95 percent of wake parents facing choice take year-round school option

RALEIGH, N.C. — Ninety-five percent of parents with children assigned to year-round schools for the fall are opting to stay there, Wake County Public School System officials said Wednesday.

About 1,200 families have yet to return the forms, school administrator said. If parents do not make a decision, their children will go to a traditional-calendar school.

The school system does expect about 2,500 to 3,000 families to opt for a traditional calendar.

The school system sent out consent forms to all parents about two weeks ago after a Wake County judge ruled it illegal for the school system to assign students to year-round schools without parental permission.

The ruling was made based on a civil lawsuit filed by a parents' group, WakeCares, which opposes year-round schools.

Some critics say that even though 95 percent of parents opted for year-round schools, that doesn't mean they are in favor of the schedule.

Some parents have said they did not have a choice because they were unsure of which traditional-calendar school their children would attend. Others were concerned a decision to switch was too soon before the July 9 start date for year-round schools.

System leaders' next challenge might be deciding what to do with year-round schools where parents have opted out. For example, only 100 families have opted out of year-round at Barwell Road Elementary School in Raleigh, and about 100 still haven't turned in their consent forms.