Wake County Public School System, North Carolina

Wake County Public School System
	Wake County, North Carolina
District details
	Superintendent: Cathy Moore
	# of school board members: 9
	Website: Link

The Wake County Public School System is a school district in North Carolina.

Click on the links below to learn more about the school district's...

Superintendent
School board
Elections
Budget
Teacher salaries
Academic performance
Student enrollment
Demographics
Contact information

Superintendent[edit]

This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Please contact us with any updates.

Cathy Moore is the superintendent of the Wake County Public School System. Moore was appointed superintendent in May 2018. Moore's previous career experience includes working as the deputy superintendent for academic advancement, high school principal, and high school teacher.^[1]

School board elections[edit]

The Wake County Public School System Board of Education consists of nine members elected to two-year terms. Members are elected by district.^[2]

Office	Name	Date assumed office
Wake County Schools District 1	Heather Scott	2018
Wake County Schools District 2	Monika Johnson-Hostler	2013
Wake County Schools District 3	Roxie Cash	2016
Wake County Schools District 4	Keith Sutton	2009
Wake County Schools District 5	Jim Martin	2011
Wake County Schools District 6	Christine Kushner	2011
Wake County Schools District 7	Chris Heagarty	2018
Wake County Schools District 8	Lindsay Mahaffey	2016
Wake County Schools District 9	Karen Carter	December 7, 2020

This officeholder information was last updated on January 26, 2022. Please contact us with any updates.

Election dates[edit]

See also: Wake County Public School System elections in 2018 & 2020

Members of the Wake County Public School System Board of Education are elected to two-year terms. Elections are held every two years in November.

A general election was scheduled for November 3, 2020.

Public participation in board meetings[edit]

The Wake County School Board maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:^[3]

“

Wake County Board of Education meetings are conducted for the purpose of carrying on the official business of the school system. The public is cordially invited to attend Board meetings to observe the Board as it conducts its official business.

Public Comment

A part of each regularly scheduled Board meeting will be set aside for citizens to address the Board through public comment. A sign-up sheet will be available for anyone to indicate their desire to address the Board. The following guidelines shall apply to the public comment period:
1. The Board regularly sets aside thirty minutes for public comment. Unless the Board extends this time, any speakers remaining at the end of the thirty-minute period may be recognized at the conclusion of the Board's business agenda. Each speaker will be allotted three minutes.
2. Citizens who sign up to address the Board will be called upon in priority order, first for items on the agenda and then for items not on the agenda. This process will be utilized when signing up online or on-site.
3. The Board may provide for the designation of spokesperson for groups of persons supporting or opposing the same position.
4. The Board may provide for the selection of delegates from groups of persons supporting or opposing the same positions when the number of persons wishing to attend the hearing exceeds the capacity of the meeting room.
5. If a speaker chooses not to speak or is not present at the time he or she is called, the Chair will move to the next speaker on the list.
6. The Board will establish a method for keeping track of the time. Speakers shall stay within the time limit.
7. The individual listed on the sign-up sheet must be the individual addressing the Board of Education.
8. Speakers may not give their time to another speaker or trade their time slot with another speaker.
9. Speakers are welcome to offer comments or criticism directed at substantive ideas, actions, or procedures of the Board and individual Board members. In the interest of maintaining civility and decorum, however, speakers are encouraged to refrain from personal attacks and insults directed at the Board, individual Board members, staff, or members of the general public.
10. The laws and policies of North Carolina provide that issues or concerns involving individual personnel matters are confidential, and therefore, not appropriate for public comment settings. Concerns related to personnel issues may be addressed through applicable WCPSS personnel, the grievance policy, or other applicable policies.
11. Speakers, including students, may discuss issues and matters of general concern, but should refrain from discussing confidential student information. Concerns related to confidential student matters may be addressed through applicable WCPSS personnel, the grievance policy or other applicable policies.
12. No sign shall encroach upon or obstruct the view of others.
13. Board members will not respond to individuals who address the Board except to request clarification of points made by the presenter.
14. Persons who willfully interrupt, disrupt, or cause disturbances at an official meeting may be directed to leave by the presiding officer. Members of the audience should show respect for the speakers by refraining from loud comments or other disruptions. Disruptions by any person or persons of a public meeting will be subject to action in accordance with G.S. 143-318.17.^[4]

”

Budget[edit]

From 1993 to 2013, the Wake County Public School System had an average of $957,744,667 in revenue and $944,931,619 in expenditures, according to the United States Census Bureau's survey of school system finances. The district had a yearly average of $902,342,286 in outstanding debt. The district retired $152,402,000 of its debt and issued $193,805,095 in new debt each year on average.^[5]

Revenue[edit]

The table below separates the district's revenue into the three sources identified by the agency: local, state, and federal.

