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School board fails to implement cuts in approved budget

By Ty Tagami
July 11, 2012

Last month, after weeks of debate, the DeKalb County school board closed its budget deficit with nearly $80 million in cuts.

Or they thought they did.

On Wednesday, the board blinked when it came time to make the tough decisions needed to implement those cuts.

After talking it over, board members realized they didn't have enough votes to approve job cuts needed to shave $20.5 million in salary and benefit costs.

Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson had asked the board to eliminate 250 teacher positions and 120 paraprofessionals.

Board Chairman Eugene Walker called a time out, saying the meeting would reconvene Thursday at 10 a.m. at 1701 Mountain Industrial Boulevard, Stone Mountain.

About the Author

Ty Tagami is a staff writer for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Since joining the newspaper in 2002, he has written about everything from hurricanes to homelessness. He has deep experience covering local government and education, and can often be found under the Gold Dome when lawmakers meet or in a school somewhere in the state.

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