Category Archives: SPLOST

The strategic focus of the Secondary School Facility Planning and Feasibility Study is to address overcrowding in these North DeKalb clusters:

• Dunwoody
• Chamblee
• Cross Keys
• Lakeside
• Tucker
• Druid Hills
• Clarkston

Stakeholder Engagement
• Public Meetings (Aug 23 and Aug 25): Approximately 700 attendees
• Online Survey: More than 6,000 responses
• Formal Letter Responses from School Councils, PTAs, and Foundations: 20 school organizations
Major Themes
• Opposition to split feeders (keep one‐to‐one feeder patterns)
• Concern over budget constraints
• Anxiety over potential future redistricting
• Consensus to keep Chamblee magnet programs at current locations
• Except Chamblee/Cross Keys clusters, all other clusters asked to keep existing attendance areas intact
Note: The original Key Takeaway from stakeholder engagement was “keep communities intact”. This new theme better supports the final recommendation.

Recommended Plan To Address Overcrowding
Option B

(without the split feeders)

• Re‐cluster existing Chamblee and Cross Keys Clusters
• Build a new 2,500 seat Cross Keys HS at Briarcliff site (or “cost‐neutral” location in Brookhaven area)
• Convert existing Cross Keys HS to new 1,500 seat Cross Keys MS (classroom addition is required)
• Build new 600 seat addition at the existing Chamblee HS (2,400‐seat capacity)
• Sequoyah MS and Chamblee MS will serve as a Chamblee cluster middle schools
• Build new additions in Dunwoody cluster:
• 600 seats at Dunwoody HS (2,100‐seat capacity)
• 450 seats at Peachtree MS (1,700‐seat capacity)
• Build new 750 seat addition at Lakeside HS (2,500‐seat capacity)
• Build new additions in Clarkston cluster:
• 650 seats at Clarkston HS (1,925‐seat capacity)
• 300 seat at Freedom MS (1,675‐seat capacity)
• Build new auditorium at Cedar Grove HS
Total estimated cost: $205 million

 
Timeline
Five regional meetings to discus and gather feedback related to the development of the 2017‐2022 E‐SPLOST V project list.
Oct 4 – 18, 2016
Each public hearing will be at 7 p.m. at the following locations:
• Oct. 4, 2016 at Tucker High School (Region 2)
• Oct. 11, 2016 at Miller Grove High School (Region 4)
• Oct. 13, 2016 at Chamblee High School (Region 1)
• Oct. 17, 2016 at Columbia High School (Region 5)
• Oct. 18, 2016 at Stone Mountain High School (Region 3)
Oct 4 – 24, 2016
• Online Survey on draft E-SPLOST project list
Nov 7, 2016
• Board COW discussion on E-SPLOST project list
Dec 5, 2016
• Formal Board approval of E-SPLOST project list

Stan Jester
DeKalb County
Board Of Education

Here’s a News Flash – Doraville doesn’t want their own cluster.  Doraville and the Cross Keys Cluster community want to go to Dunwoody MS/HS, Chamblee MS/HS and what is shaping up to be Brookhaven HS (either rebrand CKHS or build a new one).
Given the history of ghetto-ization, their rationale is understandably motivated by economic diversity.
Cross Keys HS Sequoyah MS council received input from various people and organizations including students, parents, Kim Gokce and the Latin American Association and Center For Pan Asian Community Services.  The representatives from Cross Keys HS and Sequoyah MS support …
Option B – with the following key points

• A new HS with common areas, such as the cafeteria, auditorium, gymnasium, to support 2,800+ students; the initial site plan could support 2200-2400 students.
• A new MS to support 1800 students.
• Both new schools utilizing the existing properties at the Briarcliff and current Cross Keys HS locations; the final determination of which location houses which school to be determined at the discretion of DCSD
Supporting Rationale
• Option B as modified provides the most seats in the least amount of time with the least amount of money and will benefit the highest number of students in both Regions 1 and 2.
• Options A and C require additional land purchase(s) and funding to be secured before construction can begin. Neither variable is guaranteed; a modified Option B can begin immediately. We are not willing to wait or gamble on uncertainties.
• If additional money is available, it should be used to remodel other schools in the Cross Keys cluster. Many of them have been completely neglected in previous SPLOST allocations; they are in a state of disrepair and are unable to accommodate students in an equitable way.
• Options A and C create a fourth cluster that would continue the segregation of low-income and minority students.

• Based on current and projected housing populations and patterns, it is not possible to have a fair and equitable feeder pattern that creates a diverse school of mixed ethnicity and income levels without any one population traveling unacceptable distances.
• A modified option B helps ensure the past segregation and inequities do not continue.

• Option B with a more centrally located HS is better positioned for flexibility and adaptability of use beyond what current planning models can predict. Options A and C create a large new HS at the northern periphery of the County, making it vulnerable to underutilization as populations and housing patterns change over time.
• Bigger high schools provide more academic opportunities (e.g. additional AP classes, an IB program, and/or a language-immersion program) and greater athletic opportunities that will help close the current gap in Title IX athletic offerings for the Cross Keys cluster.
Important Points
Economically diverse schools provide all students with important opportunities and exposures that go beyond academics.

• Economically diverse schools provide all students with important opportunities and exposures that go beyond academics.
• Communicating and collaborating with people who are different from you and learning how to handle new situations are two of the most critical life and work skills needed to succeed in the 21st century; students from both ends of the spectrum benefit when they interact with each other.
• Underprivileged students become exposed to a world that previously may have been unknown or seemed unattainable to them. Through friendships and activities outside of school, they make connections, learn skills and gain motivation that will help them pull themselves and their families out of poverty.
• Students whose birth circumstances afforded them more advantages and opportunities are able to develop a better sense of understanding, compassion and appreciation that will help them grow into well-rounded, happier adults.

Children are not Title 1; schools are Title 1.

• Title 1 resources are not allocated to individual students; if they leave a school, the money does not follow them.
• Title 1 resources are allocated to schools that are unable to generate additional PTA, foundation or other community funding mechanisms.
• All schools provide support for students who are behind or who have challenges, regardless of Title 1 status.

Additionally, we recognize that current political proposals might affect the Briarcliff property, such as the potential annexation of Emory University and surrounding neighborhoods. We recommend that DCSD be strategic in its decision to place either a high school or middle school at this location.
We greatly appreciate the DSCD taking the necessary steps to address the severe overcrowding and inequities that have existed in our cluster for way too long. We are thankful for the opportunity to provide feedback and we look forward to working together as solutions are implemented.
Sincerely,
Cross Keys HS School Council
Sequoyah MS School Council
Please note, our position is based on the following input received from our community: 2 public meetings with the Latin American Association and Center For Pan Asian Community Services, along with numerous informal dialogues with the Northwoods Area Neighborhood Association, the Cross Keys Parent Center, the Cross Keys Foundation, and the general student and parent population from the Cross Keys cluster.