Bowling Road Elementary Public Engagement Session - April 11, 2024

Bowling Road Elementary impact area map.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• Be mindful of the additional traffic and congestion along at the US 401 & Wagstaff Road intersection and at the Wagstaff Road & Bowling Road intersection that will come with the opening of the new school 
• When developing site management and carpool plans, work to reduce the number of vehicles accessing the same exit path at one time
• When determining the calendar of the school, consider the impact on K-8 calendar continuity for families
• When determining the calendar of the school, consider the recent reassignment and calendar changes already experienced by families that were assigned from Willow Springs ES (multi-track year-round) to South Lakes ES (traditional)
• Be mindful of the increased costs associated with track-out camps as compared to summer camps when determining the calendar for the school
• When developing stability rules and the assignment plan for this school, be mindful that many of the elementary students that may be impacted by assignment changes have experienced the uncertainty and turbulence of the COVID pandemic while in elementary school 

Felton Grove High Public Engagement Session - March 14, 2024

Felton Grove High impact area map. | Frequently asked questions.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• Take into consideration the equity of academic programs and extracurricular activities offered at the new high school as compared to neighboring high schools 
• Take into consideration maintaining access to academic academies for students assigned to the new high school 
• Knowing that the new school will open with only 9th and 10th grade…
  • When developing stability rules, consider allowing rising 9th and 10th-grade siblings of existing rising 11th and 12th-grade students who will not be reassigned the ability to join their older sibling and be assigned to their older sibling’s school 
  • When developing stability rules, consider allowing younger siblings to have access to the same level of district/ bus transportation as their rising 11th and 12th-grade sibling(s) who will not be reassigned to the new high school 
  • Consider expanded stability options for rising 10th graders and consider opening the high school with only 9th-grade students 
• Be mindful of traffic and congestion issues, in particular for those that would be required to make a left turn onto New Hill Road where new commercial properties are being built and adding to existing traffic congestion
• Take into consideration the ability of families to support students in extracurricular/after-school activities if the school is far/ a long commute from their family home 
• Be mindful of the impact on young/ high school drivers and the variable speed limits that exist along a commute path to the new high school 
• Take into consideration the impact of commercial development in the area on travel time and congestion and how these may add to the complexity of the commute path to the new high school
• Be mindful of the existing congestion and traffic concerns along Highway 55 and the impact of the roadway restrictions on left-hand turns 
• Take into consideration the need for high-quality teachers to staff the new high school while maintaining high-quality teachers at existing schools 
• Be mindful of the financial impact on families if the commute path requires families to use toll roads to get to the new high school 
• As the site plan is finalized, take into consideration the access points to the school and the existing congestion along Stephenson Road
• As the site plan is finalized, take into consideration the specific safety needs of the new high school throughout the school day 
• Take into consideration that one parent’s estimate of yearly round trip costs for parents opting to provide before-school drop-off and after-school pick-up using toll roads is $244.80
• Take into consideration the potential for operational inefficiencies with bus transportation when changing the assignment of an existing neighborhood to the new high school and the potential for bus routes to the new high school to be longer than current bus routes to an existing high school 
• Be mindful of the limits of the existing roadway infrastructure to support current and future traffic/ congestion. In particular, be mindful of difficulties in making left-hand turns onto Sunset Lake Rd 
• Take into consideration the potential impact on students’ future college admissions if reassigned from an existing high school to the new high school 

