Where We Stand on the Upcoming May 20 School Board Elections

     The DeKalb County School Board Election is perhaps one of the most vital to the future of DeKalb as residents have seen in some time.  After the Governor removed former board members, several of them are determined to regain their old titles and in one district, the husband of a removed board member is the sole choice for voters.

PLEASE VOTE MAY 20 in DeKALB COUNTY, GA!

Here are the races and the candidates from the DeKalb County election website:

BOARD OF EDUCATION

District 1:  Stan Jester  

(Appointed Member John Coleman is not running for election.  Jester is the spouse of former board member Nancy Jester who was removed by the Governor.  He also has children currently enrolled in the public school system in DeKalb County.)

     Without another choice, GTCO-ATL is in favor of Stan Jester for this seat.  Our main concerns with this candidate is that the Dunwoody homeowner's association has been politically active and vocal about their desire to form their own school system, separate from DeKalb County's system.  We are unsure how Jester will resolve the conflict that would seem to put him in an awkward spot of wanting to help the current system succeed while not wanting to harm the chances of his constituents in their push toward gaining a separate system.  It is not clear how both goals can be achieved as the removal of funds from the north end of the district and return of children who live outside its boundaries would seemingly have a negative impact on the more poor portions of the county, mostly assumed to be in South DeKalb, but also located in the central part of the county where there is a large refugee area.

     Jester's wife Nancy was one of the only "no" votes against cell towers and was able to keep her Dunwoody district without a named school on the proposed list from 2011.  Stan has assisted GTCO-ATL with records requests and bringing the truth to light by his "fact checker" website and video / audio recording of key school board meetings.  GTCO-ATL favors Stan Jester as a positive addition to the board and hope that he continues his efforts toward an open and transparent school system leadership.

     Nancy Jester is running for the state school Superintendent's position and will face considerable competition in the primary election.  If you are a fan of Ms. Jester, she likely needs your vote on May 20, but you will need to request a Republican voting card in order to have an impact on her race for the state seat.  Any runoff elections will not be held until later in July. General elections will be held in November.

District 2:  Don McChesney, incumbent Marshall Orson  

(Orson was elected, not appointed, but did not serve on the former board.  He defeated then-incumbent McChesney so this election is a bit of a re-match between the two.  McChesney is a former teacher and Orson is an attorney in Atlanta with children in the school system.)

    This is a very tough district and the choices are not so much between the old and the new as they are between Briar Vista and Fernbank Elementary School districts.  McChesney has fought in the past for the Briar Vista neighborhood and their school which suffered a loss in student population under the new plan first brought forward by Dr. Cheryl Atkinson, former Superintendent who left amid a flurry of SACS allegations, possibly illegal hiring and firing practices, and her refusal to comply with Open Records Requests.  McChesney was the board member who offered the amended solution to the original cell tower debate that removed the three most vocal schools before the full board voted on the issue in July 2011, but he did not attend public meetings intended to gather input from the school communities in his own district which upset many taxpayers, especially those living in the Briarcliff Heights area near the Margaret Harris School for the physically and mentally impaired.

The location of the original schools affected by the cell tower decision.

   Orson is the former President of the highly influential Emory-Lavista Parent Council and has stepped up in an effort to assist GTCO-ATL and the Margaret Harris neighborhood in their co-joined efforts to determine the current status of the cell tower permits and to get a possible vote on a school board resolution against the cell tower practice in the future.  He has been accused in the past of favoring the Fernbank Elementary School community over others, but since his current tenure on the school board he has presented himself to be a very intelligent and thorough board member.  Most notably, he helped in the settlement of the Heery Mitchell lawsuit that was costing the school district tens of millions of dollars.  That alone has enabled our schools to begin to pay teachers a bit better and reverse all furlough days that had become a standard practice.  Orson is also the board member credited for the recommendation of former labor commissioner Michael Thurmond for the position of Superintendent, so depending on how you feel about him, that might influence your vote.

   GTCO-ATL will accept either of these board members as favorable to our cause as we believe they both have taken the time to research and understand the issue of cell towers and the concerns of their constituents. We have been mostly in favor of the progress of the new board and the hiring of Super. Thurmond, so for those reasons, we favor Marshall Orson in this district.

