Can the DeKalb school board reinvent itself in 30 days?
This is the digest form of the four-hour state Board of Education hearing today on whether or not to suspend the DeKalb Board of Education. If want all the details, scan my live blog from the hearing.
The DeKalb board is fighting for its survival after the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools placed the district on probation last month because of board mismanagement, meddling, nepotism and fiscal failings. The General Assembly passed a law in 2011 that gave the governor the legal power to remove errant school boards who jeopardize their district’s accreditation.
After the hearing during which every DeKalb board member testified, the state Board of Education delayed voting on recommending that the governor oust the fractious school board, instead approving a consent agreement and giving DeKalb time to show improvement.
But not as much time as the school board wanted.
It was clear some state board members were exasperated with the ongoing problems in DeKalb and doubtful that the nine DeKalb school board members had the ability to transcend their differences. But it was also clear that some state board members were reluctant to dissolve a local school board that includes three newly elected members who only took office 10 days ago.
At the start of the marathon hearing, lawyers for both the state Department of Education and the DeKalb school board urged the state board to sanction a consent agreement that would have allowed the board three months to initiate reforms recommended by SACS.
But the state board declined to grant DeKalb three months to right its ship. Instead, the state board approved a consent decree that gives DeKalb 30 days to register some progress rather than the April date sought by the county.
After approving the consent agreement, the state board immediately told the DeKalb board to return on Feb. 21 to report on its progress at which time the state board could choose to vote on suspension.
This gives DeKalb only 30 days to register some significant progress.
“If they’ve done a rock star job, we can give them to June,” said state board member Mike Royal. “Does that mean we have to vote to remove or not to remove in our recommendation to the governor. No, but April kicks this can too far down the road. This is a critical situation that is upon us now. It is not new and there are 98,000 children in DeKalb County depending on us now.”
However, the DeKalb board attorney maintained that 30 days is insufficient to produce change. ”We believe a two month or a two-and-a-half month process is fairer,” said DeKalb attorney Rocco Testani.
He asked state board members to consider what nine board members could realistically accomplish in 30 days.
Testani was assisted in making his case by the DOE attorney Jennifer Hackemeyer who warned that DeKalb citizens may be confused if the state board signs a consent order giving the DeKalb board three months to make progress but then turns around and brings them back in 30 days and vote on their fates.
Hackemeyer reminded the state board about what they were facing with Sumter County. (The Sumter board filed a civil lawsuit in November against the State Board of Education and Gov. Nathan Deal.)
In defending his board, DeKalb Chair Eugene Walker told the state, “We have had a number of rumors that confounded our ability to govern. People would rather listen to the rumors than look at the records. I admit at times we can be cantankerous but we have honest and decent people on that board. We don’t have people taking money.”
State board member Wanda Barrs raised thoughtful points on what actions will produce the best outcome for DeKalb. Is it ousting the entire board, including three newly elected members, in a month’s time? Or is it working with the board through better guidance and monitoring over three months?
Note that the Clayton school board was ousted and replaced by Gov. Sonny Perdue, but the problems in the district persist, just with a new cast of characters.
In addition, there may be a legal question to whether the state can oust brand new board members who were not in office when SACS placed the system on probation.
There were several comments today at the hearing about the absence of DeKalb Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson, who had a family medical emergency. But it was not just her physical absence that was commented upon; state board member Wanda Barrs pressed DeKalb school board member Pam Speaks on whether Atkinson had the “capacity” to help the board.
“I don’t think it is the superintendent’s role to fix our responsibilities as a board,” responded Speaks. “I do think the superintendent has the capacity to work in conjunction, in collaboration, with the present Board of Education to allow the board to carry out their role and responsibilities as well as for her to carry out her roles and responsibilities.”
A refrain by many DeKalb board members was that they did not knowingly violate any policies. Several expressed puzzlement over some of the SACS criticisms. All the veteran board members said that they did undergo the required board training, and believed their actions fell within the confines of their board duties and responsibilities.
That line of defense — we didn’t know what we were doing was wrong — did not go over well with some state board members.
State board member Brian K. Burdette wants a list of the training that every DeKalb school board member has undertaken, telling them: “Everyone says they had the training. If they had it, it didn’t work. If it had, we wouldn’t be here. As a board member, you are supposed to know what you can and cannot do. If you don’t know, it is up to you to find out and police yourselves. It is incumbent on you all. It is not incumbent on SACS. It isn’t incumbent on this board. It is incumbent on you to fix it. ”
–from Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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199 comments Add your comment
Disgusted
January 18th, 2013
2:42 pm
One of the things that struck me while watching and listening yesterday was how several of our board members struggled with language. They not only had trouble communicating their thoughts, they seemed to have trouble grasping the ideas communicated by SACS and by the state board members. This must be a huge handicap when trying to fulfill the responsibilities of a board member. Dekalb has many challenges, including a large population of students from low-income households, immigrant households,and households with low levels of education. We don’t need to be handicapped by school board members who can’t communicate adequately, much less effectively.
