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Many people will be watching Monday,
Nov. 5 to see if the residents near Lakeside High
and Henderson Middle turn out to speak
for priority placement on the SPLOST IV
list, as called for by the PTSA, or if they will
do the right thing and wait their place in
line, just like everyone else.
DeKalb County Schools simulcasts its public board meetings
on its website and on Comast cable.
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Note to residents near Lakeside High School or Henderson Middle School: Before you read our email below, first let us explain:
We have nothing against your community as a whole. We understand that sometimes issues are reported by the media that may imply that everyone who lives in one area all have one, unified opinion. We know that is not true, nor even possible.
GTCO-ATL is not implying that you are responsible for any wrongdoing or corruption taking place at your schools. Instead, we are suggesting that the way corruption works is that a very limited few who have connections and influence are able to wield power under certain circumstances that allows their immediate community to benefit, often at the expense of others. And, they often enlist the help of others who may not fully understand the impact of what they are being asked to do.
This practice in general should not be supported and we hope the community will not buy into the email notice that was sent by the Lakeside PTSA. Instead, we hope to see that the community will do the right thing and wait its turn, already determined by the Superintendent, regardless of whether or not your schools are first, middle or last on the list. There are many schools that did not even make the list. There are elementary schools that were told this was the SPLOST that would make them a priority. All our schools have needs.
More importantly, there are many more urgent issues going on in our education system today that should indicate that focus on construction is a distraction. Instead, we hope that many communities will consider working together to solve the true educational problems that are countywide. We encourage people who speak to the board to consider advocating for the best interest of all students, not just their own.
We do not want to live in a county with fractured sub-groups fighting among each other for being the "favorite" of the school board. Rather, we need to address the poverty issues that affect education, the classroom overcrowding that can only be eliminated by keeping adequate numbers of teachers employed, the need for paraprofessionals to assist teachers in the classroom, the impact of the new and varied curriculum and testing being called for by the administration, the high turnover in schools of key positions like principals and assistant principals.
These are the issues that need solving. And, if we can improve the graduation rates and student achievement rates, then more people will want to move to DeKalb County in general. That will boost all of our property values. What Lakeside wants you to do is unfair to children in other parts of the county who also have families who pay property taxes and sales taxes.
By asking to be treated in a manner that is better than others, your leaders are asking you to continue to feed a system that is fueled by hatred, racism, stereotypes and a lack of adherence to policies. That is not a good system for any of the stakeholders, especially the children.
If you do choose to speak at tonight's board meeting, we urge you to add some time to your message to state that you do not wish for any of your requests to be granted if it means other schools who have greater needs will have to wait. Perhaps the board can authorize the simultaneous work rather than bumping other schools and their needs to the bottom in order to put your schools first.
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From: Get the Cell Out - Atlanta
Sent: Saturday, November 03, 2012 4:14 PM
To: Get the Cell Out - Atlanta
Cc: Cheryl Atkinson ; Myra Burden ; Sarah Copelin-Wood ; Jay Cunningham ; Eugene Walker ; Nancy Jester ; Don McChesney ; Paul Womack ; Donna Edler ; Pam Speaks ; Tom Bowen
Subject: Fw: Pay It Forward - Community Call To Action
Dear Atlanta Media,
Below is a notice that was sent to us by one of our followers who lives in Atlanta, near Briarlake Elementary School, which is in the Lakeside “cluster” of schools. Our group has been working toward better unity in DeKalb County in order to solve the many problems in our schools that perpetuate and encourage corruption. This notice from Lakeside High School to the members of its community and attendance zone is the perfect example of how some leaders will advocate for their own school to get something from the school system that they do not deserve, such as a bump up on the list of priorities for construction projects from SPLOST IV.
We hope you will cover their request in a different manner than you might ordinarily consider by reporting on the underlying message their request is sending – that they deserve something more or better from the public school system and that they believe that a corrupt system will continue to cave to the outspoken voices of the few, at the expense of the thousands of other children who are not as fortunate as to have adult advocates who can do the same for them.
They are not satisfied with having their feeder middle school in the middle of the pack. They are used to being first. We will suggest to the board that letting some schools occasionally see what it feels like to be in the middle might actually be the more healthy thing to do here. It isn’t good for the children of these self-proclaimed “elite” to think that they will always come in first place. That’s not the way the world works. They need to learn that is not only polite, it is preferred, to let others go ahead of us sometimes.
There is no way to move Henderson Middle School without also choosing other schools that will have to take a back seat by having their needs moved down on the list. Those schools may or may not be aware of what Lakeside is trying to do and by the time they hear about it, it could be too late for them to speak up for themselves.
If the school board members were recently investigated by SACS for trying to micro-manage the administration and were scolded for interfering in day-to-day operations, then shouldn’t ideas like the one presented by Lakeside High School be stopped, admonished and even sanctioned? Isn’t setting a schedule of priorities an administrative function? Our group of 1,200+ parents and community members across the county will be watching closely to the board members and their votes on this proposal for a revised schedule on Monday, Nov. 5.
We are copying the Superintendent and her staff on this email so that she understands that there is another group of people who may not be as vocal as those who will approach her from the Lakeside area, but are still watching and hoping she will do the right thing here. We are rooting for her to stick to her plan and validate the reasons why the project priorities she has recommended should remain untouched as they are a function of the administration and is not something that should be influenced by playing favorites.
We want to know our tax dollars are going to support all the children and all the schools fairly. We do not want to see one area of the county continue to syphon off funds again and again to improve their own property values while other schools are treated like inconsequential casualties of war.
