APS Redistricting: Lawyer Puts School District On Notice

A southwest Atlanta parent and attorney says changes in his area are unconstitutional.

An Atlanta attorney is questioning the legality of the Atlanta school board's recent approval of new school attendance zones. Attorney David H. Glass, who lives in the Summerhill community, sent a letter to the school board asking it to review the district's decision to zone the neighborhood to D.H. Stanton Elementary, arguing that it violates the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause. Glass argues that D.H. Stanton, in the Peoplestown neighborhood, is a low performing school. To be rezoned there is unfair to Summerhill when the neighborhood lobbied for and initially ended up being zoned to higher performing Parkside Elementary in Grant Park. "Parents in the Summerhill neighborhood feel their rights under the Fourteenth Amendment (Equal…

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Grady High to Remain Over Capacity Next Two Years

Atlanta Public Schools board of education member Cecily Harsch-Kinnane outlines the APS approved redistricting proposal to District 3 stakeholders.

Editor's note: The following letter was sent by Atlanta Public Schools board of education member Cecily Harsch-Kinnane, who represents several neighborhoods in Midtown, Virginia-Highland and East Atlanta, to District 3 stakeholders. Dear District 3 Stakeholders: This week the Atlanta Board of Education gave approval to a redistricting plan that was the end result of a two-year demographic study conducted by APS. The superintendent's final recommendation put in place a system-wide, stable cluster model and was a reflection of the administration's instructional, facility, and financial concerns; feedback from the communities; and input from the board members. The board unanimously approved the proposal with a modification which leaves open …

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Davis explains redistricting recommendations

Atlanta Public Schools board approves redistricting recommendations on Tuesday

Did you miss Tuesday’s Atlanta Board of Education meeting in which the board approved Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr.'s redistricting recommendations? If so, for a recap of the minute-by-minute event and highlights, please click on Patch's live blog link. The board decided to close seven schools and create nine clusters of elementary, middle and high schools to increase enrollment in undercapacity schools and provide additional resources to students, according to a news release on the meeting from APS spokesperson Keith Bromery.     The board removed F.L. Stanton, D.H. Stanton and Towns elementary schools from Davis' proposed closure list. The attached videos by East Atlanta Patch editor Péralte Paul show the APS board's final vote and …

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Portable Classrooms Coming to Inman Middle

Final proposal will be presented to the board of education on Tuesday

A grade six academy at Cook Elementary School is off the table — for now. In his final proposal, Superintendent Erroll B. Davis said portable classrooms will be installed at Inman Middle School for the 2012-2013 school year to addresses capacity issues. He said this will give “time to plan for any needed transitions,” which parents from the Inman cluster have actively advocated for. But the sixth grade academy for Inman Middle that was proposed to be built at Cook Elementary on Memorial Drive is still on the table for the future. “Inman has the former Cook facility available to use as a sixth grade academy while the enrollment numbers are assessed and a long-term solution is developed and implemented,” Davis wrote in his final proposal. …

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Parent-run survey: 'Modify' Grady Cluster Plan

Patch features an interactive map, showing the various schools in our communities impacted most by APS recommendations.

After months of controversy and debate, the APS Board of Education is set to vote on Superintendent Dr. Erroll Davis' latest redistricting and closure recommendations on Tuesday, April 10, at a meeting that has been moved to Jackson High School to accommodate a larger audience. Davis' overall plan calls for 10 schools to shut their doors at the end of the school year. Davis and the superintendent's staff have held numerous meetings with school parents, leaders and stakeholders throughout metro Atlanta for the past several weeks, as the system struggles with under-capacity schools throughout the city. Davis has said repeatedly that the system cannot afford to have numerous schools with less than 15 students per classroom, as those don't …

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‘Likely’ Expansion at Springdale Park Elementary

APS Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr., said some issues are still being resolved.

Davis Recommends Grade Six Academy at Cook

Superintendent's final APS redistricting plan includes keeping Coan Middle open.

The final stretch of the Atlanta Public Schools redistricting marathon has finally arrived. District Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr. released his final redistricting recommendation to the board of education late Saturday night, which includes closing Cook Elementary School on Memorial Drive and converting the building into a grade six academy for Inman Middle School. Davis said using Cook to house Inman sixth-graders will save the district between $20 to $30 million. The board will vote on the proposal at the April 10 meeting, which has been moved to Jackson High School to accommodate a larger audience. An expansion to accommodate the growing population at Springdale Park Elementary is still in the works, he said. Whitefoord Elementary…

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Davis: redistricting aims to 'provide a quality education to all of our students'

A letter from district superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr.

The following letter was sent on March 30, 2012, to city of Atlanta residents by Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr. Dear APS students, parents, employees, and supporters, There are occasional challenges in life that simply cannot be avoided and must be faced for the benefit of all concerned. This is the situation with the current redistricting effort, as we attempt to make needed changes in order for all students to academically benefit from a more equitable distribution of available educational resources. Our proposal calls for the closure of 13 under-enrolled schools and the creation of 10 clean feeder patterns or clusters, the latter establishing a direct, un-splintered flow of students from elementary to middle …

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MNA advocates expansion of SPARK, Inman and Grady to support growing student population

The Midtown Neighbors' Association releases its position statement on the Atlanta Public Schools redistricting as it applies to Midtown.

Editor's note: The Midtown Neighbors' Association has drafted a position letter to APS Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr., the APS school board and the Atlanta city council concerning the current APS rezoning. The MNA shared its letter with Midtown Patch. Dear Mr. Davis, APS Staff, Atlanta Board of Education, and Atlanta City Council Members, Again, thank you for your commitment in working to achieve balanced capacity utilization in Atlanta Public Schools, and to create attractive, high performing schools. As you know, Midtown children were rezoned less than three years ago, and we thank APS for avoiding the disruption of Midtown’s students in this round of rezoning and for keeping Midtown in our current feeder pattern of Springdale Park …

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