As a Tanglewood parent, I have seen for several years there is an overcrowding problem. I harbor no ill will toward any parent or child from out of district who wants to attend. Unlike some comments I have seen here that are just downright rude, nasty, and petty, I will offer up a solution.

If monies are theoretically allocated to schools on a per capita basis (excluding Title 1), that money needs to go with the child. Also, Tanglewood gets ZERO Title 1 dollars, which means by default that the school's budget is going to be thousands less than other schools of comparable size. It is the only school in the county that does not receive Title 1 funds. The technology at Tanglewood is horrible. There are computers in the classrooms that are so outdated the computer techs can't update them to run the newer software. My solution to that would be for the BOE to allocate more discretionary money to Tanglewood to make up for this shortage.

In other words, put the infrastructure in place to properly educate the children at Tanglewood instead of cramming the students into classrooms and telling the teacher "good luck". This hurts every student there, both in district and out of district.

Contrary to a popular misconception about Tanglewood, it is not a "rich school". Those claiming it is are just wrong. It is a school whose parents are involved and expect the best from there children. For those who wish to criticize Ms. Rich, I have seen her dedicate a tremendous amount of time in her children's classes over the last several years. She talks the talk and walks the walk. Do you?

I also meant to say that if the school in a child's district is sub-par then the parents should get involved in the school to turn it around. No one is saying Tanglewood kids are any better than any other children. The parents work hard donating their time and talents to make it a great school. If everyone followed their lead there would be no need for transfers.

Take the Teachers at Tanglewood and deploy them to some of the low performing schools.

My daughter is "Out of District" and has been at Tanglewood since her first day of Kindergarten. Every year I write my letter and pray she gets back in. We only live a few miles from the school but we are still out of district. She loves Tanglewood and I cannot imagine next year telling her that she "didn't get in." She was the top seller in her class for the PTA's largest fundraiser of the year and her father and I are largely dedicated to Tanglewood. Many of her closest friends are out of district as well and the parents are extremely involved. It's easy to be on the inside saying, "that child shouldn't be here." If my child's transfer is not approved in the upcoming years she WILL go to private school.

There are many reasons why a parent/guardian might need an out-of-distric transfer. Tanglewood is not unique in its overcrowded classrooms. Every elementary school in this county had overcrowded classrooms at the beginning of the school year, but there are options to the overcrowding, per the Department of Public Instruction. #1) The BOE can hire another teacher; or, #2) The principal is at liberty to create combination classes, wherein more than one grade level is in the same classroom. While some people feel this is a negative thing, it is not. Two of my children were in combination classes several times during their school careers, and it did not prove detrimental for either of them in any way. These are tough times, people. Teachers are teaching sometimes unruly, undisciplined students, and they get little or no support from parents. Tanglewood has long had the reputation of being the "rich, elite" school, and "everybody" wants their child to attend there. I have worked at many of our schools over the years, and I can tell you that there is good and bad at ANY school. Just because some of Tanglewood's parents are doctors, lawyers, etc., does not make it any better a school than any other school in this county. What counts is the dedication and heart of a school's teachers, not how much money the parents make. Yes, Tanglewood has some very dedicated teachers, but so do all the other schools in this county. I have worked in so-called "rich" schools, and I have worked in the poorest areas of our county, and I can tell you that some of my very best experiences in my career have been at what was referred to me once as a "little country school". The PTA President is mistaken about her class size numbers also. While DPI does put a cap of 21 students on all K-3 classrooms, it is also true that if the county average is over 21, those same classes may take up to 24 students per room. Anything over 24 must be remedied by the principal, or else that school is considered to be in "willful disregard" of DPI's directive as it relates to class size. As for her comment about the BOE "to step up to the plate and do what is right for the students of Tanglewood Elementary as it is the students who are suffering from their political plays", maybe it is time for more privileged people to step up to the plate and try to help EVERY child in the PSRC to get a better education. Why just Tanglewood? Why not all of our schools? Surely she cannot mean that Tanglewood students are "above" other schools' students and therefore deserve better. The letter written to this newspaper seems a bit discriminatory to me. Whever happened to "Children First", our motto of years gone by? Has it turned into "Privileged First"?

Let's get the opinion of the parent of a transfer student, shall we?

First of all, parents within the district need to stop acting like children and stop gossiping at school where your conversations are being heard by others! Substitute teachers, as well as teachers of Tanglewood, need to keep comments to themselves and be reminded of all the teacher assistants that were let go and would love to substitute in order to make ends meet. This entire situation makes the children feel unwanted. Be informed, our children are just as good as children within the district.

Secondly, Mrs. Rich, you need to go back and check your records to see just how much money transfer students bring into the school. I, as well as other transfer parents I know, have contributed hundreds if not thousands of dollars in fundraising monies to help the school.

