6:50pm  Demographers give an overview of the maps and summary of options.  Asked the audience for a show of hands of those who had NOT reviewed the maps.  No hands went into the air.  He’s moving quickly through the study since the majority of the room is familiar with the documents.

“We are looking forward to your feedback and hearing what you think about some of the maps,” says the demographer.

6:52pm “We are aware that the mid-town middle school is not in mid town so we will call it the middle school over there” says the demographer. Audience laughs.

6:53pm Demographer giving more advice on how to interpret the maps. Understand the old zones vs the new zones. No high schools are recommended for closure in the district but all zones change for high schools in SRT3.

6:54pm In option B no elementary schools split from elementary to middle school but there are splits in middle school.  If you’re wondering why a line looks a certain way, go back to the elementary school for a reference says the demographer.

6:55pm There were 8200 comments last time and the demographers encourage you to fill out the new survey form online.  (I will post as soon as I get a link).

6:56pm Question and Answer portion of the meeting about to start. This open mic will last at least an hour and then everyone will go out to the maps to answer questions one on one tonight.

GROUND RULES for Q&A
2 minute limit
Please do not repeat questions/comments
Limit to SRT3 concerns
Understand that demographers may not be able to provide immediate answers to detailed questions without being able to access the data.

Q: Lin Parent – When will you be posting the updated data online? Will you provide it like you did in the first round?
A: Information online IS the updated data with the 2010 census information included.  Right now there is no plan to develop a forecast for option a or option b.

Comment: Old Fourth Ward parent says that the forms in paper form are flawed because there was no address or other identification indicator.  She says that because those documents were copied, that Lin parents had more influence over the process.  The feedback forms favored larger group. “Our voices were not heard.” She says the most connected and affluent parents were heard.

Comment: Toomer parent/Kirkwood resident – Wants to offer an alternative to the options that show a split that makes them unhappy.  ”I would like for Lake Claire to attend Tommer and I would like to see Mary Lin attend their middle school, Coan.”  She says that Inman park is afforded the opportunity to avoid going to a black school over a white school and we need to right that wrong. (extreme applause)

Comment: Lake Claire/Lin parent says her child can walk “safely” to Mary Lin and cannot walk “safely” to Toomer.  Parent says that she was hit by an 18 wheeler while five months pregnant on Dekalb Ave and that it is not a safe place for children.

Comment: Old Fourth Ward parent reads the O4W statement put out earlier today. You can read the entire statement here: www.O4weducation.org

Comment: It appears that Centennial Place isn’t wanted by anyone in the north or south says a parent.  We are closer to Inman and Grady says the parent.  Please keep Centennial Place at Inman and Grady.

Q: Morningside parent says that walkability is an issue with the new maps for Morningside.  Mentioned in the comments is a line that the new elementary school is subject to future real estate decisions…how will that happen by May?
A: One of the issues in option A and B are that we haven’t identified sites for the new elementary schools. Once an option is chosen, APS would choose a site and only they would know what sites are available.  In an urban area like Atl that is a complicated question to answer.

Q: If someone is a junior at Jackson, would they be grandfathered in as a part of this process?
A: Demographer says that is a policy question that they cannot answer.

Comment: O4Ward parent says that Springdale Park was built to keep children from having to attend Hill.  ”Now these same low income students are kicked south again and out of the Grady cluster.” She gives the history of Walden Middle School and how students were bused to King instead of nearby Inman when it closed. (big applause)

Comment: East Lake parent says that the demographers have eliminated her child’s walkability.  ”Our school has a higher capacity than other schools that are not zoned to be closed.” We are not Mary Lin she says, but we are still strong and just as important. (huge applause)

Comment: O4Ward parent says “I was completely shocked and dismayed by what I saw in the new maps.”  It appears the principles were used selectively in certain communities she says.  Parent goes point by point thru the major guiding principles that were violated. It is an absolute travesty if Cook and Hope-Hill merge and Hope-Hill is closed.

Q: Candler Park and future Lin parent – If Dekalb ave is not a zoned boundary, then what is? Have the demographers considered a 5/6 academy at Hope Hill? When will Mary Lin be renovated? At what point does APS pay attention to the commitment that they made to the voters and tax payers of Atlanta?
A:  Splost is a question only Aps can answer. To the other questions, there may be times when we cross a busier road like Dekalb but it does something like not splitting neighborhoods or rezoning kids that were recently affected. We have to look at all the criteria as a whole. We can’t focus on just one or the other.  We brought up a 5/6 center to APS but it doesn’t fit with the educational delivery of the district. District would have to develop a completely new educational tract.

