Though the opening of a new 4/5 Academy is supposed to relieve pressure on Decatur’s school system next year, the “temporary trailers for 1 year” v. “free Westchester” debate rages on.  Days before the start of a new, extra early school year, the AJC picks up the story and quotes all our favorite quotables.

Some interesting tidbits for your reading pleasure…

CSD’s Bruce Roaden tells the AJC that it would cost $300,000 a year to lease a new facility for the administration, while the 10 trailers strewn across school properties currently cost just $75,000 total.  As for why the administrators don’t work out of portables, Roaden cites the need for a central location for parents to get service.

In the meantime, as has been mentioned by parents here before, while trailers relieve pressure on classrooms, cafeterias, libraries and gyms are becoming even more crowded as the schools grow outside their brick-and-mortar footprints.

Not to mention issues with overcrowded sewers.  The article cites how sewage backed up into one of the portables last year.

Ultimately, the trailers are a done deal for the coming year.  And with the 5th Avenue Academy now a sure reality for the 2011-2012 school year, only time (and enrollment levels) will tell whether this issue of trailers will again rear its ugly, prefab head.

This picture recently appeared on the City Schools of Decatur’s website.  But with little explanation.

Three time capsules at Fifth Avenue?  What could it be?  Old teacher-edition textbooks?  Pirate gold?  Barrels full of monkeys?  Astronaut ice cream?

Luckily we have CSD’s Bruce Roaden to keep our feet on the ground and give us the real – and interesting! – story behind this pic.

Scott Russell, long time CSD employee and former teacher at 5th Avenue remembered that a time capsule had been created at 5th Ave. and was buried in a wall. Scott took our maintenance and construction folks to 5th Ave. and led them to the spot in the wall where it was “buried”. The directions were to open it in 2013. We took the time capsule out of the 5th Avenue wall (unopened) and will place it in the new 5th Avenue School.

City Schools of Decatur found out late last week that all schools in the district had made Adequate Yearly Progress as defined under the Federal “No Child Left Behind Act”.  This is the second straight year that all CSD schools have achieved this mark.

However, the classification was especially notable this year as it was originally believed that based on passing rates, Renfroe Middle School would not make AYP.

However, thanks to an appeal by the Georgia Department of Education to the federal government regarding the test results of Students with Disabilities, Renfroe passed.  CSD’s Bruce Roaden was good enough to boil it down for us…

The Georgia Department of Education appealed to the federal government requesting “interim federal flexibility” for the Students with Disabilities (SWD) subgroup so that schools and systems that fail to make AYP based solely on the performance of their SWD subgroup, will receive a mathematical adjustment and thus be able to make AYP. This amendment was denied and then the DOE appealed (CSD was asked to and did support the DOE’s appeal) and the amendment was accepted.

Without the flexibility rule RMS would not have made AYP.

The statewide picture is looking ever more bleak, as federal standards get harder to meet with each passing year.  According to the AJC, two-thirds of all Georgia high schools didn’t make AYP in 2010 and 29% of all public schools in the state failed to meet the federal standards, as requirements for graduation rates and passing rates continue to tick up.  A random mention in the Fayette County News stated that in the Atlanta metropolitan area, only Decatur and Marietta saw all of their schools pass AYP.

If interested, the AJC has a searchable database of the 2010 AYP results for each public school in the state.

UPDATE: Dr. Phyllis Edwards official response to the concerned parents can be read HERE. Of particular note, she says that one of the ECLC sites cannot be used for trailers because that proposed piece of property must be used to expand and upgrade the playground.

A week after receiving a letter from a group of concerned parents about the recent decision by Superintendent Phyllis Edwards to move three pre-K classes to the Clairemont Elementary School campus, CSD Communications Director Bruce Roaden tells DM that the Superintendent is “exploring options for where we will place the pre-kindergarten students (if not at Clairemont).”

The letter, written and signed by eight CSD parents, asked the Superintendent to reconsider her recent decision to move two pre-K classes at Decatur High School and one at Oakhurst Elementary to Clairemont’s campus, citing worries that adding classrooms will lead to future overcrowding at the elementary school and wouldn’t be in the best interests of CSD’s long-term development plans.

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Decatur edTV is reporting Renfroe Middle School Principal Bruce Roaden announced last night to the Renfroe Student Leadership Team that he has been tapped as the school system’s new Community Relations & School Leadership Team Director.

Writes Andrea at edTV…

Roaden will continue to be the RMS principal until 12 noon each day and then head over to his new job based at the CSD’s District office at Westchester.

…CSD Board Chair Valarie Wilson says Roaden has done a wonderful job increasing student achievement and earning the respect of teachers and staff during his three-year tenure at Renfroe. “This new position will expand his leadership role in our community,” Wilson told Decatur EDtv, “as he interacts with the public on behalf of the City Schools of Decatur.”

Welcome to the wonderful world of school communication Bruce!

Renfroe just keeps racking up the awards.

In mid-December, Renfroe Principal Bruce Roaden received a letter from the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement that Renfroe Middle School had received a 2009 Single Statewide Accountability System Platinum Award “for making great gains in student achievement.”  It was one of only nine middle schools in the state of Georgia to receive the top award handed out by SSAS.

According to the letter, schools must meet three criteria in order to receive an “impressive” platinum award.

1. Make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for 3 consecutive years
2. Demonstrate that at least 35% of students exceed standards in all test areas as measured by state assessments
3. Place 98th percentile or higher statewide in greatest student achievement gains.

Renfroe will receive a “recognition banner” to display at the school.

Thanks to Middle School Physics Teacher Kris Webb for sending along the note and congrats to Principal Roaden and all Renfroe teachers, staff and students on their growing pile accolades!

Just released by CSD’s Maria Lewis…

Decatur, GA (2009) – State School Superintendent Kathy Cox recently recognized 27 schools from across the state as Georgia Schools of Excellence for the 2009 school year. Among these schools, Carl G. Renfroe Middle School was honored as one of 13 schools that have exhibited the greatest gains in student achievement over the past 5 years. Student achievement was measured through assessments in the areas of reading and mathematics.

“I am so incredibly proud of the teachers, staff and students of Renfroe Middle School for their good hard work that gave us the opportunity to be named a Georgia School of Excellence!,” said Renfroe Principal Bruce Roaden. “Only eight middle schools in the state were awarded with this honor. I am so pleased that the things we do on behalf of our students every day have been recognized.”

Georgia Schools of Excellence winners are honored in two categories, “Greatest Gains” and “Top 10%”. All of the 2009 Georgia Schools of Excellence will be honored at a banquet on February 5th at the Georgia International Convention Center in College Park.