Dr. John Trotter
January 18th, 2013
2:49 pm
“SACS isn’t here because of race; they are actually about five years overdue for actual, tangible violations and problems.”
Now “The Deal,” what actually are these “violaitons”? Are they criminal in nature? Or, do they merely violate SACS’s desire for school board members to act “collaboratively”? Maybe the school board didn’t hold hands long enough and sing enough nursery rhymes. By this same SACS “standard” (that, by the way, isn’t applied in Cobb County where they fight like heck over such inane matters as school calendars), perhaps we ought to also disband the U. S. Congress, the Georgia General Assembly, the Chamblee City Council, etc. These bodies also engage in lively and rigorous debates.
By the way, can’t Mark Elgart see the “taillights” in Cobb, Gwinnett, and Fulton too? Yes, do an old Terry v. Ohio stop on them too!
Just what has made this current school board so much worse than the DeKalb School Board, say, of six or seven years ago? I haven’t noitce any big difference. I notice that that the DeKalb Administration doesn’t always like to follow the Georgia Statutes governing schools. But, hey, if the school board members question the administration about this, then they get in more trouble with the hallowed and holy Mark Elgart, the great self-appointed Zeus of Education in Georgia. Nah, the only difference that I have noticed is the hue of the majority of the school board members’ skin color. When the majority of the members’ hue was lighter, then, hey, no problem. But, when the school board got darker, well, well, well. Here came the problems with SACS.
It’s fun to tell the truth, and it’s real fun when the hit dog squeals! Ha!
LOGIC
January 18th, 2013
2:50 pm
@ Dr. Trotter
I have not said that they have broken laws, even though it seems evident that laws have been broken. Just look at Grand Jury presentments to see the breaking of the laws. I have said that they cannot execute their duties for which they were elected.
Soooo…look at the SACS report to see where they did not execute their duties. How I enjoyed typing those words.
Have a wonderful and blessed weekend down in Brazil and let those of us here in DeKalb worry about our communities.
Bill & Ed's Excellent Adventure
January 18th, 2013
3:06 pm
This week has been insane — first, I agreed with concernedmom’29, then, I agreed with Dunwoody mom. And, NOW, I agree with @The Deal. Unbelievable.
Bill & Ed's Excellent Adventure
January 18th, 2013
3:10 pm
@concernedmom30329 I’m pretty sure that the reason we’ve come to this point is because parents have “demanded more.”
Dunwoody Mom
January 18th, 2013
3:11 pm
No, Bill & Ed’s it’s not too unbelievable. While, we may have different views of how to get there, I really believe our goals are the same – quality education for every student in this school district. It’s time now to start anew and see if we can do it – ALL of us.
Dr. John Trotter
January 18th, 2013
3:12 pm
@ LOGIC: I didn’t think that they had broken any laws. You just don’t like them and the way they operate, right? SACS is a joke. I’ve read one too many SACS reports already. Full of errors and terribly written. You would think that someone making around $400,000.00 in salary and benefits from public monies would hire someone who could write decently and cogently, if Mark Elgart himself can’t write so well.
SACS is just an end run. Get SACS to say that the board is “deficient,” not upholding the fake “standards” of SACS, standards, by the way, which are egregiously applied in the most arbitrary, inconsistent, and capricious manner. SACS? I still say that it stands for Still Advocating for Cronies and Superintendents.
I will have a good evening (almost 6:00 PM down here). Thank you. Plan on watching the fourth and final night of the story of Luiz Gonzaga. A great story, by the way, of an unlikely musical legend here in Brazil. Then, tomorrow I may head on over to Copa to join some American friends from St. Louis who are down for a wedding. Lawrence wll finally tie the knot with Deborah from Brasilia but not before a fun vacation with the St. Louis Gang in Rio. Of course, I’ll have to join Americans watching the Falcons-49ers game at Blue Agave, owned by Jason of California.
Don’t put your hope in SACS, good folks. SACS is a false god. SACS is like BAAL that the Israelites were often tempted to worship…instead of Jehovah. Didn’t Elijah call down fire from Heaven? Or, was that his mentee-prophet Elishah? I get these two prophets confused sometimes. Their names sound so much the same. All of those Old Testament prophets were considered crazy as bed bugs by the people of their day, especially that Jeremiah! Didn’t the Good Master query those in his day: “Which of the prophets did your forefathers not stone?”
Pardon My Blog
January 18th, 2013
3:20 pm
This all comes back to the argument of setting qualifications for an individual to qualify to run for a position on the Board in the first place. What we don’t need are individuals on the Board with felony convictions, no business or practical experience, etc.
This is not about race, this is not about one area better than the other, this about giving all students a quality education.
