Category Archives: DeKalb County School District

Making a Big School District Feel Small

Posted on August 19, 2016 by | 10 comments

Better Know DeKalb County Schools
How do you make a big school district feel small?
None of the state’s solutions will work county wide in DeKalb. A System of Charter Schools? There are too many schools to have a district of locally governed charters schools. A System of Clusters? Some communities in the county don’t have school councils much less have the capacity to govern an entire cluster.
NYC Public Schools
Superintendent Stephen Green worked at the New York City public school system, the largest in the world with more than 1.1 million students. NYC public schools is broken down into 32 Community School Districts where Dr. Green was the Superintendent of Community School District #28.
So, How do you make a big school district feel small?
DeKalb Schools already groups clusters into 5 regions with 5 Regional Superintendents. Dr. Green seems to be recreating the Community School Districts giving autonomy to a Micro Cabinet administration for each Regional Superintendent. How much autonomy? “Autonomy is earned”, says Dr. Green. The central office will hopefully move to a service model servicing the micro cabinets needs.
Division of Regional Superintendents

Micro Cabinet Teams
Position Region 1 Region 2 Region 3 Region 4 Region 5
Regional Superintendent Sherry Johnson (Interim) Trenton Arnold Rachel Zeigler Triscilla Weaver Ralph Simpson
Coordinator Leadership Sherry Johnson Makeba West Tangela Kimber Linda Crowley Wilfred Johnson
Executive Assistant Lorraine Sanford Darla Gilstrap Elicia Moore Cheryl McEwen Sonya Taylor-Clunie
HR Manager Julie Fincher Antoinette Seabrook Jatisha Marsh Anglelica Collins Tracia Cloud
HR K-12 Secretary Cynthia McKenzie Ariel Baker Dijon DaCosta Kenyarda Berrian Dorothy Norton
Curriculum And Instruction Kristie Fountain, Andrea Wright, Dr. Darryl Felker, Jeffrey Dillard Annette Howell, John Hruby, Kismet Sims, Devetra Ushery Norrie Mills, Jamilla Williams, Lashawn White, Michelle Bateman Christine Morgan, Cathy Harris, Gary Jordan, TBD Dr. Latonya Brown, Maya Kirk, Monica Vestal-Mashburn, Dr. Michelle Thompson
Technology Laura Crate Reese Azar VACANT Terri Webb Angela Johnson
Maintenance Supervisor Winward Hines Arthur Kinder Stephen Boyd Christoper Young Fred Schoenfeld
Finance Deborah Burns Melissa Jefferson Vernon Crosby Chris Smith Cynthia Prather
Transportation Harold Lewis VACANT David Guillory Pam Sanders Kevin Phillips

Cabinet Position Descriptions
Regional Superintendent – Supervises and supports principals and communities in assigned region. Example: Evaluate principals and monitor instructional data.
Coordinator Leadership – Under the direction of the regional superintendent, serves as a resource to principals. Example: Serves as a representative for the regional superintendent; monitors field trip approvals.
Executive Assistant – Reporting to the regional superintendent provides clerical and administrative support to the regional superintendent. Example: Expense reports.
Human Capital Manager – Reporting to the regional superintendent, partners with principals to staff schools and work on employee concerns. Example: Recruiting job candidates.
Human Capital K-12 Secretary – Reporting to the Human Capital Manager, provides administrative support for the human capital function in the assigned region. Example: Scheduling new employees for orientation and onboarding.
Curriculum And Instruction – Serves as a liaison between the assigned region and the Division of Curriculum and Instruction. Also supports the Horizon and OSD schools in the assigned region. Example: Conducts professional learning at the schools.
Technology – Serves as a liaison between the Division of Technology and the assigned region. Facilitates the implementation of technology initiatives throughout the region. Example: Trains staff members on instructional technol-ogy programs and applications.
Maintenance Supervisor – Facilitates maintenance services to the schools. Example: Monitors responsiveness of maintenance requests. The school principal and council enter capital project needs into the “School Dude” maintenance system. The Regional Superintendent and Maintenance Supervisor prioritize and schedule regular maintenance and minor repairs. Major capital improvements like HVAC replacements will have to be approved by the Chief Operating Officer.
Finance – Assists with monitoring financial activity including utilization of school funds. Example: Ensures alignment of expenditures with instruction.
Regional Transportation Manager – Supervises, monitors and ensures an adequate supply of bus drivers for the assigned region. Example: Maintaining pupil transportation routes.

