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Thanks, all! @twingles can you speak specifically about issues that arise at a crowded school? I guess I just assumed that if they went here around two, then that makes up for logistical problems that they might have otherwise as a high capacity school. I do want to see the big picture though, so any insight you can shed on this would be great.
I thought that Highcroft was also an option for Carpenter Village residents. @cvalicia do you know if this is true? You have been so helpful about CV.
I referenced capped schools - all the schools in west Cary are crowded.
While it's true that this area is transient and having new kids start during the school year is fairly common, capped schools maintain wait lists for people who live in the base area but were "capped out" because of when they moved in. That means the classes are ALWAYS at capacity, where even at a crowded school like Davis Drive Elementary, my kids have not necessarily had classes that reached the prescribed limit. For instance, my daughter had 21 in her first and second grade grade classes although she started at 23/24 and started with 20 in her 3rd grade and ended up with 19. That is probably not going to happen in a capped school as someone is almost always waiting to take that available seat.
Additionally, it is a drain on teachers to be dealing with new kids on a continual basis, and since capped schools get a new kid every time a current student leaves, it is something they continually have to deal with....whereas at a school that's not capped, a student leaving doesn't mean one is coming in to take his or her place necessarily.
Also be aware that the principals are allowed to hire staff based on their "10 day number" so schools take a head count every day to verify how many students they have in hopes of hiring additional staff. As you can imagine this is a double edge sword. At a capped school, as soon as they realize a student isn't showing up they open up the seat to someone else. And at a capped school, there is almost always someone waiting.
Just MHO - while my kids' schools are crowded I will take it over capping and the issues that brings, even behind the scenes.
I'd concur with the above. My son started Highcroft (crowded not capped) this year at 22, and has picked up one student to 23. The school is definitely above capacity, with mobile trailers currently in use for 3rd and 5th. It was stupid crowded at the beginning of the year until the new modular classrooms were finished for the 5th grade kids. It's year-round, but single track. At some point, it would seem to make sense to go multi-track to increase capacity.
I would definitely take crowded over capped. I know I passed up a few nice houses purely due to the fact that the elementary schools were capped, and I didn't want to take the chance of not going to the closest base school. Granted we bought in July, which didn't help, but capping can't help with resale.
I see. Thanks so much for shedding light on this. So then, which schools in West Cary (so we can still keep a short commute to RTP) are not capped? My head is starting to spin with all the school info. It is also great to know these things about how the district works, because I am a teacher, and I do plan to return to the classroom in about 5 years when my youngest heads to K.
Mills Park Elementary and Middle are capped. Highcroft isn't. I agree with a prior poster that Highcroft felt awfully crowded at the beginning of the year. Since the new modular opened it's a bit better.
Mills Park Elementary and Middle are capped. Highcroft isn't. I agree with a prior poster that Highcroft felt awfully crowded at the beginning of the year. Since the new modular opened it's a bit better.
Thanks, MB. I looked around on the WCPSS website link above for 10 minutes and still found no list of capped schools.
I wonder why Highcroft hasn't gone to multi-track yet...?
Both kids are at capped schools (MPE and MPMS) and it hasn't been a big deal, at least not for us. I spoke with a Highcraft parent this week, though, who described a nightmare. She said things were better now that the new modular units are in. I think the Mills Park Schools frighten some parents because of the size, but they do a great job. Very organized.
NoneofThis, I actually visited MPE when we were in NC last month, and I thought it seemed very well run. I wouldn't have known it was a capped school if the front desk receptionist hadn't made sure to share that tidbit when I inquired about Kindergarten registration. The Principal is a gem.
Thanks, MB. I looked around on the WCPSS website link above for 10 minutes and still found no list of capped schools.
I wonder why Highcroft hasn't gone to multi-track yet...?
According to our Board Rep. Susan Evans Highcroft is too physically small (the building) to go multi track. It's kind of funny because it used to operate as multi track. In any event, I don't think they need it to go multi track now because they put Alston Ridge on multi track and as I mentioned before some new elementary school is opening in the area which will take the pressure off. There are some really excellent teachers at Highcroft, but I am not a fan of the principal at all.
I've been in Carpenter Village for about 10 years now (built new). Kids walk to school at Carpenter Elem. We use the greenway multiple times a week. We use the pool multiple times a week in summer. We attend concerts and movies on the big grass lawn near the pool. I walk over to the library every couple of weeks to get a new book. They have Santa and Mrs. Claus at the clubhouse one morning every December, which the kids love. I absolutely love my 4 BR/3.5 BA home with huge front porch, screened in back porch, and patio. Incredibly family friendly neighborhood. Halloween, Fourth of July, etc. are huge events. The only negative at all is the plane noise when outside (or during the shoulder seasons when the windows are open).
When I used to work in RTP, I would sometimes ride my bike over to the TTA stop at 55 and Morrisville-Carpenter and ride the bus into work, then ride home in the evening during the summer. The EPA was about half way to where I worked and a lot of the riders worked there.
What else can I tell you...There wasn't all that much out here when we first built, but now we don't have to go far for most things (restaurants, grocery stores, shopping). I can usually get to downtown Raleigh or Durham in about 20 minutes. They are going to build a new YMCA just across 55 that will be very nice. There is a new park scheduled to be built next year right next to the neighborhood. There is a tennis center just down the road if the court at CV is full (and across from the tennis center is where the youth soccer leagues play).
We also looked hard at Cary Park and Highcroft, but got much more for our money at Carpenter Village. We wanted around 3000 sq ft and a decent sized lot, and that proved hard to do in the other neighborhoods. I didn't really weigh traffic too much at the time, but in retrospect CV has worked out much better for us in that regard than those other two would have because we tend to head down I-40 to Raleigh often (daily in wife's case).
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