Q: Inman/Grady parent says that “We do not want Centennial zoned out.” As you all went through options 1-4 to options A and B did you correct your enrollment numbers that had some pretty significant errors in them?
A: The forecasts are, a forecast.  Not sure how we can say a forecasted number is incorrect. They use the current attendance zones, most current enrollment and latest census.

Comment: Summerhill parent talks about the small but historic neighborhood. Talks about how the schools in the area have underperformed in the past. We support keeping Hope-Hill open.  Calls Stanton “run down.” We would like to be zoned to Parkside Elementary and zoned into the Jackson cluster. “We are not asking…this is what must be done to honor the great legacy of our community.”

Comment: Grady parent says that Grady is the sum of all the great schools that feed into it.  The documents on which the demographers numbers were based were incorrect.  The numbers must be accurate.  Grady currently has 1478 students.  ”If we only had zoned students we would be under capacity by 100 students.” “This is not the demographers problem, this is APS’ problem.  You do not cut people out of their high schools so you can put in whoever you want willy-nilly.” Parent suggests opening Grady back up as a magnet so its fair to all. (huge applause).

Comment:  Parkside parent/Summerhill resident talks about the organic merging of Summerhill and Grant Park.  Talks about having far more in common with Grant Park than any other area.  ”I want you to highly consider putting Summerhill into the Parkside.”

Comment: O4W parent reads from their position statement: “Accept that you as a board and superintendent have been complicit in the historic and systematic discrimination against poor minority students from the Old Fourth Ward for decades by excluding them regularly from attending elementary and middle schools with the student populations from Inman Park, Poncey Highland, Candler Park, Lake Claire, Virginia Highland, Sherwood Forest Morningside/Lenox Park, Midtown, and Ansley Park; Recognize that it appears your demographers were heavily influenced by supporters of Mary Lin Elementary, Springdale Park Elementary and Morningside Elementary to the complete and total exclusion of the Old Fourth Ward interests that were clearly communicated via the same feedback process

Demographers respond to O4W comments about merging 90% plus Title One schools with other 90% Title One schools.  Demographer says that racial and socioeconomic issues were not factored into this study and no one was excluded based on those issues.

7:48pm
Q: Parent says “I am two blocks from Toomer and I am not zoned for it.” Have demographers thought about using Coan to relieve overcrowding at Inman? (Demographers mentioned earlier that there is no relief in sight for Inman overcrowding).  We ask that you look at walkability in an equitable way.
A: You have to look at the areas on the fringe to provide relief to a school. This is a city and it will have boundaries. Moving the Lin area down would impact more kids because its a dense neighborhood….

Comment: Systematically children with disabilities are shifted out of NEast schools.  APS needs to account for the space at schools.

Q: The new plans have building taking place but not in the areas that are overcrowded and neighborhoods that need it most. Why aren’t closed schools being brought back on line.
A: There have been conversations about closed schools being re-opened.  We have looked at it and these things are in discussion.  We are working with the parameters that we have…where we know funds are allocated for SPLOST…we are aware and the district is aware that you need relief in this SRT.

Comment: Cabbagetown parent requests that she and her neighbors be zoned to Parkside Elementary School.  Currently we are zoned for Cook and not a single student from our neighborhood attends Cook because it is so poorly performing and none of us have plans on attending.  We are a part of the solution. We can help the Jackson cluster but not if we don’t have a viable option next school year.

8:00pm
Parents who want to visit the maps are now exiting the room to speak with one of the demographers. Others are remaining in the auditorium to hear more questions and comments.

Q: Why was Hope-Hill not included into Inman Park when it is only 1 mile on the Beltline at the closes and 2 miles at its furthest while others get to have a 7 mile commute from Kirkwood.
A: We cannot add more students to Inman.  We are looking at cluster concept as well…its problematic to add zones with significant children to Inman.  It would make Inman more overcrowded.

Comment: Atlantic Station parent asks to stay at Centennial Place with Grady as her high school.

Q: Kirkwood resident talks about how her neighborhood has worked hard to make Toomer what it is today.  ”There is no north Kirkwood and south Kirkwood – there in one Kirkwood.” Kirkwood cannot be split! I support Kirkwood being one community and one elementary school.  I would like to know the thought process was behind splitting our neighborhood.
A:  Areas that have been successful, they grow and in certain areas of the city we are constrained in how we can expand.  I must apologize, I am getting to know the neighborhoods as I go.  Option B – There is a lot of excess space at Burgess, East Lake, etc and we were trying to balance the space and work within the criteria.  We will take a look at it and see if there is any potential solutions to help not split Kirkwood.

19 people remain in line.

