APS Seeks Input on School Safety, Culture

Four Community Listening Sessions scheduled between Jan. 8 and 16.

Atlanta Public Schools invites all stakeholders to participate in one of four Community Listening Sessions to offer ideas on how to enhance school culture, climate, safety and student transportation. All meetings are from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.: Please plan to attend one of these sessions to express your concerns and to share your thoughts and suggestions to make our schools safer and more secure.

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Davis: 'We have comprehensive safety and security plans in place'

In a letter to Atlanta Public Schools students, parents, employees, and supporters, Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr., writes, "Our students deserve schools that are free of safety and security threats."

Editor's Note: In response to this past Friday's massacre at a Connecticut elementary school, Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Erroll B. Davis, Jr., posted the following letter Monday morning at the APS website. Monday, December 17, 2012 Dear APS students, parents, employees, and supporters,  This past Friday, December 14, our country experienced one of the most horrific crimes imaginable. Twenty children and seven adults were killed by a gunman who terrorized an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut. We are deeply saddened by the tragedy, and on behalf of the APS community, I would like to express our most sincere condolences to the families whose lives have been changed forever. Whenever a national tragedy occurs, our children …

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A Conversation With. . .

APS Board Members on the Process Behind Monday's Vote

Consensus was key to superintendent's contract extension, say board members Cecily Harsch-Kinnane and Courtney English.

Monday's marathon Atlanta Public Schools Board of Education meeting and the back and forth discussions among its members on how to extend Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr.'s contract seemed reminiscent of the old days when fighting seemed the norm. But two board members, Cecily Harsch-Kinnane, whose district includes East Lake, East Atlanta, Kirkwood and Candler Park among other communities, and Courtney D. English, who is a citywide representative, say that's not the case. What may have seemed like nitpicking was the board trying to reach consensus, and creating the framework for picking the next superintendent. "You saw us go through a process of give and take, the give and take of democracy, if you will, and ultimately arrive at a …

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APS Board of Education Votes "YES" on Davis Contract Extension

Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr.'s contract extension comes with two key provisions.

After some lengthy debate, the Atlanta Public Schools' Board of Education voted Monday to extend Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr.'s contract for up to 18 months. Davis' current one-year contract expires June 30, 2013 and the new contract would start July 1, 2013. The vote — 7 to 2  Brenda J. Muhammad and Nancy M. Meister were the lone dissenters — comes with two key provisions: if the board finds a permanent superintendent and hires him or her, Davis' contract expires after 90 days. (Muhammad, whose district includes the Jackson High School cluster, later said she changed her mind and was in favor of the plan and wanted the final record to reflect that.) The second provision is a clause that allows the board to nix his contract, with 90 …

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Grady among APS schools restored to full accreditation

Atlanta Public Schools high schools get full accreditation this week in this quick peek at Midtown school news you can use

Earlier this week, the high schools within the Atlanta Public Schools system, including Grady High, were restored to full accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The schools were placed on probation in early 2010 in the wake of the 2009 Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests cheating scandal involving APS educators. Infighting amongst the school board and issues with the “governance” within the district resulted in SACS placing the APS high schools on probation. In 2011, the district was moved to “accreditation with advisement” status. See here for more about what the full accreditation status means for the district. _______ Make plans to join the Grady community for a dine-out at Cameli's Pizza on Tuesday…

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Inman Middle Overcrowding Task Force To Meet Oct. 30

Group expected to give final recommendations on relieving overcrowding at Inman Middle School soon.

A task force charged with coming up with recommendations to relieve overcrowding at Inman Middle School is expected to give their recommendations to Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr. soon. Davis, speaking to a group of parents in the Grady High cluster of schools, made his remarks last week at a meeting of the Council of Intown Neighborhoods and Schools. The task force, which is scheduled to meet for the eighth time Oct. 30, is looking at several alternatives such as a standalone sixth grade or eighth grade academy to relieve Inman Middle's capacity issues. This school year, Inman Middle is projected to have 1,034 students, which is 118 percent of its capacity. By 2021, the school is expected to be at 158 percent of…

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APS Superintendent Meets with Grady Cluster Parents

Erroll B. Davis Jr. discusses strategic plan for district, answers questions on overcrowding.

Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Erroll B. Davis Jr. met with parents in the Grady High School cluster Thursday night to lay out his vision for the district and answer questions. During the forum, which sponsored by the Council of Intown Neighborhoods and Schools at Inman Middle School, the superintendent said APS is still healing from the scars and scandals of the recent past but that his focus is on boosting school achievement. "All of our schools can and must do better," Davis told Grady cluster parents, which include the Old Fourth Ward, Candler Park, Midtown and Virginia-Highland neighborhoods. "We are putting in plans and programs to achieve that success," the superintendent said, explaining the core goals of his five-year plan…

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Council of Intown Neighborhoods and Schools Holds Town Hall with APS Head

Erroll Davis to answer questions from parents in the Grady Cluster of Schools.

CINS to Host Town Hall Meeting with APS Superintendent

Davis to answer questions from parents in the Grady Cluster of Schools.

by Patch Staff The Council of Intown Neighborhoods and Schools, the Atlanta nonprofit that advocates for the Grady schools cluster, hosts its annual Town Hall Meeting with the Atlanta Public Schools Superintendent Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. at Inman Middle School, 774 Virginia Ave. NE. This is the annual opportunity for parents from the communities that comprise the Grady High School cluster of schools — including Inman Park, Candler Park, Lake Claire Old Fourth Ward, Virginia-Highland and Morningside — to ask questions of Supt. Erroll B. Davis Jr. Davis will introduce key members of his team, update the community on what's happening with the district and answer questions from the audience as well as queries that have been submitted to CINS over …

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