(August 21, 2008)—A state district judge issued a temporary restraining order Thursday afternoon that will keep the doors of Waco’s low performing G. L. Wiley Middle School open for at least 14 more days.
Classes will begin Monday at the school, but it will be up to the court to decide whether the students who start the new school year at G. L. Wiley will finish it there.
A hearing on an injunction against the school district is scheduled for 9 a.m. Tuesday.
Meanwhile the Waco School Board plans to meet Monday to vote again on the closure, evidently in hopes of erasing any questions about the legality of the original vote, which a lawsuit filed Wednesday challenges.
The board voted 4 to 3 on Aug. 7 to close the school immediately and to transfer students to other schools after G. L. Wiley was rated academically unacceptable for a fifth straight year.
Texas Education Agency Commissioner Robert Scott had already given the school a one-year waiver to improve, but board members who supported closure cited the school’s declining enrollment and poor test performance.
On Wednesday, supporters of the school filed the suit in Waco’s 170th District Court seeking to block the district from closing the school.
Gary Bledsoe, a civil rights attorney working with the group said the lawsuit is, "seeking to maintain the status quo so the good people who live in the Wiley neighborhood can go to school."
Read Lawsuit Affidavit
The suit alleges the Waco ISD violated a number of laws including the Texas Open Meetings Act in deciding the fate of the school.
Bledsoe says the suit also alleges discrimination, and arbitrary and due process violations.
A hearing will be held next week on whether to grant a permanent injunction against the district.
The suit was filed on the same day the school district was holding open house at all middle schools to give parents generally and the parents of G. L. Wiley students in particular a chance to meet teachers and learn about the schools before classes begin.
The school board decided students from Wiley should be transferred proportionately to Carver Academy, Brazos Middle School and Cesar Chavez PDS Middle School, but parents may seek transfers.
Monday is the first day of the new school year in the Waco ISD.
This is part of the statement issued on Waco ISD's website:
"Waco ISD will have sufficient faculty, staff, administrators, materials, equipment, resources and other support that are necessary for school to begin at G.L. Wiley Middle School on August 25, 2008.
In discussing the scope of the temporary restraining order, Judge Meyer made it clear that Wiley students who have registered, been placed or transferred to other Waco ISD middle schools may remain at their new school and are not required to return to Wiley.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
My child was planning to attend Wiley prior to board action on August 7, 2008. Can he/she return to the school?
Yes. G.L. Wiley Middle School will be open for school on August 25, 2008.
Will all of the teachers previously assigned to Wiley prior to board action on August 7, 2008 return to the school?
Not necessarily. The number of teachers returning to Wiley will be determined by the number of students who choose to return to the campus.
With the court's ruling coming just four days prior to the start of school, what will the first day be like at G.L. Wiley?
Upon arriving at school, students should report to the auditorium where staff will be available to develop their class schedules. Administrators, teachers and support staff will work hard to make sure the needs of all students are addressed.
Will the school be open for the entire 2008-2009 school year?
The answer to this question is not yet known pending the outcome of the temporary injunction hearing and any action that might be taken by the Waco ISD Board of Trustees.
If Wiley does not remain open for the entire 2008-2009 school year, where will my child attend school?
Should Wiley not remain open for the entire school year, your child will return to the campus to which he/she was placed prior to the temporary restraining order.
My child was already reassigned to and looking forward to attending another Waco ISD middle school. May he/she stay there?
Yes.
Will all of the teachers previously assigned to Wiley prior to board action on August 7, 2008 return to that school?
Not necessarily. The number of teachers returning to Wiley will be determined by the number of students who choose to return to the campus.
Who will be the principal at Wiley?
Kermit Ward will return as principal at Wiley.
Will there be enough teachers, desks, computers, books, equipment and support staff at Wiley to start school?
Yes
What extra-curricular activities will be offered at Wiley?
Extra-curricular activities will be offered based on student interest.
If my child chooses to attend Wiley, will he/she be provided transportation?
Transportation will be provided for students who live two or more miles from their school or would be subject to hazardous traffic conditions if they walked to school.
(Board Policy CNA Local)
If my child chooses to attend the middle school at which he/she was placed after August 7, 2008, will he/she be provided transportation?
Transportation will be provided for students who live two or more miles from their school or would be subject to hazardous traffic conditions if they walked to school.
(Board Policy CNA Local)
If I requested and my child was granted a transfer to a middle school other than his/her assigned middle school campus, will he/she be provided transportation?
Student transportation is not provided if a parent-requested transfer is granted.
(Board Policy FDA Local)"
Waco ISD Web Site
(Dallas Cook contributed to this story)
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