Q: Burgess Peterson parent – Can we become K-8?
A: The school district didn’t want to pursue that option.  The K-8 discussion was related to curriculum and implementing a new endeavor in order to deliver that education.  This was not a concept the district wanted to explore.
Rebuttal: There is a K-8 model working in a charter school right here in Grant Park.  Why not use them as a model.

Q&A will close in 10 minutes.

Comment: Lin parent – I am tired of other neighborhoods throwing us under the bus.  We are a diverse school.  We do not want a split school k-2/3-5.  People live where they want to and they live where they want to send their kids to school. Its important to look at the curriculum and how that would affect things if you blend schools.  There is not just a matter of utilizing two buildings, we want to stay with option A.

Comment: Peoplestown resident wants a K-12 IB feeder pattern into Jackson High School.

Comment: East Lake parent – “We’ve been labeled, our kids have been labeled and we don’t want to send our kids to a school (Lin) where they have already been labeled.”

Demographer talks about not liking the idea of closing schools, but there are schools in this district that are 66% empty.

Comment: Toomer parent – “You’re using Toomer as a satellite campus for Mary Lin – don’t do that.”

Comment: Candler Park resident talks about the Lin expansion.  ”We are certainly sympathetic to other neighborhoods.  We have been counting on this expansion to fix a school that is in need of repair.”  Roughly a 1/3 of our kids are in trailers right now.

8:42pm
Meeting has ended.

The Special Olympics Unified Basketball Team from N. Atlanta H.S. won the silver medal in the State Championship Competition this past weekend in Marietta Georgia. The level of competition was very strong and we neither won nor lost a game by 4 points!

All of our athletes have incredible talent which was led by their coaches Ms. Lisa Oglesby and Mr. Nic Hill, who worked countless hours shaping this championship team. Each and every athlete contributed to the teams’ success by scoring, rebounds, defense, ball handling or just supporting each other. The determination of these fine athletes was evident as they played Friday and 3 games on Saturday. Although tired they continued to work as a team to come away silver medalists.

This was the first year we have had a unified team which consists of half Special Olympians and half their typical peers (partners). The partnership did not end on the basketball court. The team socialized together and roomed together; they were truly a “team” in every sense. There was no barrier, only teammates and friends.

Ms. Lisa Oglesby, MOID teacher at N. Atlanta H.S. and Ms. Regina Gennaro, Special Olympics Liaison for APS, decided this was an excellent time to form such a team as the climate at N. Atlanta H.S. was perfect for this union. Ms. Oglesby has had and continues to have several peer leaders wanting to work with her students. Her students have many opportunities to work and play with their peers and this bridging of the typical gap has become almost non-existent. Much credit goes to the administration and teachers of N. Atlanta H.S. who continue to be extremely supportive.

Congratulations to the team! It was a well earned victory and hopefully we’ll have many more in the future.

The awards are presented in two broad categories – Highest Performance for Students Meeting and Exceeding Standards and Greatest Gains for Students Meeting and Exceeding Standards. In each category, individual schools are awarded platinum, gold, silver or bronze recognitions, based on their individual student performance. The following APS traditional and charter schools were recognized in these respective categories:

Highest Performance

Springdale Park Elementary School – Platinum, Morningside Elementary School – Gold, Lin Elementary School – Silver, Smith Elementary School – Silver, Brandon Elementary School – Silver, Jackson Elementary School – Bronze, Early College High School at Carver – Platinum and Inman Middle School – Bronze.

Greatest Gains

Charles R. Drew Charter School – Platinum, Toomer Elementary School – Gold, Kipp Strive Academy – Gold, Parkside Elementary School – Gold, Tech High School – Gold and Sutton Middle School – Platinum.

“I congratulate the students, principals, teachers and staff for the hard work and dedication that went into earning this recognition,” said Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr. “Sustained academic performance over time is the best measure of real achievement, and these awards are indicative of the kind of performance APS is experiencing throughout the system.”

Click here to learn more about the measurements used for this award.

In advance of Black History Month, B.E.S.T. Academy students will gather Friday morning to discuss the Black World War II Tuskegee Airmen and screen a new movie on the group.

Sponsored by the 100 Black Men organization, the students will participate in a discussion with actors from the new movie, “Red Tails” and Tuskegee Airmen veterans in the high school auditorium at 9 a.m. Friday, January 20 at 1890 Donald Hollowell Parkway, NW, Atlanta 30318. The Tuskegee Airmen is a group of Black men who trained at a U.S. Army airbase in Tuskegee, Alabama prior to their deployment as combat fighter pilots during the Second World War.

