I read How to Be a Lion. The students (leaders) were fantastic! Any educators reading this entry, please reach out to me for any future reading events.
As a Board, we had two meetings on Tuesday, March 2nd: Work Session and Board Meeting.
At the Tuesday, March 2nd, Work Session:
- Wade Martin, Assistant Superintendent for School Choice, Planning and Assignment; and Marcella Rorie, Senior Director Long Range Planning; presented the School Capping Recommendations. They recommended keeping the schools currently capped and adding four additional schools- Northwoods Elementary, Zebulon Elementary, Apex Friendship Middle, and Apex Friendship High. Their recommendations are expected to be presented for Board approval at the March 16th Board Meeting. You can view their presentation here.
- Wade Martin and Tamani Anderson Powell, Director, Magnet Programs presented the proposed 2021-2022 instructional calendars for Knightdale High School and the WCPSS Early Colleges. These calendars are expected to be presented for Board approval at the March 16th Board Meeting. The Wake Stem Calendar can be accessed here. To view the calendar for Knightdale High School, North Wake College and Career Academy, and Vernon Malone College and Career Academy, click here. The Wake Leadership Academies Calendar can be viewed at this link.
- Drew Cook, Assistant Superintendent, Academics; Syreeta Smith, Senior Director, Elementary Programs; and Crystal Reardon, Director, School Counseling; presented an update on District procedures related to Kindergarten entry and homeschool students for the 2021-2022 school year. You can access their presentation here.
- Cathy Moore, Superintendent, and Paul Koh, Assistant Superintendent for Student Support Services provided an update regarding the amazing vaccination efforts underway for WCPSS staff. To view the presentation, click this link.
At the Tuesday, March 2nd, Board Meeting:
- Cathy Moore, Superintendent, provided a Second Semester Update. Staff is now recommending Plan A for 4th and 5th grades. This will be brought back to the Board for a vote at a Special Called Meeting on Tuesday, March 9th at 5:30 pm. Additional updates included how staff is looking at other ways to increase in-person instruction for grades 6-12th.
- Paul Koh, Assistant Superintendent for Student Support Services; and Michael Pesce, Director, Social Work; announced the 2020-2021 WCPSS School Social Worker of the Year: Stephanie Veeder, Social Worker with the Office of Early Learning. Congratulations!
They also shared that National School Social Worker Week is March 7-13, 2021. School Social Workers work every day with students promoting positive change and addressing barriers to student learning. They help provide a link between the home, school, and community through support services that positively impact the development of the whole child. Thank you to all of our social workers!! - Keith Sutton, Board Chair, announced that beginning at our March 16th Board Meeting, there will be very limited seating available for members of the public and media. Additionally, there will be a limited opportunity to provide in-person public comments. More information will be available in the near future.
- The agenda was amended at the Board Meeting to add an action item to establish and clarify that as a part of her executive role, the Superintendent has the authority to increase in-person instruction for students who are not enrolled in the virtual academy, provided that any increase in-person instruction complies with applicable legal requirements for the Board adopted plans, including social distance requirements. Approval would authorize the Superintendent, for example, to increase the in-person rotations for students in plan B at a particular school or districtwide, if any such change is feasible and complies with legal requirements. The Superintendent would not have the authority to move students from plan B to plan A unless required by law or approved by the Board. This action would enable the Superintendent to act expeditiously to increase in-person instruction when feasible and lawful. Finally, this action would make it clear that the Superintendent is authorized to increase in person instruction to comply with law in light of recent legislative activity, including if S37 becomes law. The Board was assured they would be made aware of decisions made.
The Board did approve this item 7-2. I, personally, did not vote in favor for multiple reasons. I have a lot of concerns regarding the transparency around decisions being made related to in-person instruction. District staff made a decision to allow one school to operate on a two-cohort model in the fall and the Board (and general public) was not informed until over four months later. Additionally, I have asked several times to revisit the 4/5th grade plans, for objective data (for example, in-person class sizes for grades 6-12th), current barriers to a two-cohort model for grades 6-12th, work done to address the barriers, ways to increase in-person instruction for students with IEPs, 504 Plans, LEP plans and students who are struggling to attend and to engage academically. I have faced resistance to have items added to the agenda and for information to be presented in an open meeting. I have asked very specific questions about how this decision making process will be implemented. At the time of this entry, I have not received any answers. The questions I have submitted to Superintendent Moore, Drew Cook, Brian Pittman, and Edward McFarland are the following:
What will be the first step in the process? Does someone need to initiate it? Will all middle school and high schools be assessed for what options would work for their school to increase the frequency of in-person instruction prior to any decisions being made? When will the Board receive specific data on each school? What is the expected timeframe? What information will be used in the assessments (class sizes, family feedback, principal feedback)? Can a principal request his/her school be considered? If so, what is the expected timeframe for staff to provide an answer? When will the Board be informed if a principal submits a request even if staff determines there will be no approval of the request? How soon will be Board be informed once a decision is made? Will there be any prioritization? If so, please explain. Is there an expected start date to be able to begin increasing the frequency of in-person instruction for middle and high school students? Is there any consideration being given to address the needs of students with IEPs, 504 Plans, or LEP Plans or students struggling to attend or engage? If so, please elaborate on the process and how soon this will be addressed and communicated to the schools and Board. How often can the Board expect to receive updates on the process? Will it be at minimum a weekly communication?
Next week, the Board will have two meetings (Please remember these meetings will be live on the WCPSS YouTube Channel.):
The virtual District 9 BAC Meeting is Wednesday, March 10th at 5:30 pm.
Due to the Special Called Board Meeting on Tuesday, I have moved the Virtual D9 Connection Meeting to Monday, March 8th at 7:30 pm to allow for direct feedback prior to the vote. The D9 Connection Meeting is a time for me to listen to those who live in District 9, have students in District 9 schools, or work in District 9 schools. If you would like to join us Monday at 7:30 pm, please use this link.
Please mark you calendars for Sunday, March 21st at 4 pm and Tuesday, March 30th at 7:30 pm for additional D9 Connection Meetings later this month. I will provide Google Meet links in a later entry.
Remember for Special Called Meetings, there are no public comments. If you have any questions or comments, please email me at kcarter3@wcpss.net.