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Posted in DeKalb County School District

Pro & Cons – Options From The Secondary School Planning Study

Posted on July 25, 2016 by | 18 comments

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.

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. From these four options, over the next few weeks, the steering committee members will put together and recommend one (unchanged or modified) option to take to the public at the 3rd and final round of public input on Aug 23 and Aug 25 .
Based on 2022 Enrollment Projections

Pros Cons
• Provides relief for projected over-capacity conditions at Dunwoody HS, Cross Keys HS, Lakeside HS, Clarkston HS, Lithonia HS, Chamblee MS, Peachtree MS, Sequoyah MS, Henderson MS and Freedom MS;
• Eliminates 92 percent of current portable classrooms (60 of 64 total);
• Uses existing site (Briarcliff) for new middle school
• Relatively cost-efficient;
• Would maintain one-to-one middle-to-high school feeder patterns where possible, except for Henderson MS;
• Provides better balance of enrollment between middle schools and feeder high schools.		 • Would use most available E-SPLOST V funding for new facilities and additions, leaving limited funds to address additional elementary school needs;
• Recommends new schools larger than DCSD standard for middle schools (1,200-seat) and high schools (1,600-seat).
• Would not maintain one-to-one feeder pattern for Henderson MS (splits feed to Lakeside HS and New Sequoyah-area HS);
• Provides only partial relief for over-capacity Chamblee HS;

Pros Cons
• Provides relief for projected over-capacity conditions at Dunwoody HS, Cross Keys HS, Lakeside HS, Clarkston HS, Lithonia MS & HS, Chamblee MS, Peachtree MS, Sequoyah MS, Henderson MS, Tucker MS & HS, Freedom MS and Miller Grove MS;
• Eliminates 92 percent of current portable classrooms (60 of 64 total);
• Minimizes attendance zone adjustments;
• Relatively cost-efficient;
• Recommends addressing needs at other schools using other E-SPLOST funds and funding beyond E-SPLOST;
• Would maintain one-to-one middle-to-high school feeder patterns where possible;
• Provides better balance of enrollment between middle schools and feeder high schools.		 • Would use most available E-SPLOST V funding for new facilities and additions, leaving limited funds to address additional elementary school needs;
• Would not construct any new schools;
• Cost-constrained due to limited E-SPLOST funding available;
• Provides only partial relief for over-capacity Chamblee HS.

Pros Cons
• Provides relief for projected over-capacity conditions at Dunwoody HS, Cross Keys HS, Lakeside HS, Clarkston HS, Lithonia MS & HS, Chamblee MS, Chamblee HS, Peachtree MS, Sequoyah MS, Henderson MS, Tucker MS & HS, Freedom MS and Miller Grove MS;
• Eliminates 92 percent of current portable classrooms (60 of 64 total);
• Minimizes attendance zone adjustments;
• Relatively cost-efficient;
• Recommends addressing needs at other schools using other E-SPLOST funds and funding beyond E-SPLOST;
• Would maintain one-to-one middle-to-high school feeder patterns where possible;
• Provides better balance of enrollment between middle schools and feeder high schools;
• Adds magnet programs to Southwest DeKalb HS cluster.		 • Would use most available E-SPLOST V funding for new facilities and additions, leaving limited funds to address additional elementary school needs;
• Would not construct any new schools;
• Relocates magnet programs away from Chamblee MS & Chamblee HS.

Pros Cons
• Best utilizes existing capacity by shifting students from overcrowded schools into schools where capacity exists;
• Most cost-effective option;
• Makes available at least one new middle school facility (Miller Grove) for school choice programs or other DCSD program needs;
• Uses existing site (Briarcliff) for new middle school		 • Disrupts every cluster with attendance zone shifts at every middle school and every high school;
• Loses MS-HS one-to-one feeders, and may lose some ESMS one-to-one feeders;
• Does not provide complete relief for over-capacity schools;
• Still would cost approximately $96 million.

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.

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Posted in DeKalb County School District