Dr. Trotter, perhaps your time would be better served with suggestions of positive solutions instead of trying to cause discourse and division like someone else we know.
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
3:21 pm
Qualifications
In response to a proposal that educated people run the country, William F. Buckley said I’d rather be governed by the first 100 names in the Boston phone book.
Credentials don’t equate to results. Look at the resumes of the DCSD board over the last few years:
Paul Womack – Bachelors from UGA, VP of Trailways, President of Georgia Courier, VP of First Financial Group (Fortune 400)
Bowen – BS Accounting, Attorney and CPA, Director of U.S. Transaction with Hewlett Packard, JD from Georgia State University, College of Law
Redovian – BA degree in Finance from Ohio University, President and Owner of Atlantic Southern Products
That’s the first three I looked up. They sucked and would be way above any bar we set.
Pardon My Blog
January 18th, 2013
3:23 pm
@ Dr. Trotter – Eugene Walker, to name one, has a criminal background.
Private Citizen
January 18th, 2013
3:23 pm
If they haven’t broken any laws, then the law is not sufficient to govern operation of school districts; the law should be more specific. This may be the real core of what is going on.
“You must take the horse to water once a day or you go to jail.”
“I didn’t take the horse to water.”
“Well then, you go to jail.”
“I’ll take the horse to water.”
Pardon My Blog
January 18th, 2013
3:25 pm
@ Dr. Trotter – I think you would be surprised at the backgrounds of some of the Board members. Start with Eugene Walker, I know he thinks people have forgotten some of his past discretiions.
bu2
January 18th, 2013
3:29 pm
@Pardon My Blog
Can you give examples? I think you may be confusing Walker with Cunningham.
dekalbite@Dr. Trotter
January 18th, 2013
3:34 pm
I’m amazed that you understand so little about the way DCSS works that you would compare its problems with Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett, etc.
One main difference in DCSS and Cobb, Fulton, Gwinnett, etc. is the difference in achievement. If DCSS was achieving at the same rate as those systems, there would be much less outrage. People do not bypass moving into a school system because it has a good student achievement rate. Nor do property values fall as fast and deep in areas where there is a good student achievement rate.
Another difference is that DeKalb is so unequal in its educational offerings from school to school. Have you been in Fernbank or Vanderlyn and then been in some of the poorer Title 1 schools in South or North DeKalb? Not as a protestor or visitor, but in the classrooms working and/or observing.
If you are a student at Fernbank you receive Spanish as a foreign language, yoga classes, and an extra science teacher to do experiments and hands-on science, just to name a few. If you go to Vanderlyn and Austin, you have a plethora of technology funded mainly by the PTA and a number of fulltime teachers of gifted. Now go to one of the Title 1 schools and you will find their Title 1 funds spent for highly paid non teaching Instructional Data Coaches who have data clerks assigned to them so they can collect the “student data”. Watch the students as teachers use expensive and non proven scripted learning programs paid for by the Title 1 funds. Ask those teachers in those Title 1 schools about the utter absence of collaboration between the Central Office and the teachers who should be consulted about what works best for their students. Does this sound like a level playing field? The inequities in educational offerings in DeKalb is a dramatic difference between DeKalb and the systems you cite.
For example, if you go to school in Gwinnett, there will be differences in the make-up of the student body from school to school, some come from affluent areas and some come from low income homes. But the educational experience is similar. Art, music, PE, etc. are not choices for some and not for others. Students’ access to technology found in one school is almost identical from one school to the next. That is to say, the degree of standardization is predictable from school to school. That is so untrue in DeKalb. This makes for a very fractious and fractured school system. In other words, the educational foundation is broken in DeKalb, we do not have a uniformly affluent population to provide the scaffolding for our students, and Title 1 funds are not spent in a manner that would bridge the gap.
IMHO – when a school system has such a fractured foundation as DeKalb and cannot operate for the good of students (i.e. provide them with equitable opportunities for increased student achievement), an outside entity may be the only hope for reform.
bu2
January 18th, 2013
3:34 pm
And Disgusted’s comments apply to Nancy Jester and Eugene Walker, as far as comprehending the issues. Both are intelligent, well educated people who don’t seem to grasp criticism when it relates to them.
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
3:36 pm
Let’s clear something up:
1. SACS report is a load of crap. Please cite one example in the SACS report that is accurate and relevant.
2. The ONLY reason SACS is in here is to provide cover for Dr Atkinson and the administration.
Let’s discuss for the limited time we have left at the office on a Friday.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
3:42 pm
@Bill and Ed, ha! A broken clock is correct twice a day?
I guess anything is possible when we’re discussing DeKalb County, right?
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
3:56 pm
@DIO, why do you care if the SACS report is crap or not? I personally don’t think it is. Do I think it’s complete? No. Do I even think DCSD should be contracting with SACS? No. But am I glad it’s shedding light on DCSD? Most definitely.
