Wake County has revised the 2023 student reassignment plan. See what’s different.

A handful of changes were made Tuesday in a plan that would move hundreds of Wake County students to different schools next year.

Wake school administrators released Tuesday the second draft of a plan for filling schools for the 2023-24 school year. Administrators said they revised the plan after receiving feedback from parents when the first draft was released in September.

“We thank the community for their outpouring of participation,” said Susan Pullium, senior director for student assignment. “I hope families are seeing that we’re using the information.”

The public can view the plan at wcpss.net/2023enrollmentproposal.

People can search if their address is affected at https://osageo.wcpss.net/enrollment-proposal-2324-draft2.

The school board will hold a public hearing Nov. 10. On Nov. 16, a final draft will be presented. The board could approve the plan that same day.

‘Handful of changes’

Historically, most of the moves in the annual reassignment plan involve filling new schools. No new schools are scheduled to open in the 2023-24 school year.

Student assignment staff say some students need to change schools, though, to ease crowding at some schools, fill seats at other campuses and reduce the number of school buses that are needed.

Here are the “handful” of changes proposed from the first draft:

▪ Add a portion of the Old Town Village subdivision that had previously not been included in the first draft for movement. They’ll move from South Garner High to Southeast Raleigh High.

▪ Drop part of the proposed reassignment of a neighborhood from Beaverdam Elementary and River Bend Middle to Forestville Road Elementary and Neuse River Middle.

▪ Add the reassignment of part of a neighborhood from Heritage High to Wake Forest High.

Pullium said the proposed changes in the second draft involved very few students and mostly undeveloped areas.

Pullium said some changes requested by parents couldn’t be accommodated.

For instance, some families facing reassignment from Apex High say they can walk to the school. Pullium says they’re being recommended to move because Green Hope High is the most proximate school with the available capacity to support those neighborhoods over time.

Stability rules

Once the plan is approved, Wake will open a “stability transfer period,” or what used to be called “grandfathering,” for people who don’t want to move to a different school.

Assignment staff say the absence of new schools means they can be more “generous” about who is eligible for a stability transfer.

“We heard that stability is important,” Pullium said of the feedback to the plan.

All existing students impacted by the proposed assignment changes are eligible to remain at their current school if they file a transfer request and agree to provide their own transportation.

Students who are entering kindergarten, sixth grade or ninth grade can avoid being moved if they’ll be attending the same school next year as an older sibling.

Pullium said families who’d be potentially impacted by the stability rules will be notified this week about how to request a stability transfer.

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