District 3:  Jerrie D. Bason, incumbent Michael A. Erwin, Jarrod Jordan, Atticus LeBlanc, Willie R. Mosley, Jr

(Incumbent Michael Erwin was appointed to the board by Gov. Deal)

   GTCO-ATL has no solid information that would lead us to believe any of the candidates for this seat would be pro-cell tower.  We have generally favored the job that the current appointed board members have done to date, so for this reason, we favor keeping the appointed current member Michael A. Erwin.

District 4:  Incumbent Karen Carter, incumbent Jim McMahan, John Oselette, Ella “Coach” Smith

(Incumbent Dr. Karen Carter was appointed by Gov. Deal, Incumbent Jim McMahan was elected to replace former board member Paul Womack, the board member who first brought the cell tower issue to the school board in 2011.)

Dr. Karla Drenner held multiple hearings at the state capitol in 2011 in an
effort to ban the practice of using school grounds for corporate
gain by the telecommunications industry.

     The only person in this district who has publicly opposed the cell tower issue is Ella "Coach" Smith.  Smith is our pick for District 4.  She was one of the only residents to attend a cell tower meeting held back in May 2011 and she opposed the practice both verbally and in a written statement to the board.  She came forward during the time when it was very controversial to do so because she knew then, and knows now, that the health of our children is not something to be gambled with.  A former teacher at Lakeside High School, who was also a cheer and gymnastics coach for many years, Smith has been a contributor to the Dekalb School Watch blog and other public forums in her support for the children all over the county, not just in her own district.  She has made considerable effort to mend fences between the warring sides of Lakeside vs. Tucker which were very heated during the most recent battle over city lines.  And, she gave up her teaching position to work in Fulton County specifically so that she could become a more outspoken advocate for the children and call out the poor governance practices she witnessed.

     We are not specifically opposed to Dr. Karen Carter and the job she has done, but we are unclear as to where she stands on the cell tower issue.  We have presented a resolution to refrain from using cell towers as a revenue stream and provided quality evidence to show the board that the money in other markets has only been used as a slush fund to further corrupt practices.  While members like Mayfield and Orson as well as the Superintendent have reached out to us and others who oppose the towers to help us with learning where things stand in the process of permits and contracts, we have not heard from McMahan or Carter.  Oselette appears to only be campaigning in a very limited area with a highly political tilt.  For these reasons, we are in favor of Ella "Coach" Smith as the best candidate from a perspective of healing this district and remaining in firm opposition to the placement of towers at our schools.  Many of the schools on the list for cell towers were based in and around this specific area of the county.

    We also do not specifically oppose Jim McMahan, but have concerns over his poor attendance record on the current board.  He has made good voting decisions and did speak with us on more than one occasion to tell us that he supported our efforts to keep cell towers off school grounds.  McMahan would not be a poor choice for the cell tower issue, however, we are concerned over his association with the Tucker Parent Council and some behind the scenes changes to staffing at some Tucker schools that may have been an effort to assist the Lakeside City Alliance.  The city issue would have split Tucker nearly in half and has been a very destructive element in this district.  We believe that anyone who is involved in this battle for city borders should not also be simultaneously involved in school related groups when their efforts in one area may be counter productive to their responsibilities in the other.  The children must always come first.


District 5:  Pia “Chaz Afzal” Bhatt, Jesse “Jay” Cunningham, R. Alexander Fitzhugh, incumbent Thad Mayfield, Vickie B. Turner

(Incumbent Thad Mayfield is a current appointed board member.  Jesse "Jay" Cunningham is a former board member who was removed by the Governor.)

    Thad Mayfield has been a very detailed and effective board member since his appointment.  He has listened to the concerns of GTCO-ATL and we believe he would be the best choice for District 5.  We favor Thad Mayfield for several reasons, but on the issue of cell towers, we believe that he has researched the issue, listened to the complaints and would likely vote against the practice of using towers for a revenue stream or slush fund.

Parents at MLK High School in DeKalb showed up to oppose cell towers and meet with their then-board member Jay Cunningham back in 2011.

District 6:  Bridgeman Bolger and incumbent Melvin Johnson

(Incumbent Melvin Johnson is a current board member who was elected.)