Things that I believe are factual in the SACS report, through personal observation or experience:
Board members meddle in student assignment.
Board practice does not demonstrate proper fiscal management.
HR practices are not clearly communicated or published.
Not focused on academic improvement
Lacks a culture of collaboration
Culture of fear
Persistent communication problem with no operational plan
No documentation on how system hires competent support staff
Committese send a message of ownership of those areas.
Textbooks were not ready on Day 1.
Legal fees are taking money needed for classrooms.
The system is failing to meet the needs of students and staff.
The system has failed to provide proper technology infrastructure.
Do you disagree with any of these?
Dr. John Trotter
January 18th, 2013
3:57 pm
@ Pardon: I believe that I asked about criminal actions on the school board. Heck, I have been falsely arrested and incarcerated on four occasions. Hence, my little respect for “authority,” much less any jackleg gorup like SACS. Charges against me are summarily dropped due to lack of evidence. One time a hardheaded prosecutor just “dead-docketed” the file. Pretty much the same difference. I was waiting with baited breath to go to court. Ha! Now that would have been a show…but not before the illustrious depositions. Anyone who knows me knows that depositions would have been my thing in this crazy case of a principal having me arrested in APS.. With all the cheating going on at the time, no wonder they were scared of me! Ha!
Yes, I think that you might confused Dr. Walker with Mr. Cunningham, for that matter.
by the way, I might be inclined to agree with William F. Buckley, but the telepnone book appointees would still be appointees, and I’d still want them to have to go through the rigors of a campaign.
Billy Ray
January 18th, 2013
4:00 pm
The only school these guys should be running is Clown School.
Eugene Walker during the Fernbank hearings: “Hey, baby! Now, don’t be like that! Hey, baby! Don’t just get up and walk away?” Come on back and vote! Awww, baby! Why you got to be that way?”
How much lower can DeKalb go on the professionalism scale?
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
4:01 pm
Why are election campaigns perceived to be any less political and prone to error or corruption than appointments? There’s corruption in both processes. The throat to choke in an appointment environment is the elected official who appointed them. Plus, appointed ones can be removed a lot more easily than elected ones.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
4:07 pm
@Dunwoody Mom, here’s the consent decree: http://dekalbschoolwatch.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/consent-order-and-agreement-dekalb-boe.pdf
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
4:14 pm
The Deal
Correct … DCSD board and admin … suck, suck, suck. I’m saying
1. SACS isn’t accurately reporting any of those issues.
2. SACS didn’t swoop in for any of those reasons.
What do you like about the report or see as accurate?
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
4:22 pm
Dr Trotter
The rigors of a campaign amount to the only respectable bar I can think of. Credentials and experience don’t mean anything. PhD in Education, 20 years experience teaching, CPA, VP of whatever … do not equate to good elected official.
Mom with a calculator is the one knocking it out.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
4:27 pm
DIO, what I listed above is straight from the report. I agree with everything they said that I listed there. Other things they listed as issues that I didn’t list, I don’t have personal knowledge of, but 1) that doesn’t mean it didn’t happen 2) at this point, I wouldn’t doubt anything from this group of jokers.
Is it complete? No. Does SACS have “authority” over everything that is wrong? No, but that isn’t SACS’s fault.
Again, just glad to have our board members (who are part of the problem, not all of it) on the hot seat. They literally have never been in this type of hot seat. Nice to see the tables turned.
Linda
January 18th, 2013
5:04 pm
bu2 @3:29 – here on the old DeKalb Schoolwatch blog is info on the legally checkered pasts of Walker and Cunningham: http://dekalbschoolwatch.blogspot.com/2011/02/has-tom-bowen-lost-his-mind.html
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
5:06 pm
The Deal
Yeah, nice to see somebody give the DCSD board the what-fer … sort of.
Back to the SACS report. The “Indicators” are what SACS is basing it’s report on.
Indicator 2.1 – Coralwood shuttle issue, Policy DJE Issue.
Indicator 2.2 – The board argues with each other. The board shows distrust in administration.
Indicator 2.3 – Board members overstepping bounds and strong arming teachers and principals (This is accurate but hardly why DCSD is where it is).
Indicator 2.4 – The use of “I” and “me” are unacceptable
etc …
You agree with this SACS report? Which indicators? Yes, DCSD board and administrators need to have their butts dragged down to the gold dome, but not because of the SACS report.
Note: Please use these sources as references: Coralwood Shuttle and Policy DJE
bu2
January 18th, 2013
5:08 pm
https:/eboard.eboardsolutions.com/AboutBoard.aspx?S=4054
Background on the returning board members. The “mom with a calculator” has a degree in economics and was an actuarial consultant. And, while I’m glad she’s on the board, her running to the press or blogs when she doesn’t get her way is part of the problem and she is oblivious to that. While she may not have started the problems, it doesn’t contribute to cooperative work.
