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More than 100 Rockingham County students will have to wait at least three more weeks before they find out if they will attend the school of their choice.

The school board discussed the number of students who are on a waiting list to transfer from their zoned school to another school. There are 120 students on the waiting list for various schools in the district.

Parents can request that their children be transferred to another school for any reason, but some transfers take precedence, such as the child of a district employee or students transferring from a federally sanctioned Title I school.

District officials reminded board members that if there is a waiting list for a school it’s because that school is at its capacity with the number of teachers it has. Adding students would mean teachers would need to be hired or transferred from another school.

The school board will begin hearing requests Aug. 30 from families whose children didn’t get into the schools they wanted.

The board also discussed the possibility of offering a health clinic to employees in an effort to reduce health care costs. The clinic would be free to employees but it isn’t clear yet how much it would cost the school system.

Board members Ron Price and Virginia Hoover discussed a clinic program they heard about during a recent conference of school boards.

The clinic program could be based in a school and staffed by nurse practitioners or physician’s assistant. Employees could receive free medications and other services through the clinic. Price said the Charlotte County, Fla., school system has seen big savings in medical costs such as insurance claims after starting the program.

“It would be more convenient for the teachers,” he said, noting that they often have to take time off for a doctor’s appointment that may only last an hour.

All employees would have access to the clinic, which would perform a health assessment of each patient and focus on preventive care. By helping monitor patients’ health, the clinic can help prevent or minimize expensive health problems, Price said.

District officials will research the issue and present their findings at the next meeting.

Contact J. Brian Ewing at 627-4881, Ext. 120, or brian.ewing@news-record.com