Asheville City Schools reports small enrollment gain, launches districtwide "student crew" and approves consent agenda with contract corrections

Asheville City Schools Superintendent Maggie reported Tuesday that district enrollment rose modestly compared with last year and described a new districtwide social‑emotional learning program called "student crew," while the board approved the consent agenda with a contract returned for minor corrections.

Maggie told the board the district "saw a little uptick in that enrollment, for this current school year," estimating an increase of about 40 students from the prior year and noting middle‑school enrollment rose to about 709 students. She said cohort sizes vary year to year and that movements between grades explain many of the changes.

The enrollment presentation included material on where students enrolled and where students withdrew over the summer. Maggie reported the district enrolled 53 students from elsewhere in Buncombe County during the summer period measured and withdrew fewer than 40 over that same interval. During discussion, a board member noted state education voucher payments and said, "It's like, $11,000,000 of state money has gone to private schools in Buncombe County alone," a figure the board asked to monitor as part of future enrollment analysis.

Nut graf: The briefing put enrollment trends, private‑school voucher effects and a new district SEL plan at the center of the board's discussion; trustees asked staff for deeper cohort analysis and for data that tracks where students go when they leave the district.

On programming, Maggie described "student crew," a district initiative to provide regular small‑group meetings led by staff that the superintendent said are designed to build "habits to become ethical people, effective learners" and give every student a regular time to meet with a small group. In middle and high schools, crew lessons were described as scheduled multiple times per week (high school: Monday, Wednesday, Friday; middle school: daily) and as typically lasting about 30 minutes in elementary schools. Maggie said teachers are using a crew curriculum that can be adapted locally.

Several trustees raised questions about staff workload and feedback. Members suggested collecting midyear staff feedback on the new curriculum and on school startup processes — including preparation time, training materials, and how well teachers felt supported — and they recommended anonymous surveys to gather candid responses.

During public comment, resident and former teacher John Brigham criticized the SELSA/"CILSA" designation (a program identifier he said can stigmatize students), urging the district to remove program labels from diplomas and expressing concern that special‑program designations could follow students. Brigham said the objectives of the program are "good," but that the program "appears to be dysfunctional" in its current form and should be discontinued or redesigned.

On routine business, the board approved the consent agenda by voice vote. The chair noted one contract on the consent agenda — with MAHEC and Buncombe County human‑health partners — contained three minor clerical errors (an outdated statutory reference and a misnamed school district in one place). The board approved the consent agenda "subject to corrections" and directed staff to return the corrected contract paperwork for the record.

Ending: Board members confirmed several upcoming meetings, including a half‑day retreat and an October work session, and the meeting adjourned after the routine items.