School Choice
Dr. Terry Holliday, Superintendent Iredell Statesville Schools, North Carolina
In the mid-1970's, the Transylvania County School system boasted of an enrollment of over 4600 students. Today, the enrollment is 3912 students. Where did all the children go?
In the 1970's, few parents opted for home schooling. In 1979, there were 33 students enrolled in home schools in our county. Today, there are 244 students home schooled in 138 different home school settings. In 1979, there were 6 students enrolled in private schools within the county. Today, over 100 students attend private schools within or outside the county. In the 1970's, public charter schools did not exist. Currently, an estimated 185 students attend Brevard Academy and a small handful attend charter schools in Jackson and Henderson counties. In the 1970's, dropouts were not a major issue for school systems. Dropouts usually had a place to work. In 1999-2000, the school system had 85 dropouts. These numbers are not isolated to Transylvania County. The state and the nation have also seen tremendous growth in home schools, private schools, and charter schools.
The preceding paragraph reveals that the school age population has not changed significantly since the 1970's, however, parents and students have exercised their options for school attendance. Given these facts, the Transylvania County Board of Education has established a philosophy of collaboration with public and private options for education. The guiding principle for this philosophy is that parents will make decisions about their child’s education by choosing the best possible option for their child based on the best information available. This article is dedicated to describing some of the choices parents have with regard to K-12 education.
Home Schools
Parents may opt to home school students. Parents who make this decision often do so based on religious, social, academic, or family situations. Parents who are interested in this option may contact the Division of Non-Public Schools through the web site @ www.doa.state.nc.us or 919.733.4276 for additional information. Also, there are a number of home school associations who provide assistance. The Division of Non-Public Schools has this information also.
Transylvania County Schools offer several options for home schooled students and their families. If home school students in grades 6-12 are interested in taking courses over the internet, the school system will provide these courses at no cost to the home school. Students who take a minimum of 50% of the school day via the internet offered by the school system are also eligible to participate in extracurricular activities. Another option offered to consortia of home schools is the use of school facilities for instruction. The most common use would be that of a science lab. Should a home school be interested in pursuing these options, I would encourage the school to contact me (884.6173) or Jennifer Weir with Communities in Schools (885.8443).
Dual Enrollment
The school system offers dual enrollment with Blue Ridge Community College, Brevard College, and Brevard Academy. Students who are enrolled with Blue Ridge Community College or Brevard College could receive academic credit for both high school and college level courses. This option results in a cost savings for parents when the student enrolls in college. The Brevard Academy dual enrollment option will allow TCS students and Brevard Academy students to choose the courses at each school that best meet their educational needs.
Another dual enrollment option is Schenck Job Corps. The school system started this program during the fall of 2000. Students from Transylvania County may enroll in a daytime program at Schenck Job Corps for vocational training and enroll in an academic component through the school system that could lead to a high school diploma.
Electronic Delivery
Transylvania County Schools will offer several electronic delivery options in the fall of 2001. The first option is the NC Standard Course of Study and elective courses over the internet. Using an exciting new program called NovaNet, students will be able to take courses from home or in a lab at Davidson River School. This option has unlimited potential for students who have extended illness, travel outside of the country, choose to be home schooled, or simply want to get ahead during the summer or school year.
The second option will be the use of the North Carolina Information Highway. We are currently in discussions with the North School of Science and Math to offer advanced courses through the distance learning lab located at Brevard High School. Rosman High School will also be able to participate through our video conferencing capabilities.
Alternative Choices
The school system offers many variations on the above programs through the Davidson River School. A dedicated team of professionals collaborate with pubic and private programs to offer the best possible program for students. The hours of operation are being expanded in the fall to serve students from 8:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. on campus. Students choosing electronic options have the capability of “attending” school 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.
Transfer Requests
Over the last few years, the school system has approved 99% of the requests for students to attend a school outside of his/her attendance zone. Parents who want their children to attend a school outside of their attendance zone, may request a transfer through my office. All requests are approved for a full school year and in most cases, a student is allowed to complete the grade levels that the school offers.
The Winner
I hope the reader has been able to see that the Transylvania County Schools are not “talking the talk” about school choice, however, the school system is actually “walking the walk.” The public schools in North Carolina do not have a monopoly on K-12 education as they once had. K-12 education is indeed now a market just as any other industry or service has a market. As is the case with all businesses and services, we must meet the needs of the market. In this case, the market is a very special one - our children. Many school systems choose to ignore this point and choose to battle school choice. Transylvania County Schools see the winner in the choice market as being the child. All programs will improve to meet the needs of children. If they do not improve, then parents will choose those programs that do meet the needs of their children. School choice is yet one more example of the slogan for the school system - Teaching everyone, takes everyone.