News
WakeEd Wednesdays
WakeEd Wednesdays is a video series produced to simplify many of the complexities of North Carolina’s largest school district, the Wake County Public School System. With more than 180 schools, 160,000 students, and 11,000 teachers, WCPSS has a major impact on all Wake County residents regardless of whether they have children enrolled in the schools.
WCPSS Board of Education and NCGA Wake Delegation Share Agendas
Twenty heads are better than one, so the saying goes, right? No? Well, it worked for the members of the WCPSS Board of Education and the senators and representatives from Wake County as they get ready for the short legislative session that opens today. The two groups...
Return of Teacher Career Status
North Carolina public school teachers who had career status as of 2013 are allowed to keep it following a state Supreme Court ruling last week. The Court unanimously held that the General Assembly could not revoke the status, often called tenure, because doing so...
The New Guy
After a brief hiatus, In Context is back with the addition of Tim Lavallee as vice president of policy and research at WakeEd. Tim was a teacher in Wake County for the past 10 years, during which six of those years were at the elementary level in WCPSS. Prior to...
A Note of Thanks from WCPSS
Thanks to the financial investment from WakeEd Partnership, students and families in Wake County are receiving support through the First Steps in Literacy programs. In less than two years, we have Partners Read in ten Wake County schools where 60 volunteers to...
From Zero to Space at the Speed of World Cafe
Here's a word problem for you. Mr. Richard Lockamy is the computer programming teacher at Wake STEM Early College High School. Mr. William Burgess is the science teacher. Together they have more than 60 students. They want to create an engaging experience that...
Meet Our Investors: BASF
In 2050, more than nine billion people will live on our planet. The world population and its demands will keep growing, while the planet’s resources are finite. If nothing changes, we will need the resources of almost three of our planets to meet the demands of the...
Helping Our Students Grow
Katherine Sokolowski, an educator at East Garner Middle School, is using her Teacher Innovation Grant to build a school garden with her self-contained middle school class. Over the course of the year, her students are planting butterfly bushes and growing produce like...
WAKE Up and Read Spring Book Drive
If spring really does come early, summer will be here before you know it. That means pools, cookouts and vacations are just around the corner. And for low-income students, summer also means losing more than two months in reading achievement, despite the fact that...
The Hidden Cost of Unprecedented Growth
“And, as usual, we’re opening five new schools this coming year.” – Tom Benton, WCPSS School Board Only in Wake County – the fastest growing county in the state – would five new schools opening in one year be considered “usual.” Some school districts don’t open five...
Bond Referenda: A New Hope
A long time ago in a county that may just be your own, Wake County voters approved a bond referendum to support much needed construction and renovation of Wake County public schools. It was 2013, which may not seem like that long ago, but it is. Wake County Public...
Goodbyes Are Never Easy
Eight and a half years ago I joined the staff at WakeEd Partnership. I came straight out of the classroom and began working in our programs area. Immediately I had the opportunity to shape programs that engaged our local business community with teachers and...
WakeEd’s New Year’s Resolutions
So how are you doing on those New Year’s resolutions? Be honest. Studies show that if you’ve made it this far you are in an elite group of Americans. It’s interesting to hear the staff talk about the New Year’s resolutions they’ve kept and ones that have slipped by. I...
World Cafe: In Their Words
This year’s World Café was one of the most successful we’ve ever had. More than 80 businesses and schools created new partnerships to further the impact of education in Wake County Public School System. Here are just a few stories from the participants in the event....
Intern Profile: Nancy Merritt
My family has lived in Chapel Hill for generations, so I was born and raised a Tar Heel. Although I have learned to love the Wolfpack, it’s true that I owe the University of Chapel Hill credit for my start. In high school, I worked at their unique and equally...
Intern Profile: Megan Ashley
I have lived in Richmond, Virginia my entire life, but have always loved visiting North Carolina. Ever since I was young, I spent most of my weekends in Winston-Salem with my grandparents and always called it my second home. I loved spending time with them baking,...
