Medlock and 13 Other DeKalb Schools Could Close
Decatur Metro | January 4, 2011Here we go again. From the AJC…
On Monday night, the [DeKalb] school board unveiled a comprehensive redistricting proposal that calls for 12 elementary schools to close: Livsey, Medlock, Rock Chapel, Bob Mathis, Atherton, Glen Haven, Gresham Park, Sky Haven, Toney, Peachcrest, Wadsworth and Kittredge. The proposal also calls for Avondale Middle and Avondale High to be closed and used to house magnet programs.
You may recall that a “citizen’s task force” was formed last year to close schools for financial reasons and that the decision was punted by the School Board, amidst accusations of racism and near fights in board meetings. Ain’t democracy great? This year, cash-strapped DeKalb has paid consultants MGT of America $400,000 to arrive at the same conclusion: many South DeKalb schools would have to close due to under-enrollment.
Oh boy.
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This year, cash-strapped DeKalb has paid consultants MGT of America $400,000 to arrive at the same conclusion: many South DeKalb schools would have to close due to under-enrollment.
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“Cash-strapped DeKalb” seems to write an awful lot of large checks to consultants and administrators.
They aren’t the only school district that does that… I know of one right here in Decatur.
BTW, just for kicks ..anyone know exactly how much IB costs CSD? Maybe it’s a great thing and worth every penny but I don’t think most people are aware of the annual and origination costs to have the “IB” label.
Can you explain more? Do you mean that there’s costs beyond the salary cost of IB coordinators? Wouldn’t they probably be instructional coaches or something else like that if IB were gone? Or do we pay for an IB license or something like that? What’s the cost?
IB is worth it, even if some schools close.
Better to have 15 great schools with IB and longer commutes than 27 schools and half of them be mediocre with less resources and limited matching funds.
I agree with some of the previous posters, having an IB program is a big asset to a school system and the families it serves.
I saw Medlock was on the list again. It’s a great little community school and I would hate to see it close. It’s the smallest in the district so I understand the reasoning but I still personally would like to see it stay open. I know a lot of folks moved into the neighborhood because of the draw of a neighborhood school.
Also I noted on the clairmontheights.org website there is a community meeting tomorrow (the 6th) at 6:30 to discuss.