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District hires NC State team for student-assignment study as enrollment and feeder patterns raise questions
Summary
The school system contracted NC State researchers for a six-month student assignment study to map growth, development plans and enrollment patterns; officials warned the study may recommend tough reassignments or land purchases.
Randolph County School System officials told the board they contracted with NC State's Institute for Transportation Research and Education (ITRE) to conduct a six-month student-assignment study, and that the work will combine transportation data, municipal planning information and development permits to model future school-seat needs.
"We signed it on February 27," the district official said of the contract with ITRE, and described the contract amount as $27,500. The district said the research team has already pulled student and transportation files from the district data system and scheduled interviews with city and county planners, including meetings with Asheboro and Archdale officials and with county planning staff.
Officials said the county commission allocated $50,000 for the study; the district cautioned the work might extend beyond the summer depending on interview and analysis needs. The district expects the research team to look at development permits and planned housing to estimate numbers and types of housing units and likely student yields.
The administrator told the board the study could identify areas with significant growth and areas with low utilization that may require "tough decisions," including whether to change feeder patterns, use open enrollment selectively, or purchase land for future facilities. "Equally important to this building project plan could be what's called land making," the official said, adding the district may have to buy land it does not use for several years to secure future school sites.
Board members raised specifics about southern Randolph County feeder patterns, noting that Farmer and Tabernacle elementary schools have low occupancy (the official cited Tabernacle at about 64% and Farmer at about 45% capacity) while other nearby campuses are under different pressures. Officials also presented detailed reassignment counts for affected feeder paths and noted some reassignment requests are tied to employee childcare, sibling attendance and other policy exceptions.
The study team plans to interview municipal planners and regional organizations, including the Randolph Economic Development Corporation and the Piedmont Triad Regional planning entities, the official said. Researchers named in the discussion included Thomas Dudley and research associate Brian Godfrey.
Officials warned that recommendations could include consolidations or reassignments and that the board might need dedicated work sessions to review results and possible building plans. The district also flagged the role of charter schools, early college programs and career-technical seats in changing local enrollment flows.
Board members asked about open-enrollment consequences, transportation impacts and program "hooks" that draw students to particular schools (for example, athletics or specialized programs). The official said selective open enrollment can create magnet-like programs and carries transportation and equity trade-offs.
The district said it will bring study findings to the board for review and that the work may require additional presentation time beyond the initial analytic period so the board can consider options and community impacts.
