Why We Love Union County Public Schools

Union County Public Schools (USPS) may be experiencing change and conflict - between challenges that come with high growth and an adversarial relationship with the county government - but there are reasons why people love these schools. 

Taken from the UCPS web site, here are some "points of pride" for the school's performance record:

• UCPS had 86 Federal Annual Measurable Objectives targets to meet. We met 100%. The state met 95.6%.
• UCPS had 184 State Annual Measurable Objectives targets to meet. We met 181/184 for a status of 98.4%. The state status was 89.0%.
• 92.5 percent of the schools in UCPS met or exceeded academic growth expectations in the 2012-13 school year. Statewide, more than 71 percent of North Carolina public schools met or exceeded academic growth expectations in the 2012-13 school year.
• UCPS posted the state’s second highest district academic performance as measured by the performance composite rates on the end of year assessments. Only one, much smaller, school district out of the 115 school districts in the state posted a higher performance composite rate.
• The 2013 UCPS graduation rate was 90.83 percent, marking the seventh consecutive year that the graduation rate has improved and the first time in state history that a large school system has had a graduation rate above 90%.
• Union County Public Schools continues to have the highest graduation rate of any North Carolina school system its size and continues to rank at the top in its academic growth and performance rate.

To look more closely at the district's or individual schools' performances, NCReportCard.org is an excellent source. Reportedly, the state moved to a new testing system last year and also changed the requirements for teachers mid-year.

Alternatives to redistricting for Union County Public Schools

http://www.ucps.k12.nc.us/

The proposed redistricting of several schools under the Union County Public Schools umbrella is still a hot topic. Yesterday's Union County Weekly featured three news stories that covered the issue from different angles.

Redistricting has been proposed by the school board and administrators as a solution to elevated enrollment rates, especially in the western part of the county. But that solution has been vehemently opposed by many parent and community groups that feel their children would be sent from high performing schools to their lower performing counterparts - and that their real estate values could also decrease.

Residents have organized, forming committees that have proposed several alternatives to redistricting, including:

* Restructuring some elementary schools with lower student populations to shift sixth grade students to upper elementary schools from the middle schools.
* Providing school choice and magnet school programs.
* Building small school facilities in the Cuthbertson and Hemby Bridge areas that would cost an estimated $44 million, a fraction of the expected $100 million cost to build larger schools, according to one group.
* Home address-based caps, which would allow students to attend their current school while all new home addresses would be assigned and bused to schools further away.

Finally, the Union County commissioners have offered $3 million to fund mobile classrooms as another way to avoid or postpone redistricting.

The redistricting issue comes on the heels of a massive lawsuit against the county government, which was court ordered to pay the schools $91 million. UCPS says that the county did not adequately fund the school district for the current school year. The county is appealing the judgment, and in the meantime has released $9.6 million to fix school roofs.

In terms of long-range planning, some believe hiking county taxes is necessary to alleviate burdens on overcrowded schools through building new facilities, making improvements to existing facilities or implementing other alternatives to redistricting. Union County has historically benefited from a lower tax base than neighboring Mecklenburg County, and raising taxes is likely an unpopular option. Some feel that it's premature to discuss tax increases, but Indian Trail Councilman Chris King expresses his view:

"As a result of low taxation (in Union County), you get over-development. When that happens, you get what we have right now with overcrowded schools. The county has basically become a victim of its own success... I hate raising taxes, I would consider every alternative before raising taxes, but I do feel at some point there is going to have to be a tax increase."

The next UCPS board meeting, which may address redistricting again and proposed alternatives, is scheduled for Tuesday, February 18 at 4 pm at the UCPS Professional Development Center at 721 Brewer Drive in Monroe, NC. According to the board, the meeting will be held live via the Internet, and they will publish the web address for public viewing prior to the meeting on its web site and its Facebook page.

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For more information, see the articles in recent issues of Union County Weekly:

Would voters support a tax hike to avoid redistricting? (2/14/14)
Community members formulate alternative to redistricting (2/14/14)
Weddington town leaders discuss NCDOT, UCPS at retreat (2/14/14)
Towns stand against redistricting (2/6/14)
School board discusses all overcrowing options (1/30/14)

Schools in Union County, NC and Charlotte, NC

We've updated our web site to include lots of information about our great schools in Union County, NC and south Charlotte, NC. Included are listings and information on local preschools, day care centers, public schools, private schools and UCPS redistricting information. We've also included links to organizations that provide performance information on our public schools.

Schools are listed by category and alphabetical order, along with their web site address, physical address and phone number so you can easily inquire about more information. And if you need a parent's and resident's opinion about the schools in our area, please reach out to us! We'd be happy to help!

Another Round of UCPS Redistricting News

Are Union County Public Schools going to redistrict next school year? Union County commissioners have offered to fund mobile classrooms for schools that are overcrowded, and this may reduce the likelihood of mass redistricting. We have not heard yet if the school board has responded.

Here are some links to the latest news on the redistricting issue:

Letter to school board from the UC county commissioners (posted by Protect Union County Schools)
WBTV TV news coverage of latest board meeting
Updated Charlotte Observer news story

More updates: Union County Public Schools redistricting

For those of us following the UCPS redistricting news, here are some further updates and links for more information.

* The school updated its FAQ page regarding potential redistricting.

* The media was at last night's board meeting, and here are links to the TV news reports by WSOCTV and WCCB Charlotte.

* Another WCCB Charlotte news report broadcast prior to the January 23rd board meeting.

* There were presentation slides presented at last night's UCPS board meeting.

* Protect Union County Schools is an advocacy group that has been active in tweeting and posting current information

* A re-post of the link to the UCPS page that contains proposed redistricting maps and lists of neighborhoods potentially redistricted to new schools.

* A re-post of the link to North Carolina School Report Cards that provides information regarding student performance (test scores), school performance, school safety, and teachers.

See our list of helpful links and list of media coverage posted last week that provide further information on the school district's redistricting proposal.

Redistricting can affect buyers and sellers of homes in our area. We're making every effort to keep our social networks updated, and you can always contact us for a personal conversation about your concerns as it relates to your home sale or purchase!

Upcoming UCPS redistricting meeting

The Board of Education for Union County Public Schools will hold a work session this Thursday night, January 23, 6 pm at the Monroe High School. On the agenda: discussing the recent redistricting proposals. Here is a link to the meeting details as found on the UCPS web site.

On the same topic, here is a link to a good article in the Union County Weekly that summarizes last week's board of education meeting in which the proposed redistricting maps were released to the public.