Wake County presentation emphasizes magnet schools as a tool for socioeconomic integration and opportunity

Wake County Public School System staff told the Student Achievement Committee on Jan. 22 that magnet schools remain a district tool to reduce high concentrations of poverty and promote socioeconomic integration, while also offering specialized academic programs that attract families and boost student opportunity.

In a presentation to the committee, Dr. Lang, a Wake County Schools staff member, said the district’s magnet objectives (approved by the board in 2013) are intended to balance schools by income and expand access to experienced teachers, low student‑teacher ratios, advanced coursework and extracurriculars. "Magnet programs are part of that. They're not the answer. They're not the problem. They're a tool," Dr. Lang said.

The presentation combined national research with local data and voices from district schools. Adeline, a fifth‑grade student at Dillard Drive Magnet Elementary School, described student activities tied to the school’s global studies program and said the magnet experience had broadened her perspective. "We also have GLOW. GLOW stands for global awareness, observe the wonder, and GLOW is going to advocate for ourselves and others," she told the committee. Principal Shell Smith of Wake Forest Magnet Elementary School described an enrollment increase after turning the school into a magnet and said…