       Between the two candidates, we favor Bridgeman Bolger for this race.  We recently learned that Bolger worked for Rep. Karla Drenner, who fought a very good fight in the state House of Representatives in an effort to completely ban cell towers from our school grounds.  Bolger has reached out to GTCO-ATL to make an introduction, which we appreciate.  He understands the cell tower issue and has also worked through  his position with the Young Democrats of DeKalb to ensure federal funds for the refugee resettlement communities are getting to the right places, including the schools that are expected to educate these children, many of whom do not know any English.

     While we do not have any specific issues with Dr. Melvin Johnson, the incumbent and current chairman of the school board, we are aware that he has a somewhat controversial past.  He was a long time employee with the school system and some of his opponents believe he worked for the system during the timeframe that saw a huge increase in administration while schools were being forced to close or run with minimal staff and support.

District 7:  Kim Ault, Lee V. Dukes and incumbent Joyce Morley

(Incumbent Dr. Joyce Morley was appointed by the Governor.)

    It is with heavy heart that we are reminded of the passing of former board member Donna Edler.  Ms. Edler was a friend to GTCO-ATL and one of the only two board members to vote against the cell towers initially (although eventually all except Dr. Eugene Walker stated that they would vote differently if they had the choice to do over again).   Ms. Edler died from cancer and was a true fighter until the very end, never letting her illness get in the way of her efforts to provide a better school system for the children in DeKalb County.  Edler's children are still in the DeKalb County School System and our condolences go out to them as well as her husband.

   This is another difficult choice and GTCO-ATL is not completely in favor or opposed to any of these candidates, lacking sufficient information.  However, we are aware that parent Kim Ault has been at the forefront of many efforts to bring the former board members and their poor governance practices into the light.  We believe she would be an honest representative who has her own children in the system and has sufficient knowledge of where we have been in order to serve her district well.

     However, we slightly favor Dr. Joyce Morley as she has done a fair job during her appointment to the board.  She has taken her position seriously and seems to be very committed to continuing the good work that the current appointed board has done so far.  For this reason, GTCO-ATL favors Dr. Joyce Morley.

VICTORY in Every Classroom! State Recommends Removal of DeKalb BOE

GEORGIA'S STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION 

RECOMMENDS THE REMOVAL 

OF THE DEKALB COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION!

February 22, 2013:  Late last night, shortly after 10 p.m., the state Board of Education concluded its 13 hour hearing of the DeKalb County, GA, Board of Education.  While many of those who had been watching and listening throughout the day were expecting a 14-day wait before a decision, the state BOE immediately began their individual statements and then casting their votes.

While they had some hope that the district was headed in a better direction than they initially believe when they first convened in January, they unanimously determined it was in the best interest of the 99,000 children who live here that the Governor remove the entire board.  There are three exceptions, however.  The three newly elected members who were not serving at the time the system was lowered to the Probation status by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) will not be held accountable and will likely remain in their seats.  Those members are the newly-elected chairman Melvin Johnson, newly-elected vice chairman Jim McMahan and newly-elected board member Marshall Orson.

Financial Officer, Michael Perrone, answered some questions that had
lingered in the minds of many residents about missing textbook funds and
some questionable practices of borrowing from accounts to pay off debt.  The
state BOE attorney Hackmeyer was tough, yet subtle, as she got to the
heart of many of DeKalb's problems:  a general lack of accountability that
persists among upper level staff as well as many of the board members.

We will have more on this subject later today.   Congratulations to every whistleblower and thank you to every citizen who stood up to be counted in a petition that was signed by more than 1,500 people.

Thank you to every teacher who has endured the abusive relationship with the former board members and has still found a way to teach and take care of our precious children.

This decision was made thoughtfully and is a step in the right direction for DeKalb.  We hope to remain involved in the process of rebuilding our schools and restoring full accreditation.  We look forward to the changes that will be facilitated by the new Interim Superintendent Michael Thurmond who has stated his commitment to excellence and a focus on the classroom.

While Dr. Eugene Walker says he will file a lawsuit to challenge the constitutionality of the controversial state law that allows for the elected board's removal, it is a brighter day in DeKalb today!   The voices of the children were not heard, but there were adults in the hearing room who did not forget them.  They did their jobs and did not allow the "masters of distraction" to throw them off track.