Ray
January 18th, 2013
5:21 pm
State board member Linda Zechmann commenting on how often Orson mentions he is brand new: “Everyone needs to be aware that is not relevant to this body. We are charged to look at your board as a whole. I want to make sure you don’t belabor that point because it is meaningless to this body.”
________
This is twilight zone material. Mr. Orson and two other board members were just elected to the board — campaigning on a platform of change and ousting incumbents — and were just sworn in and started with the board LAST WEEK. Then one of the first things they must do is report to the State Board for this hearing where they are disrespected and impugned with the alleged misdeeds of their predecessors, and Ms. Zechmann tells Mr. Orson it is “meaningless” to the State Board that Orson and the other two board members just started last week. If that is not twilight zone material, I don’t know what is. No wonder it’s hard to get good people to run for school boards. But hey, at least they make a whopping $18,000 per year.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
5:47 pm
Ray, she was just being honest. They do not have the power to pick and choose. Orson did say it, oh, about 20 times, and she was just telling him he’s barking up the wrong tree. They know there are 3 new board members. The only thing about new board members that is relevant to the state BOE is if they determine that 3 new board members seems like enough to effect change that they are looking for or if they would rather just scrap the whole board and let the Governor decide if the new ones are reappointed individually. It wasn’t personal.
bu2
January 18th, 2013
5:55 pm
But it is relevant to whether the SBOE ignores the will of the political process and disenfranchises the voters. Zechmann was as oblivious to that as Dr. Walker was to the concerns of the SBOE. Its also relevant to whether the board can make changes when 1/3 is brand new.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
5:56 pm
DIO, the information I stated is listed UNDER the indicators as a., b., etc.
But if you want the specific numbers that I agree with, here they are: 2.1.a (student assignment), 2.1.b (fiscal management), 2.1.d (HR practices and policies), 2.2.a (dysfunctional), 2.2.b (brazenly disregarding policies, no decorum), 2.2.c (individual autonomy), 2.3.a (blurring line b/c admin and board), 2.3.b (working directly with staff), 2.3.c (disregard for proper role), 2.4.a (not united, no improvement goal), 2.4.b (no culture of collaboration), 2.4.c (culture of fear), 2.5.a (visiting schools), 2,5,b (persistent communication problems)
I listed these because I have seen them myself. The other ones I didn’t list could be true, but I didn’t see them happen myself. Are you saying that none of the above happens?
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
5:59 pm
bu2, the board is following the law. If you have a problem with the law, take it up with your legislators, not the state BOE. If your legislators voted “yes” and you don’t agree with them, then vote against them next time. If the current board decides to challenge, then so be it. The state BOE has a responsibility to act according to the allowances they are given, and, right now, that is the law. Should they just not act simply b/c they are scared they would be challenged?
Ray
January 18th, 2013
6:00 pm
The Deal: If Orson said it 20 times I’m sure it was because it was fairly surreal to him to be hauled before the State Board for some kangaroo court hearing where the likes of Linda Zecchman, a political appointee, dresses him down with snotty questions and remarks like he’s some accused felon at an arraignment. Mr. Orson has run for the school board not once, but twice, at immense expenditure of time and effort, literally pouring his soul into his campaigns, so that he might be able to effect some change for the better or make a positive impact on public schools in DeKalb County, to which he is very dedicated and his own children attend. And now Zecchman and her ilk want to toss him out before he has even had a chance to do anything?? And you say “it isn’t personal”. Try walking a mile in Mr. Orson’s and the other two new board members’ shoes before you utter such a ridiculous platitude. I would venture to say that Zecchman and the State Board didn’t want to hear that 3 of the DeKalb board members were new any more because she knows it is absolutely crazy to be even talking about removing them.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
6:16 pm
Ah, now I understand. You’re one of Orson’s friends. It all makes sense. Orson, Jim, and Melvin all ran knowing that DeKalb was on advisement and theoretically, they were aware that the system had only declined since then, so it was at their own risk. SACS also arrived for an investigative visit in October and issued their probationary status prior to their taking an oath of office. When they took their oath of office in early January, they entered into a system they knew was on probation, didn’t they? I don’t feel sorry for them; they knew what they were getting into.
I’ll say it again since you obviously didn’t read it the first time: the state BOE only has the power to remove the entire board. As such, they need a hearing with the entire board. Are you suggesting that the state BOE hold a hearing to remove the entire sitting board while excluding three members from even giving a statement? THAT would be a kangaroo court.
If you don’t like the process, take it up with your legislators. The state BOE is only following the protocol they are required to by law.
bu2
January 18th, 2013
6:30 pm
Deal you fail to understand also. I think its colored by your understandable frustration with DCSS and your opinion that the whole board should be removed.
