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WS/FCS to hold hearing on closure of The Special Children's School

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Education building.
WFDD File photo
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools Education building

Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools is holding a public hearing Tuesday evening to determine the future of two schools that serve students with significant developmental needs.

The district currently leases the spaces for The Special Children’s School and The Children’s Center. But officials are considering relocating students from the first site to a district-owned building to save money.

The board of education recommended moving Pre-K students at The Special Children’s School to Middle Fork Elementary. The older kids would transition to The Children’s Center, which would remain at the current facility under a new long-term lease.

But district documents show families expressed strong opposition to the plan, citing concerns about transportation to the new school, the lack of a specialized environment and splitting students up.

The superintendent will be recommending instead that all students at The Special Children’s School move to Ward Elementary, which is closer and would keep the kids together.

The school board will listen to feedback at the public hearing before voting on a plan.

Amy Diaz began covering education in North Carolina’s Piedmont region and High Country for WFDD in partnership with Report For America in 2022. Before entering the world of public radio, she worked as a local government reporter in Flint, Mich. where she was named the 2021 Rookie Writer of the Year by the Michigan Press Association. Diaz is originally from Florida, where she interned at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune and freelanced for the Tampa Bay Times. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of South Florida, but truly got her start in the field in elementary school writing scripts for the morning news. You can follow her on Twitter at @amydiaze.