Wake Co. High Schools At Risk Of Losing Accreditation

The Wake County School Board must decide whether it will cooperate with an accrediting agency’s investigation or risk losing its high schools' accreditation.

The board will vote on the issue at Wednesday’s public hearing at Millbrook High School. The scheduled hearing is to discuss the student reassignment plan proposed last week.

AdvancED, an accrediting agency based out of Georgia, has been looking into the school system since the NAACP filed a complaint regarding the board's controversial assignment policies that would transition the County’s lauded bussing policy to a neighborhood school system.

The agency says it has been met with opposition from the Wake County School Board during the review process.

"The Board and senior leadership are wanting legal representation during this review process," AdvancED President and CEO Mark Elgard explained, "but this is not a legal process and does not require legal representation."

In an email addressed to Elgard, Wake County School Board attorney Ann Majestic explained that the board's desire to have legal council present is due to the nature of the review.

"[W]e believe that legal counsel should be allowed to be present because the complaint involves accusations against individual board members as well as allegations raised in a legal challenge filed by the NAACP with the Office for Civil Rights," Majestic wrote. "The Board is ... concerned that you intend to inquire into matters that are presently subject to threatened litigation and investigation by the [Office of Civil Rights]."

In respose, Elgard said the accreditation process is "voluntary and collegial by design." He also went on to say, "Wake County leadership continues to take action that is confrontational."

The agency told the board in an e-mail Monday that it would have to cooperate with the probe or else AdvancED would consider dropping the school system's accreditation.

"We informed the school system that at their next scheduled meeting ... they need to either make the commitment to follow through with the accreditation process and meet criteria and policy, or they should withdraw their accreditation," Elgard said.

In a release issued by the Great Schools in Wake Coalition, Chairwoman Yevonne Brannon said, "The community is shocked by news that the Board majority would consider jeopardizing the educational future of our students. This majority repeatedly claims to care about the wellbeing of students, yet, when the going gets tough, they put their own self-interests ahead of those of our children."

If the school system's accreditation is withdrawn, Elgard says AdvancED would recommend the system to do so effective the end of the school year "so the current class of seniors in Wake County high schools is not affected by such a decision."

Loss of accreditation differs from state to state, Elgard explained, but the overall impact is that it makes students less competitive in the highly competitive arena of college admissions.

Regarding possible loss of accreditation, school board member Dr. Ann McLaurin said, "There really are a lot of ramifications and it’s a position we really shouldn’t be in at this point."

Some states, like Florida and California, will only accept students who graduate from accredited high schools. In addition, scholarship programs require students receive a diploma from an accredited high school.

If the school system was to lose its accreditation, McLaurin says parents may decide to send their children to high schools elsewhere so they can take classes at accredited schools.

She also says there is the possibility that loss of accreditation could hurt teacher retention and recruitment at in Wake County.

But, there is also another factor at play in this situation.

"We have a new superintendent who is starting Feb. 1, and it would be ideal to have him weigh in on this," McLaurin said. "He should be a participant in this."

She added, "I don't think we should be making the decision Wednesday night."

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