Orange County NC Website
ADDITIONAL NOTE: Charter and private schools are not included as part of the SAPFO Annual <br />Report and, as a result, their membership and capacity numbers are not monitored or included <br />in future projections. SAPFO projections are used for projecting only public school capacity <br />needs. However, the SAPFO Technical Advisory Committee does monitor charter and private <br />schools and their effect on student enrollment in both school districts. Charter and private <br />schools numbers are not collected for SAPFO purposes; however, impacts due to enrollment at <br />these schools are accounted for in SAPFO process with the annual reporting of student <br />membership and growth rates contained in the 10-year student projections. <br /> <br />BACKGROUND: <br />1. Annual Report <br />Each year, since 2004, the SAPFOTAC Report is updated to reflect actual changing <br />conditions of student membership and school capacity. This information is analyzed and <br />used to project future school construction needs based on adopted level of service <br />standards. There are two steps to the full report. The first part (Student Membership and <br />Capacity) is certified in the fall and then this full report, in the following spring, is to keep <br />the SAPFO system calibrated. At the December 12, 2017 Board of County <br />Commissioners meeting, the Board approved the November 15, 2017 actual membership <br />and capacity numbers (i.e. first part) for both Orange County Schools (OCS) and Chapel <br />Hill-Carrboro City Schools (CHCCS). A draft of the full annual SAPFOTAC Report is <br />complete and has been reviewed by the SAPFOTAC members. <br /> <br />2. SAPFOTAC <br />The SAPFOTAC, comprised of representatives of both school systems, the Planning <br />Directors of the County and Towns, and County Finance staff, is tasked to produce an <br />annual report for the governing boards of each SAPFO partner outlining changes in <br />actual membership, capacity, student projections, and their collective impacts on the <br />Capital Investment Plan (CIP) and the future issuance of Certificates of Adequate Public <br />Schools (CAPS). Orange County’s Planning Staff compiles the report, holds a meeting <br />discussing the various aspects, and then prepares a draft report, which is reviewed by <br />the SAPFO Technical Advisory Committee. <br /> <br />3. Membership Data <br />CHCCS total increased from the previous year: 124 students <br />(45) Elementary School <br />4 Middle School <br />165 High School <br />OCS total decreased from the previous year: 105 students <br />(110) Elementary School <br />6 Middle School <br />(1) High School <br />( ) denotes decrease <br /> <br />4. Capacity Data <br />The State of North Carolina passed legislation in 2017 resulting in a decrease in class <br />size averages from 1:21 to 1:20 for kindergarten to third grade for the 2017-2018 school <br />year. As a result, both school districts experienced a decrease in capacity at the <br />elementary school level this school year. Changes in class size averages resulted in a <br />loss of 165 seats for CHCCS and 333 seats for OCS. OCS experienced a greater loss in <br />capacity due to the adjusting of average class sizes this school year in order to prepare <br />2