Revenue by Source
Fiscal Year	Local		State		Federal		Revenue Total
Fiscal Year	Total	% of Revenue	Total	% of Revenue	Total	% of Revenue	Revenue Total

Click [show] on the right to display the revenue data for prior years.
1993	$249,284,000	53.94%	$197,490,000	42.73%	$15,397,000	3.33%	$462,171,000
1994	$157,621,000	40.28%	$214,756,000	54.89%	$18,888,000	4.83%	$391,265,000
1995	$222,667,000	46.44%	$239,411,000	49.93%	$17,395,000	3.63%	$479,473,000
1996	$209,438,000	43.30%	$256,096,000	52.95%	$18,119,000	3.75%	$483,653,000
1997	$221,738,000	42.52%	$280,625,000	53.81%	$19,155,000	3.67%	$521,518,000
1998	$200,819,000	37.24%	$315,799,000	58.56%	$22,624,000	4.20%	$539,242,000
1999	$237,112,000	37.06%	$378,538,000	59.17%	$24,088,000	3.77%	$639,738,000
2000	$249,819,000	35.26%	$429,429,000	60.61%	$29,271,000	4.13%	$708,519,000
2001	$286,616,000	36.67%	$460,095,000	58.87%	$34,846,000	4.46%	$781,557,000
2002	$314,439,000	39.73%	$434,472,000	54.89%	$42,578,000	5.38%	$791,489,000
2003	$363,366,000	42.66%	$443,589,000	52.08%	$44,803,000	5.26%	$851,758,000
2004	$451,998,000	46.56%	$464,963,000	47.89%	$53,908,000	5.55%	$970,869,000
2005	$554,853,000	49.68%	$501,780,000	44.93%	$60,230,000	5.39%	$1,116,863,000
2006	$433,172,000	41.14%	$552,264,000	52.45%	$67,553,000	6.42%	$1,052,989,000
2007	$759,447,000	52.47%	$622,879,000	43.03%	$65,144,000	4.50%	$1,447,470,000
2008	$504,730,000	39.90%	$691,684,000	54.68%	$68,546,000	5.42%	$1,264,960,000
2009	$1,139,434,000	58.58%	$728,334,000	37.44%	$77,473,000	3.98%	$1,945,241,000

2010	$1,275,600,000	61.87%	$664,034,000	32.21%	$122,009,000	5.92%	$2,061,643,000
2011	$359,546,000	30.38%	$678,165,000	57.31%	$145,597,000	12.30%	$1,183,308,000
2012	$357,902,000	29.76%	$709,165,000	58.96%	$135,729,000	11.28%	$1,202,796,000
2013	$359,083,000	29.53%	$759,712,000	62.47%	$97,321,000	8.00%	$1,216,116,000
Avg.	$424,223,048	42.62%	$477,299,048	51.90%	$56,222,571	5.48%	$957,744,667

Expenditures[edit]

The table below separates the district's expenditures into five categories identified by the agency:

Instruction: operation expenditures, state payments on behalf of the district for instruction and benefits, and retirement system transfers
Support Services: support services, food services, and retirement system transfers for support service staff
Capital Spending: capital outlay expenditures (i.e., construction, land or facilities purchases, and equipment purchases)
Debt & Gov. Payments: payments to state and local governments and interest on school system debt
Other: all other non-K-12 programs, except food services

Expenditures by Category
Fiscal Year	Instruction		Support Services		Capital Spending		Debt & Gov. Payments		Other		Budget Total
Fiscal Year	Total	% of Budget	Total	% of Budget	Total	% of Budget	Total	% of Budget	Total	% of Budget	Budget Total

