Schools in Wake County

There are many superb and diverse forms of public and nonpublic education in Wake County. The options for families and their children vary from public (traditional, year-round, magnet & charter) to private to home schooling.

For public school enrollment, Wake County Public Schools creates geographic areas called "nodes". These nodes can encompass any number of houses with various boundaries. For example, one side of the street in a neighborhood may be assigned to one node, and the other side of the street may be assigned to a different node. Each node is assigned a base school for elementary, middle and high school. Thus for every address, base school assignments are made based on the node that the address is in. Find out the base school assignments for any address here.

Each year, during an application period (normally February), parents have the option of applying for magnet programs or a calendar option school in their area. If a student is placed in a magnet or calendar option school, that school becomes the assigned school for that student.

In the way of nonpublic education, parents in Wake County have the option of private schooling or home schooling. There is a vast selection of private schools (religious and non religious) spread throughout the Triangle. Homeschooling is another popular option, and there are many resources available to students and parents, some of which can be located through spice line, a local yahoo support and informational group. Being part of the home schooling community requires notification to the Department of Non-Public Education and yearly standardized testing. Contact local churches, “The Homeschool Gathering Place” store and community centers for events and co-ops as well.

Schools in the Wake County Public School System primarily follow a traditional calendar or a year-round calendar.

The traditional-school calendar allows for the 180-day calendar with one long summer break. A year-round school is simply a rescheduling of the standard 180-day school calendar to keep the learning process continuous and to maximize the use of school facilities. Students have periodic, short breaks rather than one long summer break.

The year-round calendar simply spreads the 180 school days throughout the entire year. Students attending a year-round school are in school for 45 days and then have a 15-day break. Year-round students have the same holidays as students on the traditional calendar. Under the year-round plan the school calendar is divided into four nine-week quarters. Each quarter is separated by a three-week break. Students, therefore, are in school nine weeks, off three weeks, etc.

Magnet schools follow either a traditional or modified year round calendar. They use the standard Wake County course study coupled with innovative approaches to learning. Magnets work to spark the imagination of students and offer additional electives and themed studies that typically would not be offered in base schools. The network of magnet schools include a choice of instructional programs such as Creative Arts and Sciences, Gifted and Talented, International Studies, Active Learning & Technology, International Baccalaureate, Center For Spanish Language/IBPYP, Community Model, Leadership, Montessori, Museums, University Connections, Center For Leadership & Technology and Year-Round.

Charter schools are similar to public schools in that there is no charge or tuition for enrollment. Each school is supported by public tax dollars and follows the same teacher certification and testing standards as Wake County schools. Every school has there own teaching and learning philosophy and vary in grade offerings. Parents must contact each individual school to see if they have openings.

Listed below are local public school systems, followed by colleges and universities in our area. You can also search schools Nationwide by clicking here.

Public School Systems In Central North Carolina

Local Colleges & Universities

NC State University
NC Central University
Meredith College 
William Peace University
Shaw University 
St. Augustine's College 
Wake Technical Community College 
ECPI College of Technology 
Duke University 
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
Wake Forest University
Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
Elon University
East Carolina University
Campbell University

Public And Private Education Resources

N.C. Public Schools (information on public, federal & charter schools)
Web Site: www.ncpublicschools.org
N.C. Department of Non Public Education (information on homeschooling & private schools)
Web Site: www.ncdnpe.org
N.C. Association Independant Schools
Web Site: www.ncais.org
N.C. Christian School Association
Web Site: www.nccsa.org
GreatSchools.net (objective source of school information provided by a nonprofit company)
Web Site: www.greatschools.net
Wake County Public School System
Web Site: http://www.wcpss.net

Homeschooling Resources

Homeschooling in Wake County is a popular schooling option, with many programs and support groups available for parents to choose from. Visit here for more info!

Preschool Resources

Looking for just the right Preschool for your child? Click Here for programs offered by Wake County Public Schools.