Swing Space – (Not the Dancing Kind)
On Jan. 19, the Board of Education received an update on renovation plans for Apex High. Staff recommended a full teardown and rebuild ($70.6 million) rather than a partial teardown and rebuild ($69 million). One issue that must be addressed is how long a relocated...
Capping Schools
Fifteen schools will be capped for the 2016-2017 school year in WCPSS. When a school is capped, it means that an enrollment limit has been established. If that enrollment limit is reached, then even families who move into the base attendance area of that school...
Elementary Support Model Schools Consider Delay for Year-Round Changes
On January 11, WCPSS staff recommended to the Board of Education Student Achievement Committee that all twelve Elementary Support Model schools have a one-track year-round calendar. Three of the twelve schools already use a year-round calendar, so the recommendation...
Moving On
Two years ago (almost exactly), I began writing In Context. It has been my pleasure to explore our local, state, and national education story with you. Almost always there is a “rest of the story” behind decisions and headlines. We believe knowing that story helps...
Purposeful Choice
The Board of Education gave first round approval to changes regarding student transfer policies Tuesday night. The changes have been recommended as part of a policy migration and updating process. Changes include a new numbering system. For example, Student...
Dirt Roads in Wake County
The Board of Education Work Session on Tuesday was a half hour update on the progress of public infrastructure required for the construction of Bryan Road Elementary School (E31). Eight years ago, WCPSS purchased a 50-acre site on Bryan Road south of Garner for future...
Real Returns on Investments: Dollars and Jobs
Back in December, WakeEd and WCPSS released an Economic Impact Report for the Wake County Public School System. The report found “large and significant” positive impacts on the local economy. Tax dollars invested in educating our students are not just dollars that...
Student Growth Projections Shift Downward
The Wake County Public School System updated its projections for student enrollment growth this week. The new figures shift enrollment projections down by approximately 1,000 students each year. Enrollment projections are foundational to understanding the district’s...
Every Student Succeeds Act
On December 10, President Obama signed into law the Every Student Achieves Act (ESSA), a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The Every Student Achieves Act replaces No Child Left Behind (NCLB). It passed into law with overwhelming...
Coming Soon: Achievement School District Conversation
It still feels like late September outside these days. So it won’t be very hard to harken back to the late September rush to finish up the legislative session. Those days, people were paying attention to budget negotiations. But other work was going on as well,...
WCPSS Leads Nation in NBPTS Teachers
In schools across the US, the days and weeks leading up to Thanksgiving is special. Yes – there’s a long weekend ahead. It’s also notification time for teachers who have undertaken the National Board Certification (NBC) process. This fall, 48 WCPSS teachers received...
A Celebration of Blessings
I can’t help but think about celebrations at this time of year. Whether Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa or something else, everyone seems to take this time to celebrate. Thanksgiving reminds us to be thankful for our blessings and in December we celebrate the many ways we...
Meet the Investors: Duke Energy
I know firsthand the opportunity that comes from a strong public education system. My grandparents were the first in my family to leave the farm and go to college, which opened new doors for the following generations. I am a beneficiary of their passion to pursue...
Wake County Public School System and Your Property Taxes
Did you know that a large chunk of your property taxes goes to education? Whether you have kids or not, you are paying for the education of hundreds of students in Wake County Public School System (WCPSS). It could seem like a raw deal until you know that WCPSS...
The “Shark Tank” of WakeEd’s World Cafe
“I’m out.” It’s the worst thing a contestant can hear on the hit ABC show Shark Tank. Each week, millions of viewers tune in to watch entrepreneurs pitch ideas to billionaires who agree to “buy in” to those ideas. On January 5 from 7:30a – 11:45a, WCPSS educators will...
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Raleigh, NC 27609 | (919) 821-7609
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WakeEd Partnership
3101 Industrial Drive, Suite 100
Raleigh, NC 27609 | (919) 821-7609