I was on Track 1, not Track 2

(fo real)

10/3/2006 5:18:37 PM

Quote :

"Does going to year-round automatically mean they'll go to this rotating schedule? Because I was confused about how you can suddenly teach more kids by just changing it, too."

Yeah. You will have to hire more teachers though, and each teacher is assigned a certain "track" (there are four tracks 1-4, each one being out for three weeks at a time). The key is that you can use the same building to teach more kids.

10/3/2006 6:38:08 PM

Quote :

"I personally would like to see more funds coming from new development...as that is what is causing a lot of the influx of students. And of course, we taxpayers are going to have to pay the price for the Wake County Board of Commissioners' fuckup."

NO JOKE.

Wake County has absolutely no clue how to deal with developers. They just seem like a bunch of hicks who allow the developers to do whatever they want and think they got some kind of great deal becasue it allows more taxpayers to live in Wake County. Unfortuntely they don't put stipulations on new developement like they do in other parts of the country, e.g. for every X number of houses ni the development, you have to build Y schools. That's why there's overcrowding in North Raleigh, people have been moving there by the thousands as new developments go up, but they haven't been building schools. The developers are only too happy to make their cash off the developments with absolutely no responsibilities to the county.

I can't fault the developers for that, though, because the county lets them do it.

There's one instance up towards Wakefield where the County thought they got a great deal from a developer beacuse he set aside a parcel of land for the County to build a school on. The County was all YAAAAAY THANKS MISTER and approved the development. Then they go to look at the parcel for the school and find out that the land is completely unsuitable for building (too much rock or too little, I don't remember) which makes it clear why the developer was so generous with it in the first place.

So the developer is lighting his cigars with $100 bills, while the County is all pissed and stomping on their hat in the middle of the road like Boss Hogg. But they never learn.

[Edited on October 3, 2006 at 7:32 PM. Reason : 6]

10/3/2006 7:30:29 PM

I liked year round school.

However, for lower-income people, it will be hard(if not impossible) to pay for a babysitter or daycare when their kids are out of school random times of the year and they have to work. Also, some kids in a family were staying in regular school(if they were in high school), while other kids in the same family were being put in year-round school(elem/middle school), therefore completley fucking up vacations, family time, daycare, etc. It may work for some, but not for all..unless companies can offer "year round work" schedules.

10/3/2006 7:35:00 PM

Quote :

"..unless companies can offer "year round work" schedules."

Umm...last time I checked, most companies don't take off months in the summer, either.

10/3/2006 7:53:14 PM

^^ They have government subsidies for these types of issues.

10/3/2006 8:34:45 PM

Quote :

"and the kids don't get dumb during the summer."

haha, that shit was funny. but that's also saying that we were supposed to get smart during the school year. i know i sure as hell didn't.

10/3/2006 9:02:00 PM

Quote :

"just curious, what's the starting salary?"

haha. i don't mind telling you.
i make right around 30,000 a year.
take home pay is right at 2000/month.

i have a B.S in education, licensed and certified.
i'm only 3 courses away from completing my Masters - looking forward to the salary increase.

but find a teacher who doesn't spend his/her own money on school stuff.
our entire budget for my dept was cut this year. meaning we are getting no funding from the county.

career and technical education is offering more to some of my students then any other class they might be taking. alot of my students aren't college bound, they dont have the ability or the money. the classes i teach along with others in my dept give these students skills and experience that can help them get a job after high school (or while in high school to help support themselves and their families)

i spend a lot of my own money on school supplies. i can barely run labs due to lack of supplies. i don't even have goggles that aren't duct-taped together. the elastic is so old they are disinegrating on the kids heads. sigh.


