It's back-to-school for students and staff on traditional calendar across North Carolina
CARY, N.C. (WTVD) -- Students across Cumberland, Durham and Wake counties are preparing to return to the classroom Monday, marking the end of summer break and the start of a new school year.
On Sunday, families spent their final day of summer enjoying local activities while also making last-minute preparations for the first day of school. After a summer filled with travel and activities, some students were reluctant to see the break come to an end.
"Went to Florida, miami." "Amazing, what did you do? Went to the statue of liberty, New York."
Others were less enthusiastic about returning to class. "Cause I don't want to go!" "I don't want summer to end." Among those getting ready for the new school year was Jayla, whose family operates the Three Little Lemons lemonade truck.
The young entrepreneur is set to begin fifth grade Monday. Her mother, Kim, said preparation is key to a successful start.
"Figure out what your routine is, Set yourself up the night before, make sure you have everything We need to make a stop at Wal-Mart when we leave here," Kim said.
As students and parents prepare for the first day of school, district leaders are also focused on key issues facing education.
In Wake County, Superintendent Dr. Robert Taylor said the district is carefully considering how artificial intelligence will affect learning and how policies should address the technology.
"Cautiously optimistic that I've cautioned our board about is developing a policy that purports to police something that we may not fully understand. And so we are being very careful about how we draft the policy, how it protects children but how it also exposes them to a technology that we know will be a part of the future. I remind people, and I'm an old guy of the calculator and back in the seventies they said it was going to absolutely destroy math. And that did not happen," Taylor said.
In Durham, Superintendent Dr. Anthony Lewis said teacher retention remains a major focus amid concerns about staffing and funding.
"And I think that's where we have been focusing our efforts more on the past couple of years is really around retention. And I often say retention is the new recruitment. So the more that we are providing support to our teachers that are already in our classrooms and paying close attention to our beginning teachers there's also some outside pressures that we have no control over that are impacting our ability to invest in our staff," Lewis said.
For many families, however, the start of school is less about policy and more about milestones and memories.
"Time is just flying by," Kim said.
The return to school Monday marks the beginning of a new academic year for students across the region, including this year's kindergarten class, whose members are expected to graduate with the high school Class of 2039.
