APS to hold public input meetings on school plans

ajc.com

Credit: HANDOUT

Credit: HANDOUT

Atlanta Public Schools will host community meetings on Nov. 28 and Dec. 12 to allow the public to give input on the district’s plan to rate all and possibly restructure some schools.

A district spokesman initially said the community meetings would be held at APS headquarters, but the district later clarified they would be held at school locations.

The Nov. 28 meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at Mays High School, 3450 Benjamin E. Mays Dr.  S.W. The Dec. 12 meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at King Middle School, 545 Hill St. S.E.

At both meetings, the district will ask for public feedback about its "vision of school excellence" project and the work of an equity task force.

The former is a planning effort undertaken by the school board to come up with a rating system, unique to APS, to grade Atlanta schools. District officials also will determine what should happen to the schools that succeed or fail according to the new measurement system. In other school systems across the country, such planning efforts have led to school closures, mergers, new charter schools and new ways of running schools.

The equity task force was created in January when a new Atlanta school board took office. That task force is charged with making sure the district guarantees equitable treatment of students.