Half a dozen local and national foundations are footing the $500,000 bill for high-powered management consultants to come up with a plan to improve Atlanta schools and avoid state takeover.
About 40 Atlanta Public Schools are at high risk of potential state takeover if voters approve a constitutional amendment next year to allow the state to take control of low-performing schools.
This summer, the Atlanta school district announced it would work with Boston Consulting Group, an international consulting firm that counts a substantial part of the Fortune 500 among its clients, to develop a school turnaround plan.
The company’s fee is being paid by the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Wilbur and Hilda Glenn Foundation, Nonami Foundation, Kendeda Fund, Sartain Lanier Foundation and Walton Family Foundation, district spokesman James Malone said this week.
Representatives from two of those foundations—the Blank Family and Wilbur and Hilda Glenn foundations—also sit on the committee guiding district decisions.
“We thought it was important to be transparent throughout the process so they could have insight as to how the strategy is shaping up,” Atlanta Deputy Superintendent David Jernigan told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We’ve really worked hard to have a very inclusive process.”
APS and the consultants have also sought input from parents, teachers, principals and other district staff.
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