Roanoke Rapids Graded School District has started the 2024-25 school year off strong! 

Our students are doing a great job implementing new routines, learning new skills, and making new friends. 

We had the opportunity to celebrate our school district’s performance from last year as measured in the school performance grades.

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School Performance Grades

The North Carolina State Board of Education released the 2023-24 School Performance Grades on Wednesday. 

Belmont Elementary earned a D (only 3 points from a C); Manning Elementary earned a C; Chaloner Middle School earned a D (only 1 point from a C); Roanoke Rapids High School earned C (increased from a D) and Roanoke Rapids Early College earned an A (the first A ever for a school in Roanoke Rapids Graded School District).

The grades are based on student achievement data from End-of-Grade (EOG) and End-of-Course (EOC) tests.

 Four out of five campuses met or exceeded growth across all subgroups. Notably, ACT and WorkKeys scores improved significantly, and English Learner progress indicators rose at multiple schools.

We are proud of the hard work and dedication of students and staff at all of our campuses, and we are especially excited for Roanoke Rapids Early College and Roanoke Rapids High School, who each increased one letter grade. We will continue to chase excellence in academic achievement across the district.

Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund Grant Application for Pre-Kindergarten Center

I was honored to attend the Halifax County Board of Commissioners meeting last week to present our application for a Needs-Based Public School Capital Fund Grant to build a pre-kindergarten center on the campus of Manning Elementary that would provide space for all students in RRGSD to attend pre-kindergarten.

Our plan remains the same as we presented last year, with a total cost of $19.9 million, including a 5% county match. 

The new center would replace our aging Clara Hearne building, which is nearly 90-years-old and can only serve 165 students. 

The new pre-kindergarten center would accommodate 285 students, have 17 classrooms, and meet five-star facility requirements. 

Our commissioners unanimously approved the application, which has been submitted. We are hopeful that the state will award us funding!.

Thoughts and Prayers for the Apalachee High School Community

Our hearts are heavy as we extend our deepest condolences to the community of Winder, Georgia, and the Apalachee High School family. 

The tragic school shooting that claimed the lives of four individuals and left nine others injured is a heartbreaking reminder of the fragility of life and the importance of community.

As we grieve for the victims, their families, and all those impacted by this senseless act of violence, we are reminded that schools should be safe havens where students, teachers, and staff feel secure and supported. 

Events like this ripple far beyond their immediate location, affecting all of us who dedicate our lives to education and the care of young people.

Please know that the safety and well-being of our students and staff remain our highest priority at RRGSD. 

We are committed to maintaining open lines of communication and ensuring we are vigilant in our efforts to provide a safe learning environment. 

We also reaffirm our dedication to fostering kindness, empathy, and support within our school community. 

Our thoughts and prayers are the Apalachee High School community. As we stand in solidarity with them during this difficult time, we also reflect on how we can continue to cultivate a strong and caring community here in RRGSD.

School Traffic

Lastly, one area of concern that has arisen since school began is school traffic control during morning drop off and afternoon dismissal. 

I want to share some information about past practices and plans moving forward.

School Bus Eligibility

While I wish that every student who attends RRGSD could ride a school bus if the family desired it, North Carolina General Statute 115C-246 states that only students who live “one and one-half (1.5) miles or more from the school to which the pupil is assigned shall be eligible for school bus transportation.” 

Our school board allows me to approve hardship requests for elementary students who live between 1 mile and 1.5 miles.

Transportation Funding

The reason that RRGSD cannot provide transportation to all students comes down to funding. Our transportation funding from the state that should cover the entire school year runs out before the school year ends, so our local funds have to support approximately two of the ten months each year. Our local funds also support the bus monitors that ride each bus to ensure safety.

Traffic Queues

Every school has a unique pattern for families dropping off and picking up their children. 

Our newest school (Manning Elementary) has the longest queue, and we are thankful for its length, so Park Avenue tends not to back up. 

The distance at Chaloner Middle and Belmont Elementary is much shorter, which increases the possibility of families waiting on Virginia Avenue and Bolling Road. 

The time it takes to get through the queue decreases after the first days of school as all of us — students, families, and staff — get used to the new routines. 

We appreciate everyone’s patience as we all learn, and honestly, we would rather go slow first to ensure our most important priority: our children’s safety.

Traffic Control

Ensuring our children are safe as they arrive and leave school is a shared responsibility, and I am thankful for strong partnerships forged over the many years among our school district, city, and police department.

As many of you know, since school started this year, we have received numerous concerns about the lack of traffic control during either morning or afternoon times. 

The Roanoke Rapids Police Department has had difficulty in consistently finding off-duty officers willing to cover schools traffic assignments. 

We have reached out to RRPD each day if assistance was needed, and we are grateful to the officers who have responded in filling these very important positions. 

We are also thankful for the retired police officers who have jumped in to assist if positions were unfilled.

Our preference is to have traffic control covered by police officers because they are authority figures, wear appropriate gear for visibility, and have training in traffic control. 

They are experienced in handling difficult situations that sometimes arise. 

Both their presence and their bright flashing police car lights provide extra security for our students as they cross the streets on their way home.

We have been in communication with Chief Shane Guyant and City Manager Kelly Traynham since last spring to work to address the issue of staffing police officers to direct traffic at our schools. 

At their recommendation, we agreed to participate in a traffic study conducted by the North Carolina Department of Transportation’s Traffic Management Unit (Municipal and School Transportation Assistance) at Belmont and Chaloner. 

We are still awaiting final reports, but preliminary discussion indicates that there will be a need for traffic control at our schools.

We are committed to continuing our collaboration with Chief Guyant, City Manager Traynham, and the City Council to identify a solution to resolve this important safety issue. 

In the meantime, we appreciate all of our community’s support and patience as we all work together to keep our children safe. Together we succeed!