A plan for magnet changes in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools got a rocky reception Tuesday from affected families and several school board members.
Families of approximately 190 students at Trillium Springs Montessori School in Huntersville found out two weeks ago that CMS plans to close their school next year. Staff and students would be relocated to a refurbished Lincoln Heights school that has room to expand the popular magnet program.
Trillium Springs now sits in an old building that became available when CMS built a replacement for Long Creek Elementary. Construction consultant Dennis LaCaria told the board that staff have repeatedly talked to the community about the need for a new building. The district is taking bids to demolish the old Long Creek building, he said.
"Our Montessori elementary schools at Chantilly, Park Road and Trillium Springs ... are in our oldest facilities, our smallest facilities and quite frankly our most inequitable facilities," he said.
LaCaria said the district only recently decided to move Trillium Springs to Lincoln Heights after families in the Lincoln Heights community voiced support for putting a Montessori magnet there.
But Trillium Springs parents said moving the program eight miles south, to north Charlotte, denies north suburban parents access to a magnet they’ve come to love.
"Many of the parents I have talked to are not likely to switch to this new location because of the distance and traffic," said parent Laura Alonso. "A number of us live in Cornelius and Huntersville, up to 20 miles away."
Julie Kelly, another Trillium Springs parent, questioned the wisdom of expanding when CMS is struggling to find teachers, especially those prepared to use Montessori methods.
"We already don’t have enough Montessori-trained teachers for our classrooms," she said. "Trillium Springs has 10 classrooms and five Montessori-trained teachers. If there is a pipeline of Montessori-trained certified teachers, where are they now?"
CMS board members and staff acknowledged that’s a challenge. Several board members raised questions about the Trillium Springs plan. The harshest criticism came from board member Rhonda Cheek, who said families in her north suburban district didn’t know what LaCaria and CMS staff were planning when they talked about the need for a new building.
"They were not told, 'Oh, by the way, we’re shutting down your building and moving you eight miles away from Huntersville to Charlotte, into massive traffic' until two weeks ago," she said.
Cheek, who has represented the district for 13 years, pushed to get magnets located in the northern part of the county.
"This decision was made behind closed doors, without even the engagement of the district representative that fought so hard to get the school. I do not support this in any way, shape or form," Cheek said.
Piecemeal plan for Waddell?
The Montessori shuffle wasn’t the only rough spot. Another plan calls for reopening Waddell High School in August with a mix of career-tech programs, a new academy for students learning English and a virtual academy for middle and high school students. The school would open with mostly ninth and 10th graders and would not have athletics.
Several board members voiced enthusiasm for parts of that plan, such as the program for English learners and an aviation/aeronautics magnet program that would work in partnership with the private Aviation Institute of Maintenance, known as AIM.
But board member Lenora Shipp said members of the community surrounding the southwest Charlotte school, which was a K-8 language academy until recently, had been led to believe they’d get a full-scale high school there.
"But it sounds like this is a piecemeal high school — we’re putting this program over there, that program over there. And we’re starting with just (grades) 9-10, we're only going to have 250 kids, there’s not going to be athletics, no band program," she said.
Interim Superintendent Hugh Hattabaugh said it’s possible sports could be added in a few years, as the school grows. At first students who opt into Waddell would have to return to their neighborhood schools to play on teams.
Board member Sean Strain said he understands the thinking behind the Waddell plan, "but as I look at Waddell I’m thinking what’s the vision? Where are we going to end up with Waddell? I got it, we need to find a home for this program, so let’s put that in Waddell, let’s put that in Waddell. But what’s the broader strategic use of Waddell?"
Popular early college plan
One part of the plan drew no opposition: Creating an early college high school at Central Piedmont Community College’s uptown Charlotte campus. CMS currently has middle college high schools for juniors and seniors at four Central Piedmont campuses. The new option would allow students to enter as freshmen and attend all four years on the college campus, plus an optional fifth year to earn more tuition-free credits.
Vice Chair Thelma Byers-Bailey said she’s happy with all of the plan, especially opening a Montessori magnet in Lincoln Heights. She’s president of the Lincoln Heights Neighborhood Association, and she noted that families from across the county come to the nearby Northwest School of the Arts.
"I’m thrilled!" she said. "You know, it’s right next to the freeway, so to me, if people from all over the county can get two blocks down the street to Northwest, I think they can come two blocks further up the street and get to Lincoln Heights."
The board plans to vote Nov. 9 on changes for the 2023 school year so students can opt in when the choice lottery begins in January. After that, the board will move into a broader review of construction and assignment in 2023.
