RALEIGH, N.C.—The opening on three new year round elementary schools in Wake County could mean more than 6,400 students will face reassignment.

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You may be affected if you have an elementary school student, since 58 of 99 elementary schools fall into this reassignment draft.

 

One of the hardest hit areas is in northwest Raleigh.

  

In order to fill the new Sycamore Creek Elementary School, Hilburn Elementary could lose more than half its students if this plan is approved. Wake County's reassignment draft could potentially send 543 students from Hilburn to help fill Sycamore Creek.

 

Suzanne Groom logged onto the Wake County public schools website to find out if her family is affected.

  

"I will be very loud! I will try to fight it and stay at Hilburn.  We've had a really positive experience there," Groom said.

 

Groom has two daughters at Hilburn and a son who'll be a kindergartner, plus her oldest son is at Leesville Middle. Now she's faced with leaving her traditional elementary school for a new year round schedule.

 

"Not everybody wants that year round option equally as many want the traditional option for children and it's just not available.  Seems like every school they are building is the year round option," said Groom.

 

All new schools in Wake County will open as year round so the school system can squeeze more kids in the building. But Wake County must offer a traditional option to parents so families like the Grooms can opt out of their reassignment and keep their routine schedule.

 

"We are recommending to the board that they not fill Hilburn with a new assignment base and that they leave a couple hundred spaces at Hilburn for parents who may have a problem with the year round schedule," said the man in charge of student assignment, Chuck Dulaney.

 

What the reassignment plan does not account for are the parents who felt forced in to the new year round schedule. 

 

Nearly 95 percent of families stayed at their school when 22 schools converted to year round schedules.

 

I think there will be more parents opting out of Leesville (elementary) this year," said Dodie York.

 

The York family remained at the school they know and love, Leesville Elementary. But York said the year round schedule is difficult on their family time.

 

"Having kids on two different schedules, two in elementary and one in middle school, we want our boys to grow up and together as one family," York said.

 

The family will only share about 20 days off together during the school year. Although they are not facing reassignment, York said they will consider returning to a traditional schedule. 

 

Their option will be Stowe Elementary. But they'd prefer to switch the Leesville schedule back to traditional so it mirrors the calendar of Leesville middle and high schools.

  

That is not an option according to Dulaney.

“That is not in our recommendation. The board made that decision by converting the school. Our charge from the board is ways to best utilize that (year round) capacity."

 

Maybe the brightest side of this plan is that if you have to switch schools, at least 34-hundred of those reassigned will move to a school closer to home.

 

Parents can offer their comments from now until January 1.

 

School system staff will present a final draft to the board January 8. The school board is expected to vote on the plan February 5.