Parents confront Rowan County School Board over schools plan

ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. — Nearly 100 parents confronted the Rowan County School Board in a special meeting Thursday night, over a plan to close two area elementary schools and build a new one.

Eyewitness News reporter DaShawn Brown was at the meeting where parents sounded off over a number of concerns.

The new school, New Western Elementary, would open in August 2018 with a capacity of 800 students.

Raleigh-based architectural firm SFl+a, presented the design, which included an energy-efficient, 100,000 square foot facility, located halfway between Cleveland and Woodleaf Elementary, the two schools to be replaced.

Parents raised safety concerns over the site on Route 801, just miles from of Rowan power plant, Southern Power, that caught fire earlier this month.

“We need to discuss what needs to be fixed, not discuss closing the schools,” one parent said. “The taxpayers will meet you with resistance.”

One speaker was nearly escorted out by police after refusing to leave the microphone after the three-minute time limit.

“We also are concerned about the travel time of children having to be bused,” a parent said.

Board Chairman Josh Wagner and several others welcomed the community feedback but questioned why many waited to voice concerns years into the conversation.

"This is not something that came up yesterday," he said of the new school. "This was always the plan."

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