I don't work in Wake County so i haven't had to worry about the switch to year-round.
I havent researched it enough to really formulate an opion. i like the idea of how the calendar is broken up. yea a long summer is nice but not getting a paycheck for 2 months isn't so nice.


parents can always try the lottery for magnet schools or go private. although i'm not a fan of private. (too many kids get passed through the system (parents are paying for those A's))

[Edited on October 3, 2006 at 9:28 PM. Reason : i made more $ bartending 3 nights/week then i do teaching ..]

10/3/2006 9:26:31 PM

I went year round from 3rd grade till I graduated from 8th grade. Honestly, one of the best things I did. In the days, it was magnet where parents elected for their children to go there, so it was a better environment for learning where children were backed by furthering their education by their parents. The whole debate about students not matching up vacations with non year round students is bullshit, my brother was in a regular school, at the time, Raleigh had only one or two year round high schools and he wasn't in one. We still had our week long family vacation, and everything was ok. The weeks breaks after 9 weeks of school is great, I miss it, gave me a break when it was needed.

10/3/2006 10:38:08 PM

Track 1 was the shit. Durant representing.

10/3/2006 10:38:42 PM

it wasn't poor planning. i doubt you could build schools fast enough to keep up with the +60% growth rate in wake county school system. and then, WAKE COUNTY SCHOOLS (one of the best in the country) TOLD them what they needed to continue to do their job (that they do VERY well). either pass the referendum or your kids go to school year round. the fact that it was a referendum PUT the decision in their hands. they'd not want to pay anymore money. they made their bed now they can sleep in it.

10/4/2006 12:12:57 PM

How is not poor planning to not levy impact fees to builders? It's pretty much what every other growing city in the country does to soften the hit to taxpayers.

10/4/2006 12:18:42 PM

i'm of the bait and tax philosophy.

10/4/2006 12:33:41 PM

Quote :

"I was on Track 1, not Track 2"

ha, i was on track 2 for 9 years. going to year round schools for all of elementary school and all of middle school was awesome. 9 weeks in, 3 weeks out, i never got nearly as burned out as i did in my 4 years in a traditional school.

for all of those asking "but what if siblings get put on different tracks, wont that screw up family vacations?". although i havent been in a year round school in 6 years and when i was in one, they were magnet schools so i dont know how different or alike things are going to be when all schools make the switch, but i do know when i was in school families had the option to pick what track their kids were going to be on so all of their kids would be on the same schedule.

i really do not see anything wrong with year round schools at all so its really hard for me to see where all the anger is coming from. having attended both year round schools and traditional calandar schools, i would say my time in year round schools was far better for me and my family.

/ my two cents.

10/4/2006 12:53:26 PM

Quote :

"How is not poor planning to not levy impact fees to builders? It's pretty much what every other growing city in the country does to soften the hit to taxpayers."

Who should levy the impact fees? Wake County so it can build more schools? Are there any counties in NC that have actually successfully levied impact fees? I know cities do since there are a lot of municipal services to install, but county governments are a lot less omnipresent/powerful than you think. It's not like cities are going to levy additional impact fees to hand over to the county--in fact, I doubt that's even legal.

Quote :

"At the WCPSS Community Engagement Meetings, several people asked whether impact fees are charged to help governments meet the additional infrastructure such as schools that the community requires. At present there are neither state nor local laws that provide for impact fees in Wake County. It would take action by the NC General Assembly for Wake County to have the option of impact fees."

Ha, thought so. Quit talking out of your ass, Bobby.
http://www.wcpss.net/growth-management/student-assignment/2006-07/growth.html

[Edited on October 4, 2006 at 1:00 PM. Reason : .]

10/4/2006 12:54:48 PM

how am I talking out of my ass?

Just because there is no current legislation to levy such fees does not mean there shouldn't be any, which is my point.

10/4/2006 1:22:33 PM

So you're blaming the county/city planners because they can't legally do what's necessary? Try blaming the people who make the laws.

10/4/2006 1:33:14 PM

Who do you think effects change?

Do you think that lawmakers proactively change laws and fix inefficiencies without prompt?