Following the discussion session, the students will depart for the movie screening at 11:15 a.m. The screening will be at the Camp Creek Marketplace Theater, I-285 & Camp Creek Parkway, Eastpoint, GA 30344.

News media representatives are invited to cover these events.

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, approximately 1,000 children between the ages of five and nine are killed each year in pedestrian crashes.  School crossing guards play a critical role in keeping students safe as they walk to and from school.  Crossing guards put their lives on the line by ensuring that all traffic is stopped before students enter the roadway.  A daunting task to say the least, considering the numerous speeding motorists, cell phone users and adults who jeopardize their own safety by jaywalking and ignoring traffic signals.  Crossing guards work outside in inclement weather and are confronted by hostile pedestrians and motorists, and yet they remain committed to their work of keeping children safe.

Atlanta Public Schools will pay homage to these “great protectors” during the APS School Crossing Guard Recognition Week, January 23-27 2012.  This is the district’s third year celebrating its 85 crossing guards and their dedication to safety.

As part of the weeklong celebration, parents, students, teachers and administrative staff are asked to create handmade thank you cards, or simply say thank you to APS school crossing guards for their hard work and commitment to child pedestrian safety.

Centennial Place Elementary School, an APS year round school, is among fourteen district schools to earn the state Title 1 Distinguished School recognition this year.

Centennial Place has earned this recognition for nine consecutive years and has made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for eleven consecutive years. AYP is a federal measure of academic achievement covering various categories of students, including those with disabilities and language challenges. Title 1 schools have significant populations of students who are economically disadvantaged and receive federal funding to assist with the education of their students.

Centennial Place is one of the district’s three year round schools that operate on a different calendar than most APS schools. The year round calendar provides more enrichment and academic enhancement opportunities throughout the year, as well as more remediation opportunities for students requiring additional time to achieve academic success. The school has over 30 partner organizations that provide economic and ‘sweat equity’ support, including The Coca-Cola Company and Georgia Tech.

“Centennial Place Elementary embraces social-economic diversity in a truly modern urban education environment in the heart of Mid-Town Atlanta,” said Principal Alison Shelton. “Our academic achievements and recognitions affirm the fact that this melting pot environment really works.”

More than 60 students classified as homeless are currently enrolled at Centennial Place, and the school draws students from diverse neighborhoods throughout the Mid-Town area.

Capitol City Bank & Trust Company partnered with L.P. Miles Elementary school to celebrate the 5th year of business for the school’s Tiger Savings Bank.

We take a look at Dr. Aruna Kailasa and her advanced chemistry class. She highlights the importance of chemistry in the professional world and everyday life.

Watch our latest video:  Mike Peterson Foundation partnership with Grove Park Elementary

Through the foundation’s Top Dog Readers Club program instituted at partner school Grove Park Elementary in Atlanta, students read over 1,000 more books in the 2010-2011 school year than ever before at Grove Park.  His efforts were recognized earlier this school year when the Atlanta Metro Chamber  awarded him their 2011 Business-School Partnership Award in conjunction with the Atlanta Partners for Education.

His latest effort is the school’s football camp, a skill the Falcon’s player knows well.

In 2010 Mike Peterson and his foundation adopted Grove Park as one of their schools and covered the school’s $7,500 matching-fund commitment for the playground, which often costs about $60,000.

Fans who want to donate to the program or drop of gently used books to expand the library at Grove Park can contact Michelle Robie, executive director for the Mike Peterson Foundation at (727) 501-6767 or via email at michelle@mikepetersonfoundation.com.

Thank you “Uncle Mike” for all you do for the students in Atlanta Public Schools.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Actions on education legislation under the Gold Dome for 2012 General Session Days 1 – 4

The 2012 Legislative Session began Monday, January 9, 2011. Action was taken on Day One by the Senate, which passed two pieces of legislation that were carryovers from the last session. The two bills passed both chambers last session with slightly different versions, but time ran out before the changes could be made and voted upon. Senate Bill 38 gives the state school superintendent hiring/firing powers without need for SBOE approval. It also increased the amount of contracts the superintendent has authority to sign contracts from $50,000.00 to $250,000.00. SB 184 is the Reduction in Force bill that establishes a task force to review professional learning requirements and make recommendations to the State Board of Education. It also prohibits local boards from making length of service the primary or sole determining factor when implanting a reduction in force. Instead, the primary factor shall be the performance of the educator. Both are headed to the Governor’s desk for signature.

We considered it a victory last year when SB 87, which was a voucher bill that would allow vouchers for dependent children of active duty, National Guard or Reserves, or deceased military parents, was tabled on the Senate floor when the sponsor realized there were not enough votes to pass it. On Day One, of this session, it was removed from table and goes back to the Senate Education & Youth Committee for consideration.