Click [show] on the right to display the expenditure data for prior years.
1993	$192,347,000	53.92%	$119,697,000	33.55%	$30,301,000	8.49%	$10,973,000	3.08%	$3,429,000	0.96%	$356,747,000
1994	$206,158,000	52.56%	$125,524,000	32.00%	$44,739,000	11.41%	$11,454,000	2.92%	$4,376,000	1.12%	$392,251,000
1995	$221,495,000	48.64%	$136,068,000	29.88%	$76,217,000	16.74%	$16,989,000	3.73%	$4,574,000	1.00%	$455,343,000
1996	$239,377,000	48.41%	$140,234,000	28.36%	$94,142,000	19.04%	$15,849,000	3.21%	$4,893,000	0.99%	$494,495,000
1997	$257,814,000	45.39%	$153,340,000	26.99%	$129,740,000	22.84%	$21,218,000	3.74%	$5,935,000	1.04%	$568,047,000
1998	$293,935,000	45.41%	$165,657,000	25.60%	$154,513,000	23.87%	$26,327,000	4.07%	$6,792,000	1.05%	$647,224,000
1999	$323,741,000	43.00%	$192,219,000	25.53%	$195,540,000	25.97%	$34,364,000	4.56%	$7,098,000	0.94%	$752,962,000
2000	$360,469,000	46.22%	$212,593,000	27.26%	$167,405,000	21.46%	$32,157,000	4.12%	$7,276,000	0.93%	$779,900,000
2001	$399,412,000	49.95%	$243,377,000	30.44%	$118,034,000	14.76%	$31,509,000	3.94%	$7,271,000	0.91%	$799,603,000
2002	$416,198,000	48.02%	$258,754,000	29.85%	$145,197,000	16.75%	$38,987,000	4.50%	$7,659,000	0.88%	$866,795,000
2003	$434,889,000	46.63%	$266,939,000	28.62%	$176,360,000	18.91%	$47,719,000	5.12%	$6,759,000	0.72%	$932,666,000
2004	$450,064,000	46.85%	$287,441,000	29.92%	$161,503,000	16.81%	$56,097,000	5.84%	$5,471,000	0.57%	$960,576,000
2005	$504,490,000	49.51%	$314,637,000	30.88%	$127,519,000	12.51%	$66,990,000	6.57%	$5,374,000	0.53%	$1,019,010,000
2006	$539,611,000	46.00%	$344,105,000	29.33%	$219,641,000	18.72%	$62,745,000	5.35%	$7,077,000	0.60%	$1,173,179,000
2007	$617,577,000	48.93%	$372,514,000	29.52%	$201,660,000	15.98%	$63,927,000	5.07%	$6,438,000	0.51%	$1,262,116,000
2008	$673,079,000	46.50%	$366,732,000	25.34%	$311,142,000	21.49%	$89,792,000	6.20%	$6,773,000	0.47%	$1,447,518,000
2009	$736,403,000	46.12%	$400,072,000	25.06%	$332,909,000	20.85%	$114,570,000	7.18%	$12,675,000	0.79%	$1,596,629,000

2010	$700,669,000	51.08%	$385,448,000	28.10%	$147,287,000	10.74%	$125,690,000	9.16%	$12,580,000	0.92%	$1,371,674,000
2011	$725,438,000	54.26%	$386,700,000	28.92%	$106,107,000	7.94%	$104,056,000	7.78%	$14,663,000	1.10%	$1,336,964,000
2012	$735,593,000	54.35%	$392,728,000	29.02%	$108,167,000	7.99%	$104,238,000	7.70%	$12,704,000	0.94%	$1,353,430,000
2013	$760,897,000	59.61%	$406,103,000	31.82%	$97,061,000	7.60%	$0	0.00%	$12,374,000	0.97%	$1,276,435,000
Avg.	$466,174,095	49.11%	$270,042,000	28.86%	$149,770,667	16.23%	$51,221,476	4.94%	$7,723,381	0.85%	$944,931,619

Debt

The table below shows the amount of debt retired, issued, and outstanding in the district for each year.

