Tuition issue raises

new debate among

Blowing Rock residents
By Caroline Monday
cmonday@mountaintimes.com

The prospect of tuition for out-of-county students attending Watauga County schools has been the topic of much debate in the past few months.

The issue of tuition came to the attention of the board of education, as members worked to adjust the student reassignment policy. The board approved changes to that policy, clarify the procedures for the transfer of students within the county and to and from schools outside of Watauga.

The board is now looking at the tuition policy, which was created in 1991, but which has never been enforced. The policy states that the school system may charge tuition of students who live outside of Watauga County but wish to attend a county school.

Though this policy has been on the book for many years, a “gentleman’s agreement” between the WCS board and school systems in surrounding counties has kept it from being enforced. Though the board is still in the process of determining how to handle tuition, opinions among county residents have been mixed.

The most recent contingent of concerned citizens comes from the Blackberry area near Blowing Rock. Many children living in the Blackberry area attend Blowing Rock School. Though they technically reside in Caldwell County, many families live closer to Blowing Rock School than they do to schools in Caldwell.

Owen Tolbert is a Blowing Rock resident who spoke at the March board of education meeting about his concerns. Tolbert said his grandchildren live in Caldwell and attend Blowing Rock School.

He said a change in where they were able to attend school would cause considerable hardship to their family and to many families who live in the Blackberry community.

“Kids in that area have been going to Blowing Rock School since the ‘50s,” Tolbert said.

He was also concerned how construction on U.S. 321, which regularly causes the road to be closed, would affect parents who work in Watauga if their children should have to attend school in Caldwell County. The alternate route to Lenoir from Blowing Rock is considerably longer than the 321 route and could cause problems for parents trying to reach a sick child at school.

“I think [the board] has to look at what’s really best for the child,” Tolbert said, adding he is confident that the board will take the interests of the children into careful consideration as members make tuition decisions.

School board chairman Lowell Younce confirmed this statement and said the board has many factors to consider before enforcing a tuition. He said the board is in the process of determining how many students are coming from each of the surrounding counties and how many Watauga residents are going to schools in other counties.

“Right now, we don’t have an understanding of that,” Younce said, and he hopes to meet with representatives from the school boards of surrounding counties in an effort to reach an understanding.

Younce said some sort of agreement may be reached between Watauga and other counties, affecting how much, if any, tuition is charged. He noted that there are communities in Watauga that attend out-of-county schools without paying tuition. “Caldwell has out-of-county tuition, but they don’t charge us because we don’t charge them,” he said.

Another topic of board discussion has been concerning a possible grandfather clause, which would work to ease the transition to whatever new procedure is adopted.

Cost aside, Younce said the board is most concerned with the safety, security and educational needs of the students. At the same time, board members want to make sure they are being good stewards of county allocated funds, he said.