Comments on: CSD Reconfiguration Vote Pushed Up to January 13th?

By: cranky old timer

cranky old timer — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 02:04:50 +0000

Hope you all were at the meeting. I left after Dr. Edwards basically said that we couldn’t have forseen this problem five years ago .. she sounded real good up to that point … and I look at CSD mom’s comment and agree completely. It’s time we stop making these short term — sky is fallling — decisions and start looking at real factual long term decisions on our school growth. Everyone get informed, and go to these informational meetings, or this “recommednation” of a 4-8 configeration will become reality …
By the way, is anyone else creeped out by the big screen counting down your three minutes of comment time? I think that’s a freedom of speech issue there, an intimidation factor rushing you through your comments … but I understand how emotional these things can get … still, YUCK.

By: foodie

foodie — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:50:07 +0000

Good superintendents can make bad decisions. It’s not all or nothing.
If 4th -8th is OK, separate facilities aren’t needed. If 4th – 8th isn’t OK, then some separate facilities on the same campus won’t make a difference. The problem is, once you build a building, you paint yourself into a corner. Even without Westchester, there are enough classrooms in the system to hold the students.

To propose new construction that costs more than the amount provided by SPLOST and the bond is unfair to taxpayers.

By: CSD Mom

CSD Mom — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 20:55:28 +0000

Metro, I agree–I feel like I am getting mixed signals here.

I believe that we need to invest more in thinking about the future instead of constantly using stop-gap measures at every turn to try to keep up. Obviously the reconfig from 5 years ago was either completely off-base or was implemented improperly, or else we would not be where we are now. If growth and enrollment were predicted perhaps a little better, we would not be scrambling now to rearrange our schools AGAIN to accommodate everyone. Instead of forging ahead with our heads in the sand again with more hasty measures, we need to seriously consider: where will we be in 5 years? 10 years? 20 years? If a certain measure is necessary, then the facts should back it up. So far, I have not seen any facts that back up the idea that spending $10 million at Renfroe as opposed to, say, renovating Westchester is what we should do. I am anxious to find out more tonight.

By: Decatur Metro

Decatur Metro — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 19:48:02 +0000

Am I reading this wrong or are the two school board members providing different stories about what will be voted on tonight?

Julie seems say that the reconfiguration is scheduled to be voted on tonight because thing went quicker than expected…though she would rather hold off.

Cranky’s note from from board member Marc says that the vote “tonight is about accepting the report from the committee (including 13 parents) that was created to analyze the options and make a recommendation”.

Maybe they’re saying the same thing…but the procedural-speak is making things a bit murky.

By: Tarnation

Tarnation — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 19:23:06 +0000

Geez…sombody on here is WAY over the edge.

I bet there are parents from all the other counties in Greater Metro who would LOVE to have the education and environment offered in our city schools. SOME OF US should be counting our blessings instead of constantly grousing and kvetching and whining and acting as if the sky is falling. While you are doing that, the rest of the concerned parents and citizens will proceed calmly and rationally towards working within the process.

Vote Cranky!