10/4/2006 1:39:38 PM

Quote :

"How is not poor planning to not levy impact fees to builders? "

You make this statement as if they could have levied impact fees to builders. This is false. If you are going to play the angle that it's the citizens faults for not motivating their legislators to make laws so that the local governments may levy the fees, then fine. But don't blame the planning departments. A better way to frame what you are supposedbly trying to say would be

Quote :

"How is it not poor governing to not draft legislation thht would allow county governments to levy impact fees to builders."

I'm still pretty sure that you were talking out of your ass and just knew the buzz word "impact fee" without understanding how they work. But there's your benefit of the doubt.

10/4/2006 1:43:22 PM

And also, I'm inspired by your faith in civic participation.

10/4/2006 1:46:52 PM

West Lake Middle, '94-'95, 8th grade, Track 3 what what

10/4/2006 1:53:35 PM

Either you had track 1, track 4, or you were in one of those summerless tracks.

10/4/2006 1:56:29 PM

^^^ now you're just splitting cunt hairs.

10/4/2006 1:56:31 PM

Wow, excellent retort. No, I really do doubt people understand exactly how schools are paid for. Just admit you were talking out of your ass and move on.

10/4/2006 1:57:17 PM

what i have always wondered is why they dont build schools more than 2-3 stories. Is is not cheaper to build more stories than to keep buying land and starting over? Kids can walk up stairs why not make them. why not just put each grade on its own level or something?

10/4/2006 2:39:24 PM

i went to a school that was 8 stories for 4th-6th grades. Of course it was originally an office building not a school.

10/4/2006 3:06:05 PM

Ugh. I'm strongly feeling like this bond isn't going to get passed. This might be the beginning of the end for the Triangle's competitiveness.

10/30/2006 12:11:06 PM

OMG now i have to pay for daycare 4 times a year for 3 weeks each instead of 1 time a year for 12 weeks HOW CAN RALEIGH SCREW US LIKE THIS

10/30/2006 12:40:26 PM

Quote :

"The school board meeting the other night was packed with parents opposed to year round schools. One mother let the ‘chips fall where they may,’ put it bluntly and said “switching to year round schools would force her family to eschew the annual beach vacation.” (News and Observer; 9-26-06). Now, there’s something about all this that’s troubling and it goes beyond just the issues of year round schools and billion dollar school bonds. Think of it this way: The parents who are complaining have been receiving a blessing from the community (a free public education for their children) – but, now, they are turning around and saying that’s not good enough. Why? Because it interferes with their vacations. Does this sound a little selfish?"

http://tinyurl.com/yjbuvk

10/30/2006 12:46:59 PM

Quote :

"Ugh. I'm strongly feeling like this bond isn't going to get passed. This might be the beginning of the end for the Triangle's competitiveness."

+1

Quote :

"what i have always wondered is why they dont build schools more than 2-3 stories. Is is not cheaper to build more stories than to keep buying land and starting over? Kids can walk up stairs why not make them. why not just put each grade on its own level or something?"

I read an article about this, not necessarily the height of the school but the advantages of building larger schools. In atlanta that is how they deal with the large number of students they have. They build huge schools, it cuts down on land aquisition costs, redundant staffing, transportation overlap, etc.

10/30/2006 12:47:21 PM

i would just like to point out that page 1 of this thread features OmarBadu being stupid

10/30/2006 12:54:38 PM

Not enough schools, region becomes less attractive. My boss put it aptly: "With growth, you're either rising or falling. There is no stagnation." Guess where we are about to be if we start dropping the ball with mandatory services.

10/30/2006 12:56:33 PM

Quote :

"The main problem, I think, is that it forces parents to pay for more expensive "year-round" camps/daycare during the odd breaks in the middle of the fall/spring/winter."

I'm not reading the whole thread but child care for three weeks erry now and then is a hell of a lot cheaper than the whole summer.

