Whatever legal decision gets spit out of Wake County’s bid to “convert” some schools to a year-round calendar will likely set the boundary for year-round schooling for all North Carolina.
Parents opposed to the shift — which could put some families on multiple school skeds — took the school system to court. Yesterday, Judge Howard Manning — yes, that judge — said he could find nothing in state law that allowed the system to unilaterally convert 22 schools to the new calendar.
Opponents also make the point that Wake has targeted its outer burbs for conversion while leaving closer in schools unchanged. That leads, they say, to a disparate impact that violates the state’s constitutional guarantee of a uniform system with equal opportunities for all students.
Manning hasn’t issued a ruling in the case yet, but when he does it’ll be a big deal.
