Garner, N.C. — Year-round schools in Wake County will open their doors Monday morning, but at least one school is scrambling to make last-minute changes after posting low enrollment numbers.
East Garner Elementary is one of the new year-round schools in Wake County, and it’s already experiencing a few problems. The school had one of the highest number of parents opt their kids out of the year-round system.
Principal James Overman said he has seen close to 140 students opt out of the school since a lawsuit filed by a group called WakeCares gave parents the choice to remove their kids from mandatory year-round assignments.
“This year has been a little more difficult just because, from day to day, your numbers are changing, and you’re not real sure as to what you have,” Overman said. “It does make it a little more difficult, because it makes it harder to predict how many teachers you’ll need for each grade level.”
Teachers are allocated based on the number of students at each school. One of East Garner’s third grade calendars, known as Track 3, was canceled, and nearly a dozen students were re-assigned to a different schedule at the last minute.
Parents like Lawrence Chavis are in the affected group. He sees the situation as a fallout from the WakeCares lawsuit, he said.
“The board of education was trying to deal with a situation as best as they possibly could because of overcrowding. Then, parents get in and start suing, and it puts everything up in the air,” Chavis said.
East Garner is not alone in dealing with opt-outs. It's estimated that nearly half of Wake County's year-round schools are dealing with the issue.
Opt-Outs Leave Some Year-Round Schools Scrambling
- Reporter: Dan Bowens
- Photographer: Tom Normanly
- Web Editor: Kelly Hinchcliffe
42 Comments
-
- Raleigh Christmas Parade kicks off
Updated 5 minutes ago |
- Christmas parade could be coldest in decades
Updated 57 minutes ago - Low-interest loans available to tornado victims
Updated Nov. 21 9:52 p.m. - Parade preparations nearly complete
Updated 20 minutes ago |
- North Carolina's budget shortfall widens to $320M
Updated at 7:55 a.m.
- Raleigh Christmas Parade kicks off
- Most Viewed Slideshows
- Howliday Photo Gallery
Jan 8, 2008 - Pet Photos | November 17 - November 23, 2008
Updated Nov. 21 2:41 p.m. - Snow day on Nov. 21, 2008
Updated Nov. 21 1:28 p.m.
- Howliday Photo Gallery
-
10 questions with Hurricanes' Goalie Cam WardCam Ward answers your questions about winning the Stanley Cup, superstitions on game days and smack talk on the ice.
-
10 questions with RDU's airport directorRDU Airport Director John Brantley answers your questions about the fear of flying, airport parking and more.
-
10 questions with career advisor Alan LevinsonCareer Advisor Alan Levinson answers your questions about finding a job, writing a resume and perfecting the interview.
(15 votes) disabled vets' dogs find homes
-
Holiday BounceHelp the holiday decorations to the tree.
-
Hillside vs. Southern Durham, Nov. 21, 2008Hillside got a 20-yard touchdown pass from Corey Gattis to Jharrison Gillespie for the game's only score, and the Hornets downed Southern Durham,…
-
The week in entertainmentA look at the top entertainment stories of the week through the lenses of Associated Press photographers.
-
JFK's assasination investigation, timelineAn look back in sound and photos of President John F. Kennedy's assassination on Nov. 22, 45 years ago.
-
Redesigning the White HouseNine interior designers offer suggestions for the Obama White House.




STORIES
VIDEOS
SLIDESHOWS


Welcome to GOLO, where WRAL.com visitors can comment on stories and create profile pages, blogs and photo galleries.
You must be a registered WRAL.com user to use these tools. Click here to register or log in.