Hilltop Needmore Elementary Public Engagement Session - April 3, 2024

Hilltop Needmore Road Elementary impact area map.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• As the school entrance will be located near a community center, there are already multiple bus stops near the school's entrance for other schools, and there are little to no sidewalks currently in this area, and traffic related to 540 in the area is expected to increase, please consider staff (perhaps partner with local law enforcement) to support traffic management during arrival and dismissal times 
• There is concern about the lack of magnet options in this region of the county 
• Be mindful that the current roadway infrastructure near the school is insufficient to support the increased traffic a school will bring, and share any details about road widening or traffic signal installation that may be coming in advance of the school opening 
• Work to align the calendar of the new elementary school with the middle school it will feed into to provide K-8 calendar alignment for families 
• As the school will be co-located on a property that also holds a community center, concerns related to the interaction of traffic and use of parking lots, and ingress and egress alongside roads that are only meant to support residential traffic such as Brushy Meadows, consider installing gates to limit movement along these routes outside of school hours 
• Be mindful to develop appropriate site management and carpool plans to address traffic concerns related to sharing the entrance with the community center 
• When developing the assignment area recommendation, work to ensure bus routes will be efficient and that any ‘walk zones’ to other schools be allowed to remain at their current school 
• Provide information related to the school’s bell schedule as soon as possible 

Parkside Middle School Public Engagement Session - April 17, 2024

Parkside Middle impact area map.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• Be mindful of the recent assignment changes at the elementary level to Pleasant Grove Elementary and the impact on those students that have stability transfers at Parkside Elementary or Alston Ridge Elementary; cohort continuity as these students rise into 6th grade is important
• Work to maintain K-8 calendar alignment (multi-track year-round OR traditional) for base school assignments
• Consider the possibility of allowing ‘legacy’ transfers for students who have older siblings attend a particular school; families build relationships with school staff, PTA, etc.
• Work to allow areas that are within safe walking and biking distances to remain assigned to their current school; reduce the need for additional bus routes
• Be mindful of the impact of school assignment changes and district practices for notifying families of school assignments on the mental health of students
• Work to expand stability rules to allow any student, regardless of grade, to remain at their current school if their address is assigned to a new or different school
• Recognizing there is a need for new school construction to address continued growth in the district, be mindful of the renovation needs of existing schools and budget for these needs as well

Pleasant Plains Elementary Public Engagement Session - March 20, 2024

Pleasant Plains Elementary impact area map.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• Allow siblings to be assigned to the same school
• Be mindful of the need to find quality teachers to fill all the new positions for the new schools and existing vacant positions 
• Take into consideration the possibility of keeping existing communities/ families at their current school and assigning new communities/ families to the new school 
• Try to keep neighborhoods together and assign them to the same school
  • Work to not “split” neighborhoods and assign them to multiple different schools
  • If needed, because the neighborhood is too large for one elementary school, try to keep large portions of the neighborhood together when there is a need to assign them to different schools
• Take into consideration K-12 calendar alignment for families with students across multiple grade levels 
• Be mindful of the length of bus routes to the new elementary school and the impact that long routes/ride times have on young students
• Recommendation to consider “proximity” as the highest ranked priority in making assignment recommendations 
• Recommendation to allow those who can safely walk to their existing school to remain assigned to this school and not be assigned to the new elementary school 
• Be mindful of keeping cohorts together as they age forward and how the new elementary school assignments may impact middle and/or high school assignments 
• If a family will experience a calendar change based on the assignment plan, or for any reason, provide as much lead time as possible so families have as much time as possible to adjust any impacted long-range plans for their families

Rex Road Elementary Public Engagement Session - March 7, 2024

Rex Road Elementary impact area map.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: "What are the most important things that leadership should be aware of and take into consideration when opening a new school in your community?"

• Take into consideration family schedules and the need for calendar alignment.
• If an area has a safe, walkable path to a school, let them remain assigned to that school.
• Take into consideration the resource needs, including teachers and staff, for existing schools and how they will be impacted by a significant change in enrollment as a new school opens.
• Work to offer K-8 calendar continuity for families.
• Allow rising 5th graders to stay at their current school.
• Be mindful of the transition for students who currently attend a magnet school at the elementary level and then progress to a non-magnet middle school.
• Allow rising 4th and 5th graders to stay at their current school.
• Take into consideration the impact on families if they are assigned to a new school that will operate on a different calendar from their current school.
• Clarify what options families will have to request something other than their base assigned school.
• Take into consideration the length of time an area has been assigned to an existing school and work to maintain as much stability as possible.
• Be mindful of the impact on existing and future traffic patterns in the area surrounding the new school.

