As DeKalb County joined the ranks of school systems struggling to maintain accreditation Thursday, it needed to look no further than two metro Atlanta neighbors to see what kind of work lies ahead.
Clayton County will receive a final visit next month from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the culmination of a two-year effort to get off probation.
And more than a month after the accrediting agency sanctioned it for bad governance, the Atlanta school board has won cautious praise in an effort to buckle down and work together. SACS placed Atlanta's system on probation Jan. 18, citing in-fighting among school board members as its chief cause for concern.
Atlanta board members have met for hours every Monday evening since to talk about their issues as well as the six mandates for improvement that SACS imposed. And they have done so under the watchful eyes of parents who have attended every session so far.
"It comes down to their ability to stay focused on getting the work done," said Atlanta parent Julie Salisbury, speaking on behalf a new parents advocacy group, Step Up or Step Down, that formed in the wake of SACS' announcement. "The good news that has come from the bad news is people have come together and said, ‘We won't stand for this.'"
The seeds of Atlanta's problems were planted last year, in the wake of allegations of alleged test cheating that continue to be investigated by state and federal officials.The cheating probe caused a rift on the board as well as a legal battle about board policies, causing SACS to step in late last year.
SACS began its review of DeKalb last year after former Superintendent Crawford Lewis, former Chief Operating Officer Patricia Reid and two others were indicted in May on charges they ran a criminal enterprise in the school system. The agency placed the district on advisement Thursday, which is a step preceding probation, but stressed it did not feel the system was in crisis.
It ordered DeKalb to make eight improvements: implement strategic planning, update policies, develop training on policies, establish a clear line of authority with the internal auditor, fix the administration of state standardized tests (some of which also have been called into question by state officials), redistrict and close schools based on data, hire a new superintendent and develop a communications plan.
SACS gave the system until Oct. 31 to make changes or risk further sanction.
Board members stressed their desire to cooperate with the agency and said interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson has formed a task force to address each of the recommendations.
Parents expressed optimism the progress made under Tyson's watch would carry over into the new administration.
"I am very hopeful that Ms. Tyson's work will continue under the new superintendent. And DeKalb will finally be able to move forward," said Melissa Marion-Landais, whose children attend the county's Chesnut Elementary School.
In 2008, Clayton became the nation's first school system to lose accreditation in nearly 40 years, undone by board behavior that SACS said included micromanaging, misuse of funds, conflict of interest, abuse of power and bid tampering.
The system regained provisional status in 2009 and has been required to play host to four system-level site visits as part of its current status, spokesman Charles White said.
The last visit was in October, and the fourth and final visit is scheduled for April 24-26.
All the work starting or under way in the three systems has been public, for good reason.
"Private companies do not have to be transparent [but] we are public. We demand transparency," Patrick Crabtree, an elementary school teacher who is president of the Atlanta Association of Educators, said of the Atlanta board's subsequent efforts.
The board voted unanimously Tuesday to hire a search firm to find a replacement for outgoing Superintendent Beverly Hall, a step that drew praise.
"I feel that there is an honesty that is being communicated to the public now," Crabtree said. "The voters now know where their elected officials really stand. Because of this, voters can put pressure on the board to ‘do the right thing.'"
About the Author