The SBOE can remove the whole board if it doesn’t think it will make progress. Having a lot of new members is an indication that things will be different, not necessarily better, but different. Disenfranchising voters is not something that should be done lightly.
bu2
January 18th, 2013
6:32 pm
That Zechman may have been disrespectful to the new members is not relevant. That she was disrepectful to the voters is offensive.
concernedmom30329
January 18th, 2013
6:35 pm
The Governor has the ability to put the three new board members back on an appointed board.
What I wonder is this, wouldn’t the three of them welcome the opportunity to serve with higher caliber folks? Because of the low quality of the work that Cunningham, Walker and Copelin-Woods have done for the last 6-12 years, I have to believe that whomever the Governor would appoint would be better.
Wouldn’t that help the three new board members? (For the record, while I know Marshall doesn’t want to believe this, Johnson is closely linked to Walker and to the power base of S DeKalb. He won’t be the board member Marshall thinks he will be.)
I have little sympathy for any of the three newly elected candidates. They knew what they were getting into. Jim and Marshall have been involved, attended board meetings and much more than that.
BU2 — you complaints about Jester remind me of the complaints of one of Sarah Copelin-Wood’s constituents who didn’t like that Jester had a facebook page and used it. Copelin-Wood didn’t do this and thus it wasn’t fair that Jester did. Jester is just trying to bring transparency to a messy situation. Is she over the top right now? Probably. I think she a bit frantic and overwhelmed that the system is what the system is.
With the current 9, including the new board members, nothing is going to change. (Except the votes — I suspect the Walker 5 will now be the Walker 7.) Sad for the children of DeKalb.
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
6:35 pm
bu2, I said that same thing above. The fact that the board has new members is only relevant if they think 3 new members will have a positive effect given the evidence (SACS report) that they have to work with.
But I completely disagree with your “disrespectful to voters”. The state BOE did not make the law. If anyone was disrespectful, it was your legislators. I happen to agree with it, but if you don’t, you only have your legislators to blame. The state BOE was required by law to hold the hearing. If, in their experience, they determine they want to recommend that the governor remove them, that is fully within their rights and responsibilities. Are you expecting the state BOE to either violate or ignore the law?
Take it up with your legislator, and stop blaming the state BOE. They are not the villains.
Orson, Melvin, and Jimmy Mac should be setting up chats with the Governor, since he is the only one, under the law, who can pick and choose.
Private Citizen
January 18th, 2013
6:40 pm
This is twilight zone material. Mr. Orson and two other board members were just elected to the board
Talk about being at the wrong place at the wrong time.
at least they make a whopping $18,000 per year
Doesn’t make much sense, as if designed to attract folk who will network for ancillary recompense (prestige, political ladder stepping-stone, pay/money). Incomprehensible set-up. Is school board member position supposed to be try-out or internship for greater politics? The standard compensation does not to seem to track amount of responsibility. It’s bizarre. The whole school board system is bizarre with “let the public have a go at it” for skilled supervisory management. If IBM or Amazon.com did this, there would not be much left of them as a company.
Concernedmom30329
January 18th, 2013
7:00 pm
Bu2
Where you at the hearing? Ms. Zechman’s tone and body language indicated to me that she was simply frustrated and distressed about the situation. It wasn’t personal to Marshall.
With the exception of the three new board members, this crew has had multiple warnings and chances. Almost all of them said this was a “wake up call.” Are you kidding me?
From a previous post, I realize you are relatively new to DeKalb. You haven’t been around enough to understand that at nearly every election there are new members of the DeKalb Board. Most of them start off as good people (Womack and Walker are big exceptions.) but almost none can really be effective. It is the culture of DeKalb.
Since the selection of Crawford Lewis as superintendent, DeKalb School boards have thrived with a weak leader because they can get what they want for the schools in their districts. You have no idea, I suspect, how prevalent this behavior is, especially among the S. DeKalb Board members. (In fairness, a few years ago, there were several N. DeKalb board members who behaved the same. I won’t name names, but one’s Daddy was the superintendent years ago.)
What I believe is that a mostly appointed board, perhaps with some specific standards and qualifications, would do a better job. Keep the three newly elected members and add to them professionals with no relatives who work for the systems, day jobs, and a college or technical degree.
i will end with this — yesterday three board members fell asleep during the hearing — Cunningham (who was ill), Walker and poor Copelin-Woods.
We need a change. I am sorry you think we can wait two years to get it.
Private Citizen
January 18th, 2013
8:27 pm
Does anyone have a flow chart to the administrative lay-out of DCS? I mean, how many bosses are there? i just don’t get it. “Board of Education” “Superintendent” and this person is “CEO.” http://tucker.patch.com/articles/dekalb-ceo-makes-statement-on-schools-system-probation Aren’t superintendent and CEO that same thing? I’m confused… It would be interesting / useful to see a diagram flow chart of administration, chain of command. I wonder if such a thing exists.
