Team members from Georgia's primary accrediting agency will visit Atlanta Public Schools Sept. 26-27, tasked with deciding whether APS' board operations have improved enough to regain full accreditation, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has learned.
The scheduling came as the APS board forged ahead Monday with future plans. Its remaining work, with a significant focus on board policies, must carry it over the finish line.
Chairwoman Brenda Muhammad also said she will announce a new committee next week to look at how best to plan for a superintendent search. Superintendent Erroll Davis, who took over July 1 after retiring as chancellor of the University System of Georgia, is locked into a one-year contract but does not want the job long-term.
The two-day site visit by the SACS team will represent a crucial juncture, following months of work since the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) placed the district on probation in January citing poor governance and infighting among school board members.
The original deadline for improvement set by SACS was Sept. 30. A spokeswoman for AdvancED, SACS' parent company, said Monday that the team's report likely won't be released until the end of October, as its members come to consensus and document their findings.
Team members over the two days will talk with board members, new Superintendent Erroll Davis, key staff members and community stakeholders, including parents and students. The discussions will be private.
The same team visited APS late last year, in advance of SACS' finding that the school board was almost at impasse due to a breakdown in trust among members.
Any recommendation the team makes would need to be affirmed by SACS. The agency gave APS six mandates for improvement. The mandates touched on various aspects of governance and leadership -- policy making, consensus building, communication -- generally meant to push the board to work cohesively.
The timing of the new SACS report's release will coincide with a state hearing, to be held no later than Nov. 4, about the APS board and whether its members should keep their jobs.
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