Decatur’s school board recently approved a full-time staff position to crack down on nonresidents illegally attending City Schools Decatur.
Chief Operating Officer Noel Maloof isn’t yet sure of a hiring date, saying it may not be until January, or possibly the beginning of the 2016-17 school year. The new staffer will get paid $30,000 to $40,000 and also will oversee CSD’s new online registration system.
But the main emphasis is on residency. Maloof said the CSD staff usually investigates 120 to 160 students per year, with about 30 of those getting asked to leave. He believes, however, there are likely “a lot more” illegally enrolled, but with CSD’s explosive growth, thorough research and investigation is “more than [his staff] can handle.”
Maloof said there were 500 new student registrations this year and he anticipates another 500 to 700 in 2016-17. For every nonresident student illegally enrolled, he said, it costs the school system roughly $8,000 to $12,000 per student out of local taxes.
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