CSD’s Communications Director Bruce Roaden was good enough to respond to me, answering two of your main questions from the other thread in more detail.

One, why precisely is the school day being extended?  And two, how will this time be used potentially?  He also includes a few other facts to consider.  Without further ado…

Principals and Instructional personnel have felt for some time now that there is not enough time in the school day for elementary students. For example, after consulting 40 or more elementary schools in Metro Atlanta, we discovered that 6.5 hours (the school day for our K-3 students) is the shortest day for elementary students in Metro Atlanta.

Also, City Schools of Decatur is one of a very few remaining (if not the only) school district in the state that has a second language taught to our elementary students every school day. Another important issue that many members of our community have brought to the attention of the Superintendent and the Board of Education is the issue of wanting more unstructured breaks (recess) for students. It is very difficult to add this kind of activity without extending the length of the school day.

If it is decided to extend the school day, there will no increase in the personnel budget.

This decision is not based on the fact that we use DeKalb County School buses. DeKalb has given us our own fleet of buses to use, so we are not tied to the start and end times of DeKalb’s schools.

We appreciate the input we’re getting on this issue from your blog as well as emails and phone calls. Naturally, the Superintendent and her staff will consider this feedback and continue to look into this issue in order to make decisions that are in the best interest of all students and their families.

Oh no!  Decatur Active Living’s Cheryl Burnette writes in…

We have rescheduled the Touch A Truck Event for April 30 due to the 100% chance of rain. We hope to see everyone in April!

I’m not sure why this has kept slipping my mind.  Not only did I notice Decatur’s newest jewelery store, “Kismet”, opening next to Taste along Church Street a couple weeks back, I also received a note from Steve on Tuesday reminding me.  Still, I never posted anything.  I chalk it up to baby-fatigue.

But Catherine’s recent Decatur Minute post about the store is hard to ignore!  According to it, Kismet is now open for business.  She even has a couple shots of the new shop’s jewelry offerings.

Photo courtesy of The Decatur Minute

From the Emory Wheel…

Cash-strapped students will have another alternative to cafeteria food with the Bad Dog Taqueria, a new restaurant offering tacos filled with dishes ranging from Indian samosas to Korean barbecue pork belly, in April. It will replace Sprouts Green Café in Emory Village.

Lis Hernandez, who formerly worked for Atlanta’s Osteria 832 and Stella restaurants, will be the executive chef.

“We understand that the Emory community is very international, and we didn’t see an international taqueria anywhere, so it seems like the perfect fit,” Bad Dog Taqueria owner Tracy Mitchell said.

The Wheel also notes that Bad Dog will have a full bar, something that all of the failed businesses in that particular space have lacked in recent years.

The final film in the Decatur Docs first series, “Boxing Gym” screens tomorrow night at the Decatur High School auditorium at 8pm.  ArtsCriticATL reviewed the film a couple days back and does a great job of giving a feel for this “Cannes Film Festival highlight”.

[Director 81-year-old Frederick] Wiseman’s portrait of gym-as-laboratory-for-human-interaction makes a fleabag sweat palace feel like the most vital, meaningful place on the planet. There is great tenderness and reflection in his approach, whether he’s observing a gruff-looking palooka socking away at a punching bag and then turning around to coo to his little daughter in a baby carrier behind him, or the simple, pure acts of fraternity offered in the conversations and shared training exercises of the gym regulars.

…As in all the films he has made over the past 30 years, Wiseman provides a record; he gives us access to a place we wouldn’t ordinarily go and allows us to settle into it as if it was a long, relaxing soak in the bath. He has delved into the world of the Neiman Marcus department store in “The Store” (1983), a mental institution in his still-shocking debut, “Titicut Follies” (1967), and a string of self-explanatory explorations in “High School” (1968), “Blind” (1987) and “Ballet” (1995).

After the film, Xavier Biggs and Terri Moss of the Decatur Boxing Club will be on-hand for a post-movie discussion.

Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online or at the door. (There’s also an online-only deal of 2 tickets for $10 each)

Looks and sounds great!