Schools announce schedule changes
By From staff reports
Published in News on October 21, 2016 10:03 AM
On the heels of students returning to classes Thursday, Wayne County Public Schools made several announcements regarding changes to the calendar, make-up days and relief efforts for those affected by the storm.
Staff and students have been out of school since Oct. 7, the day before Hurricane Matthew. The subsequent flooding forced closure of schools for a week and a half, with a number of state elected officials publicly calling for efforts to have missed days forgiven. In accordance with Gov. Pat McCrory's Executive Order No. 110, WCPS will not schedule any make-up days between now and when the General Assembly takes up the issue.
Despite that, the district will change the dates of the first two grading periods on the traditional academic calendar, to Nov. 2. The last day of the first semester will now be Jan. 19.
Also, a designated workday originally scheduled for Jan. 17 has been rescheduled to Jan. 20. These changes were made to more equitably distribute instructional days across grading periods.
No changes were made to the non-traditional academic calendars, which affect Goldsboro High, Wayne Early/Middle College High and Wayne School of Engineering. Those calendars are aligned with the Wayne Community College calendar, with the first semester for each school scheduled to end before the winter holiday break.
A printable copy of the revised traditional academic calendar is available on the district website, www.waynecountyschools.org.
As of Thursday morning, the school system's transportation department had modified more than 30 bus stops, affected by the flooding and roadway closures, including a number of neighborhood stops that serve multiple students. The route managers are also working with the WCPS crisis team and the Wayne County Department of Social Services to identify students displaced from their homes, in order to create accommodations to get students to their home schools. Approximately 15 WCPS students stayed at the School Street evacuation shelter last night, down from more than 40 staying in Goldsboro evacuation shelters last week. While there was one issue in picking up a handful of students Thursday from the shelter, officials said they were resolved and all students there are being bused to and from their home schools.
The district's crisis team and crisis teams at individual schools are also in place, working to identify students who may be in need of additional support.
Earlier in the week, the school system announced that a Student Needs Hotline and online student needs survey form were being set up to better discern the needs of students impacted by the storm. Not counting direct calls or parent stop-ins at a school, more than 150 have been identified through the hotline and online within 48 hours of being set up. The majority of those, officials said, have either lost their home to flooding or are living in a home that sustained floor or other storm damage.
"As a district, we have been working since last week to get a grasp of just how many students have been impacted as a result of Hurricane Matthew," said Dr. Michael Dunsmore, WCPS superintendent. "We have now learned that we have displaced students living as far away as Greensboro, Smithfield, Wilson and Kinston. We anticipate that in the coming days our schools will learn of even more students who are in need of school supplies, clothes, transportation accommodations or a specialized service from one of our school counselors, psychologists or social workers as a result of what occurred."
Parents who have not reported concerns to their child's school are urged to call 919-705-6158 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. as long as this service is needed. Parents can also go to the district website to complete the online form.
While a number of charities and organizations are working to support and collect donations for those in need, the district is also accepting donations in the form of clothes, shoes, school supplies, personal hygiene products and other personal properties lost to flooding.
A special WCPS Relief Fund account with BB&T has been established to receive monetary donations for the school system to directly purchase needed items. Gift cards are also welcome. Contact person for this is Carol Artis, at 919-705-6166.
Checks can be dropped off at the schools administrative office on Royall Avenue or mailed to Wayne County Public Schools, Attention: WCPS Relief Fund, P.O. Drawer 1797, Goldsboro, N.C. 27533-1797