Private Citizen
January 18th, 2013
8:37 pm
If you take the names and individuals out of it, it would be productive to look at organizational structure and how specific is the law defining their duties. This is public money, after all. Maybe the law needs to define the mission statement and specific duties, not generalised, and basic chain of command management structure to go with it. As the public, we should be readily able to see an organizational chart and body of law to go with it specifying duties and methods. Any activity veering from that should be address immediately per individual action. There appears to be way too much collective responsibility, lack of individual accountability, and a generalised duty/method that is open to exploit due to non-definition. The extent of the current situation is in great part due to poor definition of duties and immediate attention to individual accountability to perform duties for which salary is paid. This is pretty simple stuff and it seems to be lacking, not there. If the public or state takes so little responsibility for defining what they are paying for, and requiring basic individual accountability, then the expected result will be something unwoven.
DeKalb Inside Out
January 18th, 2013
8:58 pm
The Deal
Ah … I see … your list is paraphrasing the SACS report … that threw me off. In the process of paraphrasing, I think you’ve mistranslated many of their points. We can go through this at a later date. Given the Governor’s speech this week, we’ll have plenty of chances to go through SACS. Thanks for your patience with me.
GETtheCELLoutATL
January 18th, 2013
9:09 pm
concerned parent: First of all, there are quite a few people in DeKalb who are either old or ignorant or even both, but that would not justify hostility toward them, would it? I wouldn’t ordinarily waste time responding to someone who obviously does not wish to engage in intelligent dialogue, but the grammatical errors in your post were too many for me to ignore.
“Your either to old to know what wireless is or means or your just ignorant and really don’t know better.” How many errors do you see in this sentence? Surely they cannot all be attributed to typos, can they?
Perhaps we can just chalk it up to your inability to receive a quality education, in which case it isn’t completely your fault, but you really shouldn’t go around advertising your shortcomings that way.
As for the school systems that have “gone wireless” as you have put it, I would like to put the question back to you. Provide me with a single school system the size of DeKalb that has transitioned their entire system to e-books, I-Pads, cell phones – whatever you want to call it. If you would step outside your own assumptions for a moment and actually attempt to do the research yourself, you will find that there are none. There have been some smaller test markets but even they were wise enough not to try and roll out such a plan to their entire district without any solid research to prove that the investment up front is actually a wise business decision and without any evidence that it helps improve learning in any way. Regardless of the way they deliver the coursework to you, nothing will help if you do not actually read the words and try to retain the information. That’s learning. Everything else is just a distraction to getting our schools focused on education instead of obsessed with inanimate objects or new construction projects. The spending spree is about to come to an end, so it isn’t really the best time to try to be innovators. We would be better served if we just tried to see what things have worked elsewhere and then just try to do that.
Now, I’m guessing you probably do not pay property taxes here, but I do so I have a right to be concerned about how my money is being spent and, in light of the fact that teachers and school house employees are losing their jobs and classes are overcrowded, I would much prefer to see money reinvested in our own communities (plural) to help these issues that are having a negative impact on the quality of education we are able to provide the students, such as yourself. And, as much as you may enjoy using a computer that doesn’t need a power cord, there really is no educational benefit to it. Wireless is merely a method for delivery of content. Books can deliver that same content and have been for decades, so I have yet to hear how a big investment in devices makes sense, especially when they are more likely to get lost, broken, stolen or be used to play games, or cheat instead of helping kids learn like they should be doing.
With that being said, there are other big issue about wireless when it pertains to children, that is if you are talking about routers placed inside the school buildings that would allow any device, including personal devices and school issued ones, to access the school system’s fiber optic network, which was paid for with SPLOST III dollars, without a physical cable.
But, you do not have to take my “old” or “ignorant” word for it. Please, check out any of the links below and read the very recent statements that have been made by the EPA, FDA and even the American Pediatric Association. They are all very reputable groups in the U.S. that have released statements urging schools to remain on wired networks due to the potential health effects in children which include difficulties with concentrating as well as trouble sleeping.
It’s fine if you want to take these kinds of risks for yourself, but an entire school district should be a little more cautious when they are making blanket decisions that will affect thousands of children. Even if they believe the science is not certain, they still have an obligation to err on the side of caution. You cannot force all children to go to school and then fail to provide them a safe environment in which to do so, unless you are Communist, I guess.
The 2012 BioInitiative Report
The Report is the work of 29 independent scientists and health experts from 10 countries. The independent research group Powerwatch says of the Reports contributors “they hold 10 medical degrees (MDs), 21 PhDs, and three MSc, MA or MPHs. Among the authors are three former presidents of the Bioelectromagnetics Society, and five full members of BEMS. One distinguished author is the Chair of the Russian National Committee on Non-Ionizing Radiation. Another is a Senior Advisor to the European Environmental Agency.”
