CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District is beginning a transition from its “School Choice” program to a new model known as “Program Choice.”
This shift, which is expected to take effect for the 2027-2028 school year, aims to focus on specific academic programs rather than the physical schools students attend.
The district, which serves 141,000 students, decided to move forward with the plan following a review that indicated families wanted more consistency and transparency in the school selection process. The change will eventually allow students to apply to specific learning pathways throughout the district.
Dr. Melissa Balknight, deputy superintendent for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, said the transition period allows time for district officials to collaborate with parents. “This will happen 27-28, so we have an entire year to work with families,” Balknight said.
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Currently, about 20,000 students apply for school choice themes annually. Information from a district review conducted last year suggested that families wanted more simplicity and transparency in the application process.
The district plans to scale down its current 16 offerings to six high-quality programs. These themes include Arts, Montessori, World Languages, STEM, and Early Colleges.
The sixth category is a combination of International Baccalaureate, Learning Immersion, and Talent Development. Balknight said these six programs were selected “based on interest, based on popularity, across the board.”
Balknight said the primary goal of the shift to “Program Choice” is to provide students with a consistent K-12 academic pathway. The district aims to help families distinguish between a school transfer and a program selection.
“We want to work with our families to separate. Are you selecting a school because that’s the culture and climate you’re interested in? That’s a transfer. Are you selecting a program? We’re gonna give you a K12 pathway, that’s a program choice,” Balknight said.
Under the current proposal, E.E. Waddell High School would be converted into a comprehensive high school that also offers International Baccalaureate programming.
While some specific themes are being removed from the official “Program Choice” list, they will remain available through other school programming options. For example, West Charlotte High School will continue to offer its cosmetology program.
The district will hold community engagement sessions at 20 high schools through March. On their website, CMS describes this process as:
“This timeline reflects the structured sequence of engagement and feedback activities supporting the Comprehensive Review process. It began with planning sessions involving the Board of Education, senior district leadership, and program-specific principal teams to ensure alignment on goals, data, and considerations. Following this work, the timeline advances to broader Board discussions and a formal presentation at the scheduled January 24th Board of Education meeting. Following that meeting, a recorded overview and a feedback form will be made available to the community to ensure transparency and provide equitable access for all stakeholders. The process culminates in a series of community engagement opportunities held throughout March and early April, offering families, staff, and community members multiple avenues to receive information, ask questions, and share input that will inform final recommendations.”
Balknight said the district will not hold a vote on the plan until officials have reviewed community feedback.
“If there’s anything that has to be changed, we would not vote until we go back out into the community, cause we’re doing this together with the community,” Balknight said.
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