October 29, 2021

On Sunday, I hosted a D9 Connection Meeting. On Tuesday, I had the honor of visiting Project SEARCH at Embassy Suites Raleigh Durham (Harrison Oaks Blvd). This is an amazing program for a great group of students and staff. Click here to learn more about Project SEARCH. WCPSS, Embassy Suites, Community Workforce Solutions, VR (Vocational Rehabilitation) are working together to provide opportunities for growth, employment, and more for our students. On Wednesday, I attended the Green Hope High School's performance of The Disappearance of Daniel Hand. The cast and crew did a fantastic job. On Thursday, I attended the virtual public information meeting on Draft One of the Student Assignment Plan. On Friday, I visited Green Hope Elementary and volunteered to provide support. It was great to spend time with some awesome students and staff. On Saturday, I will be wrapping up my week at Cary Band Day!

This week as a Board, we had two meetings: Student Achievement Committee and Policy Committee.

At the Monday, October 25th Student Achievement Committee Meeting:

• Drew Cook, Assistant Superintendent for Academics; and Lauren Acome, Director, K-12 Online Learning, provided an update on the Virtual Academy. Paul Cancellieri, VA Teacher at Rolesville Middle School, provided the VA perspective through the lens of a teacher. All the information shared was helpful in understanding the current status of VA and areas needing attention. Staffing-in particular- special education teachers and IAs are difficult positions to fill. I did ask what is being done to ensure special education students are receiving the services and support they need. To view the presentation, use this link.
  
  
• Dr. McMillian, Assistant Superintendent, Data, Research and Accountability, presented an overview of WCPSS assessment results and graduation rates. Dr. McMillian mentioned that Grade 8th Math scores have been around 20% even prior to this past school year. The drop was initially noticed when 8th graders enrolled in advanced math classes (Math 1, Math 2, etc.) were no longer required to take the 8th grade math EOG. I expressed my concern that these math scores are continuing to stay low as I believe students enrolled in Math 8 can be successful. I inquired about what is being done to address this. Additionally, I asked for the number of students that did not graduate per school. I would like to see if there's a pattern at particular schools of having 10, 20, 30, etc. students not graduating and what we are putting in place to help support students so they are able to continue to work on graduating. Click here to access the presentation.

Use this link to watch the October 25th Student Achievement Committee Meeting.

At the Tuesday, October 26th Policy Committee Meeting:

• Marlo Gaddis, Chief Technology Officer, presented revised Board Policy 3225: Technology Responsible Use and the R and P. Board Policy 3225 will be brought to a future Board Meeting for Board approval. To view Board Policy 3225, click here. Use this link to access the R and P.
  
  
• Bob Snidemiller, Senior Director Transportation, presented the following policies and R and Ps: new Board Policy 6307: Bus Fleet Management, new Board Policy 6315: Drivers and the R and P, new Board Policy 6305: Safety and Student Transportation Services and the R and P, and new Board Policy 6310: Organization of Student Transportation Services. Board Policy 6307, 6315, 6305, and 6310 will be presented for Board approval at a future Board Meeting. 

To watch the October 26th Policy Committee Meeting, click here.

Next week as a Board, we have the following meetings (Please remember these meetings will be streamed live on the WCPSS YouTube Channel.):

• Tuesday, November 2nd at 3:00- Work Session. At the time of this blog posting, the agenda was not posted.*
  
  
• Tuesday, November 2nd at 5:30- Board Meeting. The agenda was not posted at the time of this blog entry.*
  

* Once the agendas are posted for the Work Session and Board Meeting, you can access them at this link.

Full audio via phone is available for the Board Meeting. The phone number will be posted here the day of the Board Meeting.

If you are interested, you can submit written or video public comments. The forms to submit comments will be live from 5 pm on Friday until noon on Tuesday.

If you are interested in attending the Work Session, Board Meeting, and/or making in-person public comments, please visit this page and scroll down to click on the appropriate form. The forms will go live 48 hours prior to the start of the meeting (on Sunday) and close at 5 pm on Monday.

My next D9 Connection Meeting will be on Monday, November 8th at 7:30 pm. If you live in D9, work in a D9 school, or have a student in a D9 school, please join us using this Google Meet link. This is an informal meeting for me to listen to you.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact me at kcarter3@wcpss.net.