One of the Report’s contributors, M. Herbert, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School comments: ” While we aggressively investigate the links between autism disorders and wireless technologies, we should minimize wireless and EMF exposures for people with autism disorders, children of all ages, people planning a baby, and during pregnancy.”
Now, I know I’m no assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School, but I am a parent and I have a lot more faith in the report from these folks than I do in the information the DeKalb Board of Education is using to base their decisions on, which is probably nothing more than the information given to them by the vendors that the Superintendent is getting her kickback money from. I’m not saying that is going on for sure, but she sure is happy holding up a “Netbook” which is a poor quality Chineese knock off product from Lenovo, a company that took customer service jobs out of Atlanta a few years ago to move them over to a town near Charlotte, NC, Dr. Atkinson’s former school district.
And, if you like playing games and are excited about getting a school system cheap laptop, think again about what else they can do with it. They have already said the computers will have tracking devices in them and they will probably be able to read all your emails and text messages, too. If you like being watched or tracked, then good for you. I’d rather keep my rights to privacy, free speech and protect my child’s health and education while hoping my tax dollars will be used to pay for products or jobs in my own county or state instead of being sent to other areas or other countries.
But, that’s just me. What do I know, right? Here are just a couple links for now:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/120379327/Safe-Schools-2012-Wireless-Iniative
http://www2.aap.org/visit/cmte16.htm
The Deal
January 18th, 2013
9:27 pm
@Private Citizen, many people have requested an org chart with names from the school system, but they claim they do not have the technology to produce it. There is a generic org chart on the website, but there are no names, and it only goes down so far.
I presume you have already figured this out, but the CEO is the county CEO, not just the school system.
@ DIO, honestly, SACS could have written them up for picking their noses, and I would have been okay with that, so we don’t need to worry about the semantics.
I despise this board and everything they have done (or not done) for our schools, including, but not limited to, hiring a horrendous superintendent. I do not think 3 new members will make a difference, but I wouldn’t freak out if they were reappointed, either. I don’t think the others have any place on a $1B board. Normally I would also vigorously defend Nancy Jester, but I didn’t appreciate the free pass she gave Atkinson and the CFO. I don’t have a problem with an appointed board, and I appreciate the tough questions from the state BOE. I accept that there is the possibility of corruption and politics in an appointed board, but I am more comfortable with the possible unknown than I am with the known idiots we have now.
I have now wasted half of my child’s education in limbo waiting for something positive to happen with this system. I am embarrassed that I didn’t see the writing on the wall sooner. Now anything that happens is going to harm my child. Staying in the DeKalb public schools will harm her. Moving to a private school will harm her, as we don’t really have the money for that. Moving her away from good friends and established activities will harm her. We really are stuck between a rock and a hard place, and there are tens of thousands more just like us.
Replacing a few board members and then working for months on new policies and ideas is like using a dustbuster in a hoarder’s house. It will never get to the heart of the problem unless there is a fresh start.
dekalbite@bu2
January 18th, 2013
9:33 pm
“The “mom with a calculator” has a degree in economics and was an actuarial consultant.”
So being ignorant of financial matters – i.e. not being able to read an income statement or a balance sheet excuses BOE members from culpability. Shouldn’t Dr. Lewis and subsequently Ms. Tyson been able to understand basic financial management? Why was Dr. Lewis paid close to half a million dollars in salary and benefits and Ms. Tyson paid $300,000+ in salary and benefits if they were so woefully ignorant of accounting principles? After all the BOE hired them. Are we to excuse all of the administrators (superintendents and BOE) who ran a billion dollar a year enterprise into the ground while utterly failing to deliver the one product they absolutely were supposed to deliver – student achievement. If you can’t understand basic accounting principles, why would you take on a job that requires those skills in order to make your organization successful?
Ray
January 18th, 2013
10:16 pm
The Deal: Wasn’t the DeKalb school board election last July? Way before the SACS “investigative visit” in October, and placing DeKalb on probation in December? So what were the three new board members supposed to do in your mind — not run for school board and try to help improve things because they should have known SACS may have put the board on probation between the election date and the date the new board members took office?
And with regard to the lovely statute that the State BOE is operating under, I suppose you would say that no one should bother running for a troubled school board and try to improve it from within or through the democratic process because the State BOE might just remove the entire board — is that it? Yeah, that sounds great. Again, no wonder it’s so hard to get good people to run for school board.
@ray
January 18th, 2013
10:45 pm
Ray
The system was headed towards probation before the election. DCSS was already on advisement. While I can’t speak about Dr Johnson, I know that Jim and Marshall knew what they were getting onto.
If Don had been reelected, I imagine you would be first in.line to call for the board’s removal.
The Governor can and probably will.keep the newly elected board members.
Disgusted
January 18th, 2013
11:56 pm
“I am more comfortable with the possible unknown than I am with the known idiots we have now.” I agree with The Deal. And this is why so many of us supported the charter amendment.