I think this is a case of people with too much time on their hands and nothing better to do than stir up trouble where none was needed. Since you have nothing better to do (I understand you have no job), why don't you go assist the teachers? That way, you can take turns assisting in each classroom. I'm sure the teachers would greatly appreciate it!!

Finally, if you had done your homework and made sure things would pass before cutting down the trees, the money wouldn't have been spent and you wouldn't be so upset about it!

As a parent of children who attend Tanglewood, I'd like to add four points to the conversation about this letter:

1) There are many excellent and legitimate reasons why a parent would want to send his or her child to Tanglewood as an out of district transfer. I have nothing against out of district transfers and I would hope that all parents would try to make the best educational decision for their child.

2) All schools in Robeson County, including Tanglewood, should have a limit on the number of out of district transfer students they can accept based solely on their capacity. Capacity should be based on each school's number of indistrict students, teachers, and classrooms, as well as the DPI mandates for the maximum number of students per class in each grade level. The School Board should not be approving out of district transfers above the capacity of any school.

3) If the School Board finds it necessary, or just nice, to approve transfers to any school that results in the school being over its capacity limit then the Board needs to also provide the resources - teachers, classroom space, technology, etc. - for those additional students.

4) Because the Board has not either established a capacity limit or been able to provide additional classroom space at Tanglewood Elementary, kindergarten classes currently have as many as 27 students. An additional kindergarten teacher has been hired, but she cannot teach students as she does not have a classroom.

So the issue is not transfers in general, but the Board approving transfers to Tanglewood, or any school in the county, that cause it to be over capacity without providing necessary resources.

As a parent of a student who attends Tanglewood Elementary, I am appalled at the number of out of district transfers that the major of our school board members support! The reason I purchased my home in the Tanglewood School District was to enable my child to attend this school without overcrowding! That was a joke! I have a large house payment, city and county taxes and other expenses! My student doesn't have the luxury of smaller class sizes. If an out of district parent wanted their child to attend this school, why didn't they buy within the district!!!!! Also, what does it say about our school board members who support out of district transfers, My schools are not good enough for your child/children!!!!! Teachers are teachers and there are excellent teachers across our county not just at Tanglewood! Another question comes to mind.....Tanglewood is not a Title 1 school so where does the money go when a student from a Title 1 school transfers in? This is the elephant in the room and no one wants to address the problem. I say....if you want to transfer your child to an out of district school, pay up!!!!!!!! Teachers at all schools are suffering without assistance of teacher assistances and parental support, If you are not happy with the school your child attends, share your concerns with the principal. It is time for change and I do believe that the time is now!!!!! We have several board members whose family relatives attend out of district schools. You may want to ask them why and what are the drawbacks of the schools they represent and what are they doing to improve the quality of their schools along with the test scores. If they can't answer, you want what to consider another candidate for the district you live in! I know that I have stepped on toes, but enough is enough!!!!!!!!!

How do you guys know that the increase isn't coming from families actually moving into the area? Do they have a note attached saying "I came from another town. Or is it that the child looks different than the majority of children at the school. Teachers are paid to teach whether it's 4 more or 4 less. Tanglewood is not exempt because of location and what some believe to be status. Parents of a certain status quo are allowed to transport their children to Tanglewood because they work in the area. Then you have those who have the option to place their children on a bus to attend a school, where they feel their child will get a better education. Personally, I will prefer leaving my child in Public Education (I know some of you will argue that TW is, REALLY). We teach our child to be competitive no matter where you are and we have found that our child is in the top percentile across the State even at a low performing school. O and by the way our child is not of the majority you will see at Tanglewood, but can compete with every child there. Ms Rich I know where you are going with this and hope that you will understand that your situation has been occuring to other schools far before now. Just drop in on Rowland Norment, Carrol Middle and others. Teachers teach or go home. I'm sure some of those who were sent home will gladly teach 3-4 extra students.

Very well said. I've seen my fair share at Tanglewood as well, and know plenty of teachers there. Each grade level has just as many problems. Teacher assistants having to split time in classrooms, leaving teachers BEGGING for volunteers. Parents are allowed to take and sit with children at lunch, giving the teachers a "Duty free lunch", basically time to catch up for the rest of the day. It is wearing them down. The county would rather waste money cutting down trees than hiring teacher assistants. How much does it cost to cut down 4 large pines, grade and level a 40'x40' area, and pour reinforced footers for a mobile unit? Probably quite a lot.

The board is just doing what DPI tells them. Only four or five schools in the county made AYP last year. So according to DPI, all the other schools are the worst schools in America and the parents of children that attend those schools have a right to transfer their students to one of the few schools that made AYP. The county even has to pick up the tab to provide transportation! The root of your problem is with DPI and the politicians that run education in this state and this country.

Very well said. This has been a problem since my daughters were at Tanglewood years ago. There were kids from Fairmont, Red Springs and all across Robco. Students should go to school where they live and if the parents find the school sub par then that is what private schools are for. Give Tanglewood a break!