10/30/2006 1:02:04 PM

I think it's more of a supply issue. Lots of summer camps... only a few camps that specialize in year round schools. A wise man would charge more for the camps in low supply.

10/30/2006 1:03:48 PM

How does year round school help the massive amount of black people and Mexicans spewing out kids into our school system??

10/30/2006 1:05:12 PM

It's really not like that though the YMCA as well as a bunch of private day cares that are close to year round schools cater to them. In a year round school one track is always out school at any given time so it actually allows them to stay in service year round.

10/30/2006 1:05:46 PM

I worked at an after school YMCA camp and occasionally filled in at the track out center. I can attest to the fact that YMCA's "camp" is pretty shitty and full of kids whose parents 1) didn't really care 2) had their kids there because of subsidies 3) only used it temporarily, "just in case". Basically, there was a lot of room for improvement. They didn't have to improve the quality since there's not a hell of a lot of competition. Yuppie parents are probably not big fans of this type of situation looming on the horizon, though I'm sure with more demand perhaps a better "supply" could emerge in track out camps.

10/30/2006 1:09:36 PM

Quote :

"How does year round school help the massive amount of black people and Mexicans spewing out kids into our school system??"

I don't even know what this means. These "black people" and "Mexicans" are here because of the jobs our region has to offer, just like the white collar workers. The government has a responsibility to serve both.

10/30/2006 1:11:13 PM

everyone moves here because it is "great" but then they whine because we have to do things differently because of population growth

10/30/2006 1:25:23 PM

^^I'm on heavy meds and worded that REALLY weird. Anywho, what I meant was how does year round school help schools meet the demand of a growing community? I just don't get that.

10/30/2006 1:28:14 PM

You can fit more kids in a school when that school is year round. When a community grows, schools tend to overcrowd because unlike roads or other local services schools take a lot more time to build (hence trailer classrooms on tennis courts to temporarily compensate). The fact that counties carry the brunt of responsibilities when municipalities get off scot-free is another issue, altogether. It's difficult to responsively generate additional funds to pay for large projects like schools, so bonds allow a local government to pay for things over time. Converting traditional schools to year round schools is a short-term solution that is easily implemented. It will ease some of the overcrowding, at least while more schools are built.

Of course, this problem is compounded by the fact that schools are already overcrowded and our region is expected to gain an additional 7000-8000 students a year. It's a clusterfuck and soccer moms complaining about their annual summer vacations being ruined just makes you feel like we're screwed.


[Edited on October 30, 2006 at 1:54 PM. Reason : .]

10/30/2006 1:31:04 PM

^My roommate just explained it to me, I didn't understand the whole tracking out thing. We don't have year round where I'm from. Or didn't

10/30/2006 1:41:09 PM

well i'm voting YES!

10/30/2006 1:41:59 PM

i'm voting yes too.

10/30/2006 2:06:56 PM

^

^^

10/30/2006 2:46:24 PM

If they spend less money on sports they might have enough money for school.

10/30/2006 3:39:47 PM

^

Reminds me of the days back at Athens Drive when the football team was bought new uniforms eventhough they NEVER won while the band(which was pretty good) paid out of pocket for everything.

10/30/2006 3:51:49 PM

I'll always be against year round schools.

I got the luxury of spending three months a year being dumb and enjoying the sun and I think my kids should be able to do the same.

I could take the time to prepare a better argument, but I don't think I need to.

10/30/2006 4:02:55 PM

Quote :

"Track 1 was the shit. Durant representing."

I was Track 1 at Durant Road Elementary and Middle! I loved it.

10/30/2006 4:50:37 PM

Year round schools are not a good idea. Just think how great it would be to be in school during the middle of summer?? Not every state has gone to this why do we need to be the first. I think its funny that only large school systems are trying to start this process. Imagine if we were forced during college to convert to a year round system? How many people up here would complain.

10/31/2006 9:24:46 AM