Is the option to move the Chamblee Magnet Program still on the table?
Stan Jester
DeKalb County
Board Of Education
The purpose of the Secondary School Facility Planning and Feasibility Study is to develop long-term plans for addressing capacity needs of the district’s middle schools and high schools.
A steering committee was empowered to review various capacity and programmatic matters. The steering committee met with a group of representatives from each of the forty middle and high schools included in the study. They studied and discussed 4 potential options. One of these options included “Chamblee HS: Relocate 650 magnet students to Southwest DeKalb HS”.
UPDATE
Since the steering committee meetings in June, the Chamblee community has been quite vocal in their support for keeping the magnet program in Chamblee. A FactChecker comment from a Chamblee community member noted:
“I had written to the consultants listed on the study documentation about my concerns with relocating the magnet program and here is a response from one of them:
After hearing the feedback from the community, the option to move the magnet programs is no longer on the table. Our recommendation is to leave them where they are. Please feel free to share this with other concerned parents and students.”
In response, Kim Gokce, an involved educational advocate posted
“Well that’s a relief! For a moment I thought DCSD was actually acting on open dialog and open solutioning. This also simplifies the solution domain so we can make quicker, sub-optimal decisions.
Perhaps your contact can also confirm for us that the current attendance area for CCHS will remain intact. Because as the Magnet is untouchable due to untold value surely we can’t expect anyone to allow themselves to be removed from the cluster, right?
Heck, while they are at it please ask them to just publish their plan so folks in the region can stay home on 8/23 and 8/25. We all have better things to do than play along with the appearance of public engagement and change, I think.”
Gokce subsequently expressed his outrage that moving the Chamblee Magnet was taken off the table sending an email to the school administration saying,
“[The email from Karen Cox] is circulating widely in the Chamblee community. It is a bit of an outrage on many levels. I’m so angry right now I will not try to explain why I think this is a fatal blow to the process.”
Superintendent Green and Chief Operating Officer Joshua Williams have now sent out these messages assuring everyone that moving the Chamblee Magnet is a viable option still on the table.
Relocating the magnet is one of several options
Dr. Stephen Green
Superintendent, DeKalb County School District
It is my understanding that you may be receiving a flurry of emails regarding plans to relocate the Chamblee Charter Magnet Program based on a letter from a representative of Education Planners, Inc., Ms. Karen Cox.
Once we learned that this occurred through members of the feedback committee, we immediately responded to those members and refuted the information. From that we had some assurance that this would clarify and correct the misinformation. In addition Ed Planners, Inc. sent a formal letter of apology for the miscommunication as well (See attached), which we sent to the members of the feedback committee.
It appears that the misinformation network letter writing campaign is still at play so I felt the need to send this to you in advance of this Friday’s Board Communique.
First of all, let me assure you that no decision or recommendation has been made. This option was one that was considered based on feedback, however, and in the spirit of transparency, this option will be referenced as one of several solutions to be considered by the community in the upcoming public forum sessions.
Joshua Williams and his team are personally responding to each of the emails have been received.
I hope this brings some context and clarification to the messages we are receiving.
Thank you.
The Email was Inaccurate
Joshua Williams
Chief Operating Officer, DeKalb County School District
Various options will be presented during the upcoming public meetings scheduled to take place on August 23rd (at 6:30 PM at Clarkston HS) and August 25th (at 6:30 PM at Cross Keys HS) for the community to weigh in on which option(s), or combination of options, should be used to develop a final recommendation for the Board’s consideration.
I apologize for the confusion and assure you that the District is committed to being transparent, collaborative, and open to stakeholder and community input as we work together to develop a recommendation which supports all students and communities. We look forward to your participation and hearing your feedback at the upcoming public meetings.
Relocating Chamblee Magnets
July 27, 2016 – Would moving the Chamblee magnet program to Southwest DeKalb HS kill the magnet program for Region 1 and Region 2? Option 2B of the Secondary School Facility Planning and Feasibility Study includes – Chamblee HS: Relocate 650 students (Magnet) to Southwest DeKalb HS.
Pros & Cons
Planning and Feasibility Study Options
July 25, 2016 – Committees consisting of steering committee members and two representatives from each of the forty middle and high schools studied and discussed these pros and cons of the four potential options to address current and pending capacity needs.
Cost Estimates
Planning and Feasibility Study Options
July 20, 2016 – Based on 2022 enrollment projections, the Steering Committee discussed these Cost Estimates for the four potential options to address current and pending capacity needs.
DeKalb Secondary School Facility Planning and Feasibility Study
July 18, 2016 – The study will identify the challenges and opportunities facing each middle school and high school, determine options to address the needs identified, and prepare regional master plans to implement the options. Here are the problems, the funds and the options.
Chamblee Magnet Program – Is it moving?
July 13, 2016 – Any truth to the rumor of moving the magnet program from Chamblee Middle and Chamblee High? Steering committees discussed the pros and cons of the following four potential options to address current and pending capacity needs.
“Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice. Moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue.”