Commenters on the AJC Get Schooled blog had a range of reactions to plans by Fulton County Superintendent Robert Avossa to expand school choice and school models, including such options as Montessori, K-8, or language immersion. Here is a sampling of comments:
Noticer: Until every school in the county is a school where Avossa would be willing to send his own children, he should not even think of creating specialty schools.
MotherofTwins: I live in Fulton and am eager to see the choices parents and students will have. Fulton already has many different choices, and transportation is provided, but parents need to get their students to a central location to catch the bus. With more people taking advantage of the options, carpools can be developed. Transportation is always an issue, but families need to have flexibility in order to have the educational setting that is right for their individual children. I think that Fulton county does a good job with their current magnet programs. I look forward to additional choices.
Bernie: School choice has always been available for American parents and their children. It's called private schools.
BethATL: About seven years ago DeKalb started down the school choice path. I served on the task force for parents charged with guiding the county. They were not financially or organizationally prepared for such an endeavor. The highest level of administration was flown all over the country to "observe" other school systems. Personally, I thought they were all mini-vacations. The program was all talk and no action for DeKalb. As a parent of a child now in a Fulton high school, I caution Avossa against spending more of our tax dollars on programs that do not directly benefit students or teachers. Save your travels and big ideas for when all the schools are outfitted with proper technology, safety as been addressed and teachers are compensated at a level where the best teachers come to Fulton.
RJ: As a south Fulton parent, let me say that I welcome choice but only if schools are available in my community. I will not bus my kid to north Fulton. The schools in my community are doing a good job of educating my kids. I have no complaints as to the quality of education they're receiving in comparison to north Fulton schools. I am excited about the possibility of more school choice though. It would be great to have a Montessori school.
FultonParent: School choice in a district that is 90 miles in length with the city of Atlanta in the middle to create unbelievable traffic issues?! They're going to find a way to furnish system-wide transportation for multiple choices of schools on both sides of town? Seriously? Besides, they've already got magnet programs going that don't get equal use from both sides of the county.This is a superintendent on a major ego trip who doesn't really understand the logistics of his job and probably doesn't want to understand it.
