New Hanover County School Board discusses calendar, Apple HQ visit

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — Several hot topics were discussed at Tuesday night’s New Hanover County School Board meeting, including school calendars and the upcoming trip to Apple’s headquarters in California.

First, the board decided that school calendars will remain traditional for the 2020-2021 school year.

Back in October, the New Hanover County Schools Calendar Committee proposed a new calendar that would start the school year two weeks earlier in August and end it before Memorial Day.

The goal was to get all schools on the same schedule and allow students to take exams before Christmas break.

Many in the tourism industry worried this change could affect business.

“We know that we need those workers, those high school workers, the public school teachers during the month of August,” New Hanover County Tourism Development Authority President Kim Hufham says. “And it’s also uniform so we know that from other areas, they’re going to be coming during the times that our students are here, available for work.”

Hufham says she believes those in the tourism industry can work with the school board to create a calendar for the 2021-2022 year that works for everyone.

Also at Tuesday night’s meeting, the board decided the fate of 5th and 8th grade students affected by redistricting for the 2020-2021 school year.

Last month, the board approved redistricting maps which will move 2,415 elementary school students and 526 middle school students to new schools starting in the fall.

The goal is to cut down on overcrowding at certain schools.

Tuesday night, the board decided to allow 5th and 8th grade students to stay at their current schools for the 2020-2021 school year. Their siblings will not be given the same option.

Finally, the school board discussed an upcoming trip to Apple Headquarters in Cupertino, California.

Deputy Superintendent Dr. Lachawn Smith, New Hanover County Schools Chief Technology Officer Dawn Brinson and school board members Lisa Estep and Nelson Beaulieu are all going on the trip next week, along with several other county leaders.

The trip was organized by the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce as a learning opportunity, but school board member Judy Justice does not agree.

“It looks like a sales trip to me, and I’ve had quite a few of the public come up to me and say, ‘Why are we doing this, it looks like a sales trip,'” says Justice. “With the technology we have today, and I’ve been in schools for over 20 years, and due to the changes in technology, we have a lot of ways to share knowledge besides flying across the country.”

Justice also questioned why more teachers and hands on educators weren’t chosen for the trip.

For more on Tuesday night’s school board meeting, click here.