• Questions about whether siblings can stay together when one is reassigned to a different school, especially for families with children in different grades
• Questions about when the neighborhoods zoned for Felton High School will be revealed and whether newer neighborhoods will be redistricted before established ones
• Concerns about specific school reassignment impacts, and the reasoning behind these reassignments
• Concerns about the impact of capping on feeder patterns and reassignment, particularly for schools like Mills Park Middle
• Concerns about ensuring consistency in teaching methods across schools within the same district, especially when moving from one school to another
• Concerns about having children on different school calendars (traditional vs. year-round) and the difficulties in aligning them
• Requests for updates on the timing of student assignment announcements for the 2024-2025 school year and about the availability of feedback tools like ThoughtExchange

• Questions about specific neighborhoods being reassigned to new schools
• Concerns about the stability for students who have been reassigned multiple times and the impact on their education and community ties
• Concerns about the potential traffic impacts of opening new schools, particularly Felton Grove HS
• Questions about what is considered a reasonable commute time
• Questions about the temporary nature of capping at existing schools, and how long caps might remain in place at these schools
• Concerns about overcrowding at existing schools and how new schools might alleviate these issues
• Clarifying questions about when and how decisions are made regarding school calendars (traditional vs. year-round) for new and existing schools
• Questions about how the opening of new schools will impact current students, particularly those transitioning between grades or schools

Bowling Road Elementary Public Engagement Session - May 11, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Be mindful that families may experience a calendar change because of reassignment (example: currently at a traditional school and reassigned to a year round school and vice versa)

• Will the infrastructure at new schools support the reality of carpooling and transportation as it works today (vs. how it worked when more students rode buses)?

• Concerns about safety in school zones when drivers don’t know when school is in session - consider adding blinking lights to signs around schools to alert drivers when school is in session

Bowling Road Elementary impact area map

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Felton Grove HS Public Engagement Session - May 4, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Recommend that students be allowed to start and finish at the same school

• What academics, extracurricular activities, AP courses, athletics, CTE academies, etc. will be available at the new high school?

• Be thoughtful about sharing the timeline of events and decision points that will lead up to the opening of the new high school

• Concerns about safety in getting to and from the school for student drivers - noted that major highways are between many neighborhoods and the school site

• Concerns about ensuring that high quality teachers will be available at the new school

• Consider the continuity of cohorts of students - is it possible to create dedicated feeder patterns into the new school?

• Be thoughtful about proximity and infrastructure concerns, such as transportation

• Consider traffic patterns and the flow of traffic

• Consider stability and keeping siblings together

• What will be the start and end time of the new school, is there a potential for change?

• Consider bus routes and times (pick up and drop off times, route length, etc.)

• Be thoughtful in the design of the new school with respect to safety and parking

• Will the infrastructure around the school be sufficient to support the new traffic, etc.?

• What impact will continued nearby roadway construction projects have on the opening of the new school? (example: Stephenson Road, Ten-Ten Rd, etc.)

• Concerns about staffing for buses and reliability of bus transportation

• Will Early Colleges be considered in the future for this area/ region?

• Consider the possibility of allowing school counselors to ‘grow with kids’ and remain assigned to them throughout high school

• Be mindful of the impact of mental health on student success

• Desire for a community feeling/ sense of community at school

• Look back to lessons learned from previous years

  • Consider accelerating timelines to get information to families sooner

  • Consider building larger schools to get ahead of growth

• Consider approving plans more than one year in advance of the opening of a new school

• Concerns about rising 10th grade students that start at one school and are reassigned to the new school

• Concerns about current teacher shortage - what is WCPSS going to change to recruit additional teachers for new schools?

Felton Grove High impact area map

Review feedback submitted via ThoughtExchange.

