APS High Schools to Be Placed on Accreditation Probation, Report Says

The Atlanta Public Schools will be placed on accreditation probation Tuesday by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, according to a report by WSB-TV.

Sources told WSB-TV investigative reporter Richard Belcher Monday that state officials have been told that Atlanta's high schools will be placed on accreditation probation following an extensive SACS investigation. SACS doesn't accredit Atlanta's elementary and middle schools, WSB said.

SACS' parent organization, AdvanceED, will hold a news conference Tuesday morning to release its findings.

The Atlanta Board of Education has called a special meeting at noon Tuesday at APS headquarters, followed by a news briefing.

According to WSB's Web site, AdvancED CEO Mark Elgart told Channel 2 in an e-mail that read in part, "official action won't take place until this evening and your declaration could be in error."

The SACS investigation followed a legal dispute in October when one school board faction attempted to force a change in board leadership.