CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In less than two weeks, more than 150,000 will fill Charlotte-Mecklenburg classrooms, and district leaders said they’re ready.
[SPECIAL SECTION: Back to School]
“I am extremely excited to mention that we will have a driver on each bus,” executive director of CMS transportation department Janet Thomas said.
Administrators and school board members cheered over the news Wednesday, remembering the problems Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools faced in 2016 when the school year started with a major shortage.
“It is so nice to have good news, this time last year I stood here and said we were down 100, 97.5,” Thomas said.
District officials said they still need 35 drivers but there is enough to have lead drivers to staff each bus.
CMS is also kicking off the year with fewer teacher vacancies.
The district was down 114 teachers just before the 2016-2017 school year, but this year the number of vacancies is at 74.
Leaders in both departments said they benefited from new marketing techniques, which included billboards and raises. But they said they’re still hiring and need elementary school teachers the most.
“The reality is, teaching is a tougher profession than its ever been before,” CMS superintendent Dr. Clayton Wilcox said.
In his first year as superintendent, Wilcox said among many goals is bringing up good teachers through a partnership with UNC Charlotte, improving academics and the relationship between schools and their communities.
“We are really excited about what this year brings,” Wilcox said.
Wilcox also announced that the school district will ask voters for a $922 million bond package in November.
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