Even before the votes are counted for Gov. Nathan Deal's proposed constitutional amendment to allow the state to take over low performing schools, Atlanta Public Schools is bracing for new sanctions for struggling schools.
Under Amendment 1, Deal's Opportunity School District proposal, the state could take over a limited number of low-performing schools and shut them down, run them or convert them to charter schools.
But with polls showing Amendment 1 in trouble, Deal said Sunday he's prepared to come up with a Plan B if Amendment 1 fails. He'd likely pursue an alternative to Amendment 1, one that might not need a statewide vote, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported earlier this week. "We're going to look at everything that's possible," Deal said.
In Atlanta, which has one of the highest concentrations of Opportunity School District-eligible schools statewide, officials are already bracing for Plan B.
“I anticipate that there will be more things coming forward,” Atlanta schools superintendent Meria Carstarphen said Monday.
Carstarphen said she is working on a proposal for a “creative” way for the state to help low-performing schools and provide incentives “instead of sanctions and sticks.”
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