The suit was filed Tuesday in Fulton County Superior Court, according to the AJC.
As reported on Patch, DeKalb's school board was scheduled to appear once again before the State Board of Education on Thursday at 8 am. DeKalb's board must convince state authorities that they are making progress in meeting requirements set forth by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, which has placed the school system on probation.
The State Board has the power to recommend removal of the entire school board to Gov. Nathan Deal.
DeKalb Board of Education Chairman Eugene Walker resigned from his leadership position on Monday.
According to the AJC posting, the lawsuit was filed by Decatur attorney Robert Wilson on behalf of the school board. It argues that the 2011 law violates the Georgia constitution because it authorizes removal of local elected officials without single individual findings of misconduct.
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GTCO-ATL Comments: While we appreciate the fact that a lot of people are going to be very upset about this latest legal move by the DeKalb Board of Education, we are actually breathing a bit of a sigh of relief. Yes, we all know that this board is full of tricks in order to keep their jobs. And, we know they have fundamentally failed our children. We agree. But, what we don't know is exactly WHOM the Governor would appoint to fill these shoes and whether or not they would be able to move forward in a manner that is better than what we have now.
We recall reading something a while back regarding our rights as U.S. citizens and how we must always keep those rights precious and protected because there will be a lot of people who will want to take them away from us, and our children and their children. If we bend a little here and overlook something there, pretty soon it can add up. Once your rights have been relinquished to someone else, it is nearly impossible to ever get them back. It's like our taxes. Once we agree to let them go up, those in power will get used to the money and will find every reason under the sun to keep us paying that same amount, maybe more, but never less. E-SPLOST was supposed to be a one-time only tax and we are now on the 4th version of it.
We gave up a lot of rights after Sept. 11th and the terrorist attacks so that the government could have more access to conversations in an effort to find those who might be engaging in the planning activities to support a terroristic plot against the U.S. But, now they can "tap" into any wireless conversation without a search warrant and spy on American citizens for no reason whatsoever. Did you know you gave up such a big right to your own privacy when you let the government do what was necessary to find Bin Laden? You gave up some of your rights, but the government is not giving them back.
So, while we agree that this situation in DeKalb is dire and needs full attention, we have wondered if we might be headed down a questionable pathway by allowing the state BOE, an appointed board, to determine our fate even if it is only to a small extent. But their recommendation carries weight with the Governor and he would make the final call. So, we are giving one man and his appointed board the power to kick elected members of our county out of their seats and we do not even know whom he might appoint? There is no great track record for his doing this. We are among the very first counties in DeKalb to test this law and therefore, as frustrating as it may be, our board may have just made their first GOOD decision.
The law is questionable and it takes rights away from us. Who authored the law? Who started the request for such legislation? What was the outcome of the first lawsuit of this nature? Do we have any other way to ensure accountability or get better results from the next election? It doesn't look good for DeKalb in retaining accreditation, but that is for SACS to decide. In the meantime, are there things we can ask our legislators to do for us right now? Like plan to offer vouchers for HOPE and other scholarships that could be lost. OR, ask for a countywide election next time where responsible voters can select all the candidates, regardless of where they live. And, ask for a return to the disclosure of political parties as the school system is clearly political so hiding the affiliations serves no other purpose than to deceive the voters. Maybe the delay on the hearing will be a good time for all of us to reflect and determine where we will go from here. Do we split apart into separate battle grounds? Will we come together to insist on fair treatment for all our schools and all our children and their teachers? Will we sit back and let others "take over" and hope for the best?
We need to become stronger advocates for a moral and fair DeKalb County and make it the kind of place where people would want to raise their children. In order to attract good neighbors, we must first practice BEING good neighbors. If this system must go on in its present state, then we must step up and demand more, not just from our board members but from each other and from ourselves.
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Richard Belcher reports: DeKalb Board Sues to Avoid Suspension
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