To our GTCO-ATL friends, fans, followers and leaders, we thank you for following this story and doing your part to remain involved in your school, your community and caring about the future of the entire county.  We can accomplish great things when we agree to all work together!  Our ability to hold off the cell towers from invading our public school grounds has set a great example to parent groups everywhere that have been turned toward fighting each other instead of focusing on the source of the problems that are tearing them apart.  Rooting out the corruption and coming forward with what you know has been important to exposing those who wish to bring harm to our communities in order to line their own pockets with our money.

Working together to understand and help each other sets a good example for the behavior we want to see our children exhibit, and how we want our leaders to behave as they are leading us.  It is how we want our classrooms to function and our neighborhoods to grow and flourish.

VICTORY is every classroom was the rally call of former Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson which she never achieved.  Instead, she turned our classrooms into battlegrounds where there were no winners.  But, today we can claim that VICTORY is ours - the parents, children, teachers and other stakeholders of our public education system.  CONGRATULATIONS!!  

Please check back throughout the days and weeks ahead as we will continue to be covering the details of these events and the outcome of the decisions being made.  We will also be providing update through the Patch online newspaper, Crossroads News and the DeKalb School Watch Two blog.

Please stay involved and aware of the progress being made so that you can show up in 2014 to VOTE responsibly as the entire board is slated to be voted upon in the same election and will hold their seats for four years.  Direct questions to Get the Cell Out - ATL at sayno2celltowers@yahoo.com.

DeKalb Schools: 'There Is No Plan'

From the Patch

Marshall Orson, newly elected board member in the
troubled Dekalb County School District, spoke to
a gathering of about 100 residents from aroundthe county after filing a lawsuit against the state
that asked for an injunction to stop the Feb. 21 hearing.
But that motion was denied and tomorrow at 8 a.m.
the hearing will take place.  Live blogging contributions
planned by The Patch to include Get the Cell Out! 

School Board member Marshall Orson spoke in front of a tough crowd Tuesday night.
By Cheryl Miller

DeKalb School Board Member Marshall Orson (District 2) held a nearly three-hour Town Hall Meeting in the Emory community off North Decatur Road Tuesday night, updating a packed room of parents and neighbors on the events that have taken place almost daily since the state BOE gave DeKalb a 30-day window to prove their commitment to an improvement plan.

The state BOE is scheduled to reconvene Thursday at 8 a.m. to finish the hearing started in January that was required by a law intended to help school systems protect their valuable accreditation.

But, the law has had its own share of controversy when, in 2010, then-Governor Sonny Perdue removed Warren County's school board, but the state Supreme Court overturned that decision. The law was tweaked in 2011 and yet another lawsuit was spawned when the Governor tried to remove Sumter County's school board upon recommendation of the state BOE. Orson told the room that DeKalb had just filed a lawsuit in Fulton County which asks for an emergency injunction to stop three things: the state hearing from moving ahead tomorrow, the state BOE from recommending removal of DeKalb's board and the Governor from acting upon any recommendation by the state BOE.

Residents across the county are expressing outrage and many are sure this latest stunt by the board, already in hot water with the accrediting agency known as SACS, will surely lead to a total loss of accreditation. Orson stated his rejection of this idea. He told the group that his recommendation of former Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond was a brilliant idea and that the district is already on its way to recovery. He expected that the measures outlined by SACS in its scathing report issued in December will all be met by the time SACS returns in May for its mid-point review on their progress.

"You have some areas where the district has obviously been deficient," he said. "Legal fees, for one, but also H.R., P.R., don't get me started, and finance. And that's because there has been a belief on the board in the past that it doesn't really matter if there are long-term repercussions as long as you can enjoy the short-term gain. This is a mindset, not a policy. And it is one we are changing."

One audience member asked what kind of assurances could Orson make that this board can work together and accomplish all those items in such a short time frame when they are already creating a lot of doubt based on the number of lawyers they have hired.

SACS admonished the board's exorbitant spending on attorney fees as one of the major line items they have direct control over. It is one of the major drains upon the general operations fund that is necessary for the vital parts of an education system: teacher salaries, textbooks, and other educational support materials. It is also the account that must pay for general maintenance and upkeep of the existing school buildings, an area that parents and residents have been complaining about for years.

