CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After some CMS board members expressed the desire to delay their student assignment plan, there were expectations a decision on whether to delay or not would come out at the Jan. 24 board meeting.
That decision never came which means the plan will move on as scheduled.
Some board members expressed concerns the process is moving too quickly.
"It's beginning to feel like we're building a tsunami," a board member said.
She's concerned they're making decisions on phase two before we see the impact of phase one.
Others said this is complicated work and won’t be perfect right away, but they must continue to help create a school system that's more equal, with less pockets of poverty.
Board members shared what they feel is most important in creating new homeschool boundaries and weighed in travel distance from home to school, keeping neighborhoods together and socioeconomic diversity.
Next, the community can weigh in on phase two starting Thursday.
Click here for a list of dates and times for meetings.
CMS student assignment plan may be delayed
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools parents have already waited for months to learn whether their children will have to move to new schools in fall 2018 as part of the student assignment plan.
But they may have to wait even longer than expected.
The school board had set a May deadline to vote on the new school boundary lines, but some board members said that's too fast and they may push back that deadline.
That's upsetting to education advocates.
"Extending that level of uncertainty over months just increases the distrust, the anxiety and the rumors about what people are thinking," Carol Sawyer, with One Meck, said earlier in January.
The goal of the student assignment plan is to increase diversity and make sure all schools are high-achieving.
These changes come as new Superintendent Clayton Wilcox takes over the helm in July.
Sawyer said the plan needs to be approved before he takes over because he doesn't have a deep understanding of the community's needs.
"I don't think the new superintendent has the background to be able to really guide this process," Sawyer said.
Parent advocate Jeremy Stephenson said some parents are frustrated because they are considering moving to a certain neighborhood to go to a certain school, but this could delay their decision.
He said he knows there will be changes because there's been so much growth.
"There are some school boundaries in our community that don't make sense," said Stephenson, who's part of CMS Families United for Public Education. "They could honor both proximity and diversity and accomplish both goals."
Earlier this month, Eyewitness News anchor Stephanie Maxwell talked to CMS Board Chair Mary McCray, who said changing boundaries is the hardest part of the student assignment process, and it alarms her that the board wants to do this in four months and vote in May. She said anything worth doing is worth taking the time to do it right.
CMS is holding several community sessions to get parents educated about the Student Assignment Plan.
CLICK HERE for a list of info sessions being held on school choice, and all the magnets and choice programs available to students now.
There will also be community engagement sessions for the public to weigh in on the next phase of the plan, which looks at high school feeder patterns and neighborhood school boundaries.
Click here for a list of dates.
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