And, if Lakeside wants to make a public outcry for what their community needs, they will be asking for trouble because all our communities have needs. All our schools have needs. All our children are important. And, not everyone who lives near Lakeside agrees with their outspoken tactics. We hope to bring this alternative position to the public comments on Nov. 5 as well. We will be requesting speaking time as well so that we can speak up for all those children who don’t have parents or real estate investors pushing for their needs. Someone needs to speak up for them, too. And, someone needs to open the eyes of the out of control advocates who are actually doing more harm than good.
Thank you,
Get the Cell Out – Atlanta
cc:
Concerned Citizens of South DeKalb
Unhappy Taxpayer and Voter
Stephenson Community Action Group
PAGE
SACS
All other concerned parties in this matter
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Subject: Community Call To Action - Pay It Forward for Henderson Middle School
Date: Friday, November 2, 2012
Dear Lakeside Families and Community,
Lakeside has its new building and school renovations. Our trailers are gone. We are very fortunate and enjoying our new buildings!
Unfortunately, our feeder middle school, Henderson Middle School, has also been in need of renovations and an addition for quite some time. They are scheduled to receive this much needed work in SPLOST IV but it appears they have been moved farther down the proposed priority list than our community was led to believe during the redistricting and SPLOST IV vote.
HMS needs the support of the entire LHS community to get that date moved further up on the list. Our feeder elementary schools are on board. Let's get behind them too! Many community members worked to get LHS the new facility we are now enjoying even though their own families would not personally get to enjoy the benefits. Let us repay the favor forward!
Here are some of the facts:
1. HMS has 1,590 students currently and is the largest middle school in the County.
2. HMS has grown to 17 trailers this year and is the most overcrowded middle school in DeKalb
3. During redistricting a couple of years ago, the county staff listed HMS at 138% capacity. HMS has well surpassed that now.
4. HMS was converted to a middle school 16 years ago but it never received a complete middle school conversion.
5. The school's design is incompatible with the middle school instructional strategy of team-teaching. Key portions of the campus, including the media center, music rooms, cafeteria, and office areas, are inadequate to serve the population.
6. The campus is not compliant with ADA specifications. One example is that Disabled students and faculty cannot enter and exit the building with their peers, but instead must use a separate entrance at the back of the building near the cafeteria.
7. This single capital improvement would impact the largest number of students in DeKalb in a single project.
8. County administrators assured stakeholders that HMS would be placed at the top of the list for SPLOST IV projects.
9. County administrators presented a proposed priority list to the Board of Education last May. HMS was listed halfway down the priority list behind three new elementary schools and two other school renovations (none of which have the enrollment, percentage over capacity or trailers that HMS has. In addition, the HMS project is slated to cost less than each of the three elementary schools so the funds will become available more quickly for this project).
10. A new list has been presented to the Board of Education by the school system administration this week for a vote this coming Monday, Nov. 5th. The list entitled "SPLOST IV Schedule (Cash Flow-Basis), October 24, 2012 Version" has HMS on lines 103 and 104, seemingly still quite far down the list with a completion date of July 2015. To view how the school system has chosen to prioritize the projects, click here. You will find the agenda for Monday night's meeting. Click on agenda item G2: Approval of SPLOST IV Project Sequence List. The Action Item page will open. At the bottom you will find an item titled "Supporting Documents". These are the two proposed SPLOST IV lists.
What Can You Do to Help Henderson Middle??
1. All residents of the Lakeside cluster, regardless of whether you have children in DCSS schools, are encouraged to contact the school system's administration and all Board of Education members. You may use any of the facts above and/or your own experiences related to Henderson's facility needs. Request that HMS be moved to the top of the "SPLOST IV Schedule (Cash Flow-Basis) list" to receive proceeds from the earliest SPLOST IV tax revenues that come into the school system. Request that HMS also be placed at the top of the chronological list to initiate the HMS project at the beginning of the SPLOST IV projects. Please contact the individuals below and let them know that they can benefit the most students in one building project for the least amount of money by fulfilling their promise to renovate Henderson Middle School.
2. Take action today! The BOE will vote on this Monday, Nov. 5th. Do this on behalf of our community and your neighbors whose children will benefit.
3. Sign the online petition here and send it to your family, friends, and neighbors.
4. Notify your neighbors of this community need. Ask them to sign the online petition and contact the school system staff and Board of Education.
Thank you for taking time to support our feeder middle school. Working together we can continue to build a great learning environment for our community's students and staff. (Remember to come to the Lakeside Open House this Sunday, Nov. 4th from 2-4 p.m. to see our new facilities. Invite your neighbors to join us!)
List of Contacts:
Dr. Atkinson (Superintendent): cheryl_atkinson@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Joshua Williams (Exec. Dir. of Facilities Mgmt.): joshua_l_williams@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Dan Drake (Exec. Dir. of Transportation): daniel_e_drake@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Board of Education Members
Thomas Bowen: Thomas_Bowen@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Sarah Copelin-Wood: Sarah_Copelin-Wood@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Jay Cunningham: Jay_Cunningham@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Donna Edler: Donna_Edler@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Nancy Jester: Nancy_Jester@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Don McChesney: Don_McChesney@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Pam Speaks: Pam_Speaks@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Gene Walker: Eugene_P_Walker@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
Sent by Lakeside High School PTSA Communication Committee
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PTSA email: lakesidevikings@gmail.com
School phone: 678-874-6702
web: http://www.lakesidevikings.thezonelive.com
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