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Recommend considering K-8 calendar alignment

• Consider the timing of the decision for the calendar for the new school

• Consider maintaining some form of calendar choice/ application

• Be thoughtful about the stability rules to allow as much stability for families as possible

• Be thoughtful about the resources that will be available for special education students and the availability of regional programs for students

• Be mindful of the support needed for students that will transition to the new school

• Provide clarity on the impact of future reassignments on existing calendar application students and transfer students

• Recommend prioritizing NOT changing areas that can walk to their current school

• Be thoughtful about growth related to the ongoing 540 project with particular emphasis on areas near Old Stage Rd/Vance Elementary

• Are there plans for a new middle school in southeastern wake?

• Consider the impact of reassignments on the ability of students to be selected for magnet seats

• Ensure schools have equitable access to quality resources at both new and existing schools

• Be thoughtful about the availability of before and after-school care at new schools in comparison to existing schools

• Consider the impact of the bell schedule for the new school

Hilltop Needmore Road Elementary impact area map

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Parkside MS Public Engagement Session - March 30, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Suggest ranking of pillars in Board Policy 4150 as follows:

  • 1 - community

  • 2 - stability

  • 3 - operational efficiency

  • 4 - student achievement

• Recommend gathering feedback from communities regarding pillar rankings in reference to Board Policy 4150

• What is the curriculum or focus for the new high school projected to open in 2027-28? Will magnets or IB programs be considered?

• Keep cohorts within tracks together as they move to middle school for track continuity (noted traditional calendar cohorts should be kept together, as well)

• Consider stability guidelines specific to middle school reassignments

• Consider middle school to high school feeder patterns

• Concerns about ability to recruit and retain staff for new schools

• Recommendation that middle schools and high schools have an integrated philosophy/ communication plan for students as they transition from middle to high school

Parkside Middle area impact map

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Pleasant Plains ES Public Engagement Session - April 13, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Work to match calendars for feeders (K-8)

• Work to keep feeders/ cohorts together as they move into middle school and high school

• Share information about changes to feeder patterns as early as possible to give families lead time

• Consider walk zones for stability, keep these areas assigned to their ‘walkable’ schools

• Consider increasing safe routes to schools to increase walkability and reduce need for buses

• Avoid splitting neighborhoods

• Be thoughtful about the need for more and high quality teachers as enrollment grows

Pleasant Plains Elementary impact area map

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Rex Road ES Public Engagement Session - April 3, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Keep families on the same campus when there are multiple levels on one site

• Work toward calendar alignment across feeder patterns

• Work toward data transparency and consider prioritization of factors for assignment

• Continue to offer stability transfers for families impacted by reassignment

• Limit multiple reassignments of neighborhoods/ addresses - consider whole family impact, not just grade span impacts

• Balance of quantity of year-round and traditional calendar schools in an area/ region

• Concerns about the number of students attending a school that don’t live in the area near the school

• Are there any plans to build middle and high schools on the same campus?

• Consideration of the needs of special education students/ students with IEPs

• Consider traffic patterns and the location of major highways

Rex Road Elementary area impact map

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Woods Creek ES Public Engagement Session - April 27, 2023

Below is a summary list of responses, in no particular order, captured from participants to the question: ”What are the most important things that district leadership should be aware of, and take into consideration, when managing enrollment growth and school crowding?”

• Avoiding splitting cohorts of students as they move into middle school

• Work to keep neighborhoods together in one school

• Share the calendar (traditional, multi-track year round, etc.) with the community as early as possible

• As new schools open, know that parents are concerned about the unknowns - work to communicate information and decisions as early as possible

• Be thoughtful about the stability rules that will be in place for families impacted by reassignments

• Work to maintain calendar choices when possible

• Be thoughtful about and make plans for safety concerns related to the use of trailers on crowded campuses

Woods Creek Elementary impact area map

Review feedback submitted via ThoughtExchange.