Education Highlights from Governor’s State of the State Address

In his State of the State Address, this week, Governor Nathan Deal said he is including in his budget $1.6 million for a reading mentor program. His goal is to have all children reading on grade level by the third grade. He has added $3.72 million for school nurses, $146.6 million for student enrollment growth and $55.8 million to fund teacher salary increases for their training & experience. He has also added $8.7 million dollars in grants to both the FY 12 supplemental budget and the FY 13 budget for state special charter schools that were affected by the Supreme Court decision on the State Charter School Commission. There will be no reduction in QBE or Equalization. However, after closer review, there is a 2% cut to all other areas.

The following legislation passed in the House Education Committee:

•                HB 705 – Amend Code section relating to direct classroom expenditures, also known as the 65% Rule for classroom instruction.  Technology, transportation, and instructional support including media centers and guidance counselors have been added.  This bill was recommendation of the Education Finance Committee.

•                HB 706 – Repeals over 20 sections of Education Title 20 to make it current to what is happening today. Changes include removing the April 1st deadline for evaluations; shifting the home school reporting to the Department of Education; repealing the requirement to send student codes of conduct to the state; and repealing the law on electronic communication devices at school. This bill was recommendation of the Education Finance Committee.

•                HB 713 – Amends bill passed last year on college and career pathway initiatives to delay the implantation schedule one year to the fall of 2013. This bill introduced at the request of the State Superintendent.

Other Bills Introduced:

•                HB 651 – Repeal a Code section relating to additional three charter system earnings for each full-time equivalent student.

•                HB 654 – Provide for the establishment of grant programs by local school systems. Authorize local boards of education to make available to its students grants to attend participating schools. Includes details on amount of grants, the method of payment and reporting.

•                HB 661 – Require that professional personnel in charter schools comply with the same certification requirements as professional personnel in the public schools in this state.

•                HB 664 – Provide that the Georgia Charter Schools Commission may elect to exclude all teachers in a commission charter school from membership in the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. Provide that the Georgia Charter Schools Commission may make an irrevocable election to exclude public school employees from membership in the Public School Employees Retirement Fund. Note: This bill was introduced prior to the State Supreme Court’s decision on the Commission.

•                HB 671- Provide for a reduction in the members of the board of education from nine to seven. It was also introduced last year but, was usurped by SB 79, which was similar and passed. Just as a recap, SB 79 set minimum four‐year terms for school board members; reduced the board sizes of districts such as DeKalb County from nine to seven, eliminating two at‐large seats. Though Atlanta was not named, the third part authorizes governor to remove all school board members, and appoint temporary replacements, if the school system has not regained full accreditation status by July 1, 2011.

•                HB 673 – By Jan. 2013, the state board of education, SBOE, shall develop and distribute to local school districts mandatory guidelines for informing and educating coaches, student athletes, and parents about the risks of concussions.  These guidelines must include criteria for removal and return to play, and risks of not reporting the injury and continuing to play.  Local school boards shall, by July 2013, develop procedures and regulations which must require:  annually, each student athlete and parent be given information about concussions and the athlete and parent shall sign that they have received same; immediate removal of a student athlete from activity should a concussion or brain injury be sustained; and no return to play on the same day and only after a medical evaluation with written clearance from the medical provider.

•                HB 679 – Revise certain laws regarding the carrying of firearms; and for other purposes. Would not require the carrier to have a permit or be a resident of the state.

•                HB 689 -Local Boards of Education are authorized to provide health insurance benefits to former board members with at least 12 years of service to be paid for by the former member.

•                HB 692 – A teacher or other certified professional personnel’s salary increase or bonus that is based in whole or in part on an evaluation which included student assessment results or standardized test scores that were falsified by that teacher or professional, or known of or caused by that teacher or professional shall be automatically forfeited. It also requires repayment of any and all amounts previously paid to him or her based, in whole or in part, on the results of falsified student assessments or standardized tests.

•                HR 1093 – A RESOLUTION urging local boards of education to apply for federal funding to retrofit school buses with pollution control devices.

•                SB 291 –Pre-K programs to be funded with general funds, rather than lottery by 2013-2014.

•                SB 308 – Permits proprietary institutions of higher education to participate in establishing college and career academies.

•                SR 646 – A RESOLUTION expressing the will of the Senate to ensure the necessary conditions for expanded high-quality digital learning opportunities for the students of this state.

•                SR 663 – A RESOLUTION supporting the Reading for Learning-Merit Based Student Program.

The General Assembly is in recess next week, and will reconvene on, Monday, January 23, 2011 for Legislative Day 5.