Saturday, December 29, 2012

Conflict and chaos in DeKalb County Schools - Probation, possible Board recall by Gov. Deal and Nancy Jester telling it like it is.

"There is significant and irrefutable evidence that the DeKalb School District is in a state of conflict and chaos,” he said. “There’s been a decline in student performance, and there’s been a depletion of the financial resources of this system to a position today that is very dangerous.








AJC - DeKalb school board: Save the governor the trouble and step down if you are part of the problem

DeKalb board member says audit shows 'troubled' district
A DeKalb County school board member says the final results of an audit he requested prove mismanagement and lack of oversight in an already troubled district. Womack says in his 16 years on the school board, he's never been as fed up as he is now.



State summons DeKalb School Board to Jan 17th suspension hearing 

The State Board of Education summoned the board members to a Jan. 17 hearing at 1 p.m. “regarding whether the state board should recommend to the governor that he suspend the members of the DeKalb County BOE.”  At the Jan. 17 hearing, DeKalb will get a chance to present its side of the story, including a list of witnesses who will speak on its behalf. Critics of the board will get the same opportunity.

As in a trial, the two sides will have to describe their witnesses’ anticipated testimony and reveal their facts and evidence to each other before the hearing. Both are entitled to a “pre-hearing” by phone if they request it by Jan. 4. Under the new state law, the state board can make an immediate recommendation to the governor for possible action or give the DeKalb board time to make improvements.
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2 comments:

  1. UnknownDecember 30, 2012 at 10:01 AM

    What a mess. Thank you for posting these many sources and enabling me to get up to speed on the details of our troubled school district.

    I read the report from AdvancED. While it may seem on the surface that firing the entire Board and starting fresh is a potential solution, it seems to me that we have larger governance issues that this action will not completely address. Policy and chain of command rules are routinely broken despite training being provided to Board Members. We need to change the prevailing culture of the system and effectively implement the procedures and controls that we claim to have in place. I agree that starting with a new Board could help to alleviate the personal disputes among individual board members. However, I also believe that we need to implement strict standards for complying with Budget and procedural policies. We need regularly-reported accountability of both Staff and Board members by an impartial third party. While this will cost us money in the short run, it could save our children's educational future in the long run.

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  2. John HeneghanJanuary 4, 2013 at 1:43 AM

    Nancy Jester has posted several more articles on this mess.

    Nancy Jester - The Curious Case of Policy DJE

    Nancy Jester - The Circle of Trust

    Board Member Don McChesney is also speaking up.

    Don McChesney SACS Friend or Foe

    DeKalb DA Mr. Robert James: "We are fully aware of the concerns pertaining to the DeKalb Co. School District and have made this issue a priority for 2013"

    Thanks Robert, and it would be nice if you could publish the Grand Jury Presentments as they are completed. Website is way behind, thanks.

    DeKalb DA Grand Jury Presentments

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