Debt
Fiscal Year	Retired	Issued	Outstanding

Click [show] on the right to display the debt data for prior years.
1993	$103,129,000	$110,302,000	$170,952,000
1994	$50,852,000	$141,275,000	$261,375,000
1995	$17,538,000	$0	$243,837,000
1996	$17,414,000	$100,000,000	$326,423,000
1997	$21,393,000	$100,000,000	$405,030,000
1998	$26,359,000	$150,000,000	$528,670,000
1999	$33,952,000	$0	$494,718,000
2000	$33,965,000	$24,000,000	$484,753,000
2001	$34,950,000	$150,000,000	$599,803,000
2002	$40,658,000	$175,000,000	$734,144,000
2003	$72,003,000	$201,767,000	$863,908,000
2004	$132,995,000	$299,862,000	$1,029,899,000
2005	$209,266,000	$143,968,000	$965,314,000
2006	$61,597,000	$79,780,000	$983,497,000
2007	$377,317,000	$775,240,000	$1,381,421,000
2008	$63,354,000	$0	$1,318,066,000
2009	$661,257,000	$832,338,000	$1,933,696,000

2010	$789,168,000	$456,330,000	$1,600,857,000
2011	$104,002,000	$106,800,000	$1,603,655,000
2012	$234,192,000	$172,080,000	$1,541,543,000
2013	$115,081,000	$51,165,000	$1,477,627,000
Avg.	$152,402,000	$193,805,095	$902,342,286

Teacher salaries[edit]

The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.

Year	Minimum	Maximum
2020-2021^[6]	$41,274.60	$78,774.10

Academic performance[edit]

Proficiency assessments[edit]

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.^[7]

Mathematics[edit]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:^[8]

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2018-2019	50	82	24	29	40-44	51	66
2017-2018	50	77	25	31	40-44	50	64
2016-2017	57	86	29	36	50-54	57	74
2015-2016	58	86	31	38	45-49	58	74
2014-2015	55	85	28	36	40-44	57	71
2013-2014	54	85	26	35	40-44	55	70
2012-2013	54	84	25	35	40-44	53	70
2011-2012	87	96	72	79	85-89	89	95
2010-2011	85	95	69	78	81	87	95

Reading/language arts[edit]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:^[8]

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2018-2019	56	78	33	32	50-54	59	73
2017-2018	56	77	33	33	45-49	61	73
2016-2017	57	79	33	34	45-49	60	73
2015-2016	58	79	34	35	45-49	62	74
2014-2015	57	78	33	34	40-44	59	73
2013-2014	57	78	33	34	45-49	60	73
2012-2013	55	77	31	34	35-39	58	72
2011-2012	79	91	62	63	70-74	83	91
2010-2011	76	89	57	59	65	80	89

Graduation rates[edit]

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:^[8]^[9]

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2017-2018	89	97	84	77	80-89	89	95
2016-2017	89	97	83	76	80-89	90	94
2015-2016	87	95	81	74	70-79	87	93
2014-2015	86	93	79	74	70-79	88	93
2013-2014	83	92	74	68	60-64	84	91
2012-2013	81	92	69	66	70-79	82	91
2011-2012	81	88	70	65	70-79	81	90
2010-2011	81	91	68	65	80-89	80	91

Student enrollment[edit]

Year^[10]	Enrollment	Year-to-year change (%)
2018-2019	161,784	0.2
2017-2018	161,417	1.0
2016-2017	159,881	1.5
2015-2016	157,584	1.1
2014-2015	155,820	0.8
2013-2014	154,606	2.8
2012-2013	150,327	1.5
2011-2012	148,120	2.7
2010-2011	144,156	2.6
2009-2010	140,506	2.0
2008-2009	137,706	2.5
2007-2008	134,401	4.4
2006-2007	128,748	6.4
2005-2006	120,996	5.6
2004-2005	114,568	4.7
2003-2004	109,424	4.4
2002-2003	104,836	3.0
2001-2002	101,756	2.8
2000-2001	98,950	3.9
1999-2000	95,248	3.2
1998-1999	92,256	2.8
1997-1998	89,773	4.7
1996-1997	85,735	5.3
1995-1996	81,438	5.8
1994-1995	76,947	5.0
1993-1994	73,263	4.5
1992-1993	70,118	4.8
1991-1992	66,931	4.1
1990-1991	64,266	2.9
1989-1990	62,474	2.3
1988-1989	61,065	2.3
1987-1988	59,687	2.6
1986-1987	58,202	-

About the district[edit]

Wake County Public School System is located in Wake County, North Carolina.

