DeKalb County Board of Education Makes Recommendations

Patch provided live coverage of the DeKalb County Board of Education's meeting this evening where Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson made her recommendations regarding school closures and redistricting. 

Elementary School in Tucker, which had been threatened with closure, is to remain open, pending the final vote on March 7.

Read below to follow what transpired at the meeting:

Looks as if the superintendent's report is in the middle of tonight's agenda. In the meantime, here's the rundown on who's in attendance -

• Thomas E. Bowen, chair, district 6
• Sarah Copelin-Wood, district 3
• Jesse 'Jay' Cunningham, district 5
• Donna Elder, district 7
• Nancy Jester, district 1
• Don McChesney, district 2
• Pamela Speaks, district 8
• Eugene Walker, district 9
• Paul Womack, district 4
• And, of course, Interim Superintendent Tyson.

Waiting on the meeting to begin ...

6:07 pm - Meeting is called to order. Prayer and pledge of allegiance.

6:17 pm - It's National School Counselors Week. Bowen also recognizes February being National Career & Technical Education Month.

6:38. The public comments porton of the meeting begins.

6:39. David Schutten, Glen Haven Elementary School. "Why has Glen Haven been classified as a health hazard because of its proximity to an interstate? Because I taught there for eight years, are my health problems are a result of that proximity? Why hasn't this been addressed before now?"

6:46. Andy Faraca, Georgia Federation of Teachers. "DeKalb County cannot balance its budget on the backs of their employees."

6:48. Deidre Pierce. "Wouldn't it be great if we had articles written about us that, instead of being negative, touts DeKalb as one of the great turnaround systems in the nation?"

6:53. Connie Boone. Sky Haven Elementary. "We need for our school to remain open. A smaller environment is more conducive to a learning atmosphere. It is totally wrong to leave a community without a school ... You paid MGT of America to do a job that you should have done. MGT doesn't have heart or compassion ... If they did, they wouldn't be recommending young children to be moved to schools 10 miles away."

6:56. Molly Bardsley. Livsey Elementary. "I am more concerned about what comes after tonight. There will still be a great deal of work to do to eliminate 5,000 empty seats."

7:04. Khalid Muhammad Ali Farrakhan. "Leave Glen Haven alone. It would be more prudent to place Glen Haven in the hands of the black community. It is a travesty to see black people plead with government to leave our black schools alone."

7:11. Cecil Harmon. Redan High School senior. "The state is taking funds that is suppposed to be benefiting us, and giving it to private schools and charter schools. How is that benefiting us? Why are we using money to make teachers and administrators comfortable behind a desk. What about the students?"

7:15. Ernest Brown. "As a magnet parent, I support the centralized option now before the board. The plan should serve the greater community. I'm sure when all the black schools were closed in 1969 because of the Brown v. Board of Education community, that many people were upset ... Make that tough decision and move forward."

7:22. Julie McKenna. Henderson Middle School. "The attendance policy has come off the table, and that concerns me. The board needs to continue addressing board policy for the betterment of all ... We are also speaking about transparancy, but we're not practicing it. The minutes of your previous meetings have not been posted online, and in the 21st century, that is unacceptable."

7:33. The final speaker, LaTasha Morgan. "Neither of these plans is in the least bit responsible. I am totally opposed to both of them. They are discrimatory in nature. My daughter goes to the DeKalb Elementary School of the Arts. We were redistricted two years ago; we were in a central location, and we were given no reason why we were moved. We're no longer in a central location; we're closer to the city of Atlanta now, more so than central DeKalb."

7:36. Superintendent's report coming up.

7:37. Ramona Tyson. "We bring to you our recommendation for school redistrictings and consolidations ..."

7:39. "The Superintendent's 2020 Master Vision Plan recommendation ... Two options for consideration are the centralized option and the decentralized option."

7:44. Dr. Carnes and Dr. Humble, MGT of America, present the recommendations. "Decision making drivers are honoring public input; balancing immediate need vs. strategic need; maximizing current resources; paving the path to the 2020 vision; and minimizing student disruption while meeting the responsibility to operate an effectice and efficient school system."

7:50. Recommendation: Leave magnet programs as they exist in 2011-12.

7:52. Recommendation: Convert Dunwoody Elementary School into a K-5 school.

7:55. Recommendation: Redraw attendance lines among Pleasantdale, Evansdale, Midvale, Livsey Fernbank and Sagamore Hills to alleviate overcrowding of some schools and the under-utilization of Briar Vista.

8:01. Recommendation for the under-utlization of Medlock, the recommendation is close Medlock and redraw attendance lines for Laurel Ridge, McLendon, Avondale and Jolly Elementary.

8:02. Recommendation: Redraw attendance lines for Princeton and Rock Chapel to address Rock Chapel under-utlization and overcrowding at Princeton.

8:03. Recommendation: Close Avondale Middle and High Schools and reassign their students to surrounding schools. Also, the recommendation is to continue use of Avondale High as the DeKalb School of the Arts. Students would be reassigned to Druid Hills and Clarkston in the north, and Towers and Columbia in the south.

8:06. Recommendation: Decommission Glen Haven, Sky Haven, Atherton, Peachcreat and Gresham Park elementaries and consolidate those student populations with surrounding neighborhood schools.

8:08. Atherton to Rowland, Snapfinger and Canby Lane; Glen Haven to Midway and Rowland; Gresham Park to Meadowview, Flat Shoals, Clifton and McNair; PeachCrest to Snapfinger and Midway; Sky Haven to McNair and Meadowview.

8:11. Recommendation: Redraw attendance lines for Bob Mathis, Chapel Hill and Oakview elementaries.

8:12. Recommendation: Flat Rock Elementary becomes a theme school and Bouie Theme School becomes a neighborhood school.

8:15. This concludes the recommendations.

8:18. A $12 million impact, with 9,000 students, or 9 percent, of DeKalb's total school population affected.

8:22. Tyson - "It is important to understand and realize that no one will lose their jobs as a result of redistricting. On March 1 and March 3, we will have public discussions on these recommendations, and on March 7, we will have a vote on the plan."

Go to www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/redistricting.  E mail your comments to  redistricting@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us.

This concludes Patch's live coverage of the DeKalb County Board of Education meeting.