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Health & Fitness

Atlanta School Board Chairman Resigns, Superintendent on Way Out

Article on Atlanta Public Schools' debacle.

The Atlanta Public Schools (APS) are on probation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, related to a widespread cheating scandal involving standardized test scores.

In response, the Georgia General Assembly passed SB 79, which gives Governor Nathan Deal (R) the power to replace members of the Atlanta School Board. According to the law, if APS has not recieved accreditation by July 1 (which it is not expected to do), the state school board will hold a hearing to make sure APS is doing everything necessary to receive school accreditation by September. Khaatim El has announced his resignation as Chairman of the Atlanta School Board, but not before releasing a scathing email about Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, who supported the passage of SB 79.

On June 11, El wrote:

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“My time is up and I've already decided to step down as chairman for the good of the school system but look no further than to what's happening to the Atlanta City Council on this pension reform debate -- another one of the mayor's political stepping stone issues where impacts and people really don't matter if you're not in the downtown business district.”

The pension reform debate is another brewing issue, and a vote on a new plan could be had at a full Atlanta City Council meeting this Monday.

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El’s reference to the downtown business district suggests Reed is more concerned with the affluent portion of the city than anyone else. However, this (and the comment about pension reform) seems to be a red herring, distracting from El’s failure as chairman of a school board that allowed a wide spread cheating scandal.

It is no secret that teachers have been passing students who were performing well below their grade level, and El’s letter assumes no responsibility for this. Teachers in Atlanta have been free riding on falsely inflated passing rates, resulting in poorly educated students, whom they misrepresent as success stories. This led to APS losing accreditation. Heads are rolling, and the Atlanta School Board is currently in the process of appointing an interim superintendent, as the current superintendent, Dr. Beverly Hall is leaving June 30.

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