Wake County Public School System is located in Wake County, North Carolina. It is classified as a large suburban school district by the National Center for Education Statistics. The district served 161,784 students during the 2018-2019 school year and comprised 187 schools.^[11]

During the 2018-2019 school year, 32.8% of the district's students were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, 8.7% were English language learners, and 12.4% of students had an Individual Education Plan (IEP).^[12]

Racial Demographics, 2018-2019
Race	Wake County Public School System (%)	North Carolina K-12 students (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native	0.3	1.2
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander	9.3	3.5
Black	22.6	25.1
Hispanic	18.1	18.0
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	0.1	0.1
Two or More Races	3.8	4.5
White	45.8	47.6

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Noteworthy events[edit]

2013: Election year change[edit]

In July 2013, the North Carolina state legislature passed a measure to move school board elections from odd-numbered years to November of even-numbered years, to become effective in 2016. In order to accommodate this change, members elected in 2011 extended their terms from the normal four years to five years. Members elected in 2013 served a three-year term until 2016.^[13] Starting in 2016, members began serving two-year terms.^[14]

2013: School bond[edit]

In October 2013, residents of Wake County approved an $810 million construction bond earmarked for school construction projects and technological improvements.^[15] County officials said that the bond was needed to keep up with growing student enrollment in the Wake County Public School System.^[16]

Contact information[edit]

Wake County Public School System
5625 Dillard Dr.
Cary, NC 27518
Phone: 919-431-7400

External links[edit]

Footnotes[edit]

↑ Wake County Public School System, "The Office of the Superintendent," accessed May 3, 2021
↑ Wake County Public School System, "Wake County Board of Education," accessed May 3, 2021
↑ Wake County Public School System, "Policy Code: 2310 Public Participation at Board Meetings," adopted November 3, 2015
↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
↑ United States Census Bureau, "Public School System Finances: Historical Data," accessed December 1, 2015
↑ Wake County Public School System ,"Teachers/Certified Staff Salary Schedules 2020-2021," accessed May 3, 2021
↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
↑ ^8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 To protect student privacy, percentages were reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five (5) or fewer students were included in a data set, the data was replaced by "PS."
↑ U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "Four-Year Adjusted-Cohort Graduation Rates - School Year 2017-18 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ElSi tableGenerator," accessed March 8, 2021
↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Search for Public School Districts," accessed March 8, 2021
↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey," accessed March 8, 2021
↑ Wake County Public School System, "Policy Series 1000: Board of Education," archived August 18, 2013
↑ WRAL.com, "Wake lawmakers seek to undo changes to commissioner, school board elections," March 28, 2019
↑ The News & Observer, "Renovations vs. new schools: What's in Wake's bond plan?," September 21, 2013
↑ WRAL, "Wake voters approve $810M school construction bond," October 8, 2013

[1] Wake County Public School System, "The Office of the Superintendent," accessed May 3, 2021

[boe-2] Wake County Public School System, "Wake County Board of Education," accessed May 3, 2021

[pp-3] Wake County Public School System, "Policy Code: 2310 Public Participation at Board Meetings," adopted November 3, 2015

[quotedisclaimer-4] Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[5] United States Census Bureau, "Public School System Finances: Historical Data," accessed December 1, 2015

[6] Wake County Public School System ,"Teachers/Certified Staff Salary Schedules 2020-2021," accessed May 3, 2021

[7] U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021

[DataNote-8] 8.0 ^8.1 ^8.2 To protect student privacy, percentages were reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five (5) or fewer students were included in a data set, the data was replaced by "PS."

[9] U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "Four-Year Adjusted-Cohort Graduation Rates - School Year 2017-18 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021

[10] National Center for Education Statistics, "ElSi tableGenerator," accessed March 8, 2021

[ElsiCin-11] National Center for Education Statistics, "Search for Public School Districts," accessed March 8, 2021

[12] National Center for Education Statistics, "Public Elementary/Secondary School Universe Survey," accessed March 8, 2021

[13] Wake County Public School System, "Policy Series 1000: Board of Education," archived August 18, 2013

[14] WRAL.com, "Wake lawmakers seek to undo changes to commissioner, school board elections," March 28, 2019

[15] The News & Observer, "Renovations vs. new schools: What's in Wake's bond plan?," September 21, 2013

[bond-16] WRAL, "Wake voters approve $810M school construction bond," October 8, 2013

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