BriarVista Elementary attendance zone from schooldigger.com

"You have been a part of a culture that is all about me, me, me and mine, back off, it's mine," accused a man seated in the front row. He stated he lived near Briar Vista Elementary School, one that has been targeted for closure and has struggled to maintain enrollment mandates for its Montessori program. "How are we supposed to trust that you are not still about those things now that you are on the board? How do we know we can trust you when, in the past, you have authored or co-authored some very inflammatory statements that many think have cost us the viability of our school?"

Fernbank Elementary attendance zone from schooldigger.com

Orson stated his actions as a parent at Fernbank were, at the time, what was necessary to support his interest at Fernbank, but he is now committed to working with every community in his district to help them accomplish what they want with their schools. But, he said it was important for everyone to get away from the wanting of "things" or "inputs" because they see what other schools may have and start focusing on what kind of learning they want to be taking place inside the classrooms. He said he remembers a parent who once told him that he would rather have his child in a building with a leaking roof and great learning going on than no learning and a brand new building.

An audience member spoke up and said, "Well, we have two of those things: leaky roofs and no learning." Nervous laughter in the room ensued.

This author spoke up to ask about the "proper channels" that were referenced in the SACS report. The question was, generally, "if we are not able to go to our board members for their help and board members are not supposed to micro manage, then can someone please tell us where exactly these proper channels exist?"

Orson replied with an extended discussion about the flawed nature of the SACS report and the difficulty the board has in responding to its accusations because of the need for anonymity contained in the report itself. He stated that, in his opinion, part of the problem is that decisions are made in the school system that are disjointed from other decisions that are simultaneously being made.

"If there is any kind of strategic plan," he said, "then it isn't one that is clearly communicated by anyone and may only exist in the mind of, like, one employee somewhere who just dreamed it up one day and didn't even write it down. And that certainally isn't how you go about creating a strategic plan. A strategic plan needs to take into account a lot of things, primarily the input from the community that must have some type of say about what kind of learning they want to see taking place and what form they want to see that learning take. That has not happened as far as I know. I mean, has anyone hear ever participated in something like that? No? I didn't think so."

But, one woman in the back of the room brought up the Briar Vista issue again, stating that it did not appear her community's input was really wanted or considered. The decisions were already made. A woman up front added that they have leaking roofs and windows that won't seal properly. She said that it was clear that Fernbank is getting everything they ever dreamed of while her school is being targeted for closure. We know that will harm our neighborhood and our property values. I care about this school and I don't even have children, only the four-legged kind. But, I care about my neighbors and we don't want to see this happen. What can we do? This board cannot come together for anything. These issues are not even on their radar, are they?"

Orson discussed the difference between the SPLOST plan for buildings and an educational plan that should go together. "We have the SPLOST plan," he said. "But the other is one we are all going to have to think about once these immediate issues are resolved."

Patch will have a live blog of Thursday's hearing starting at 7:45 a.m.

The Devil is in The Detail (How the Cell Tower Votes Shine a Light on DeKalb's "Corridor of Corruption")

Wonder exactly how the cell tower vote shook out and whether or not your own community said they were for or against the idea of cell towers at schools? 

Read more by clicking the headline for the full story. 

On July 31, 2012 Georgia voters took to the polls in the election primaries. In Dekalb County, a question popped up on the ballot with little explanation:

"Should the local, charter or independent school system of Dekalb County place or operate a telecommunications tower on any elementary, middle or high school property?"

The phrase, "The Devil is in the Detail," refers to a catch or mysterious element hidden in the details.^[1]

While opponents  of cell towers on school grounds were happy when the outcome was a strong 62% of voters saying "NO," GTCO-ATL was wondering if there was more we could learn from the data.  So, we dug a little deeper. 

From the start, we were critical of the validity of any data that might come from this question. First, it was asking too many things at once which is a common error people make when they are not properly trained in survey data analysis or proper question techniques.  We tried to alert those who were responsible for the question, Rep. Karla Drenner and Rep. Chuck Sims, but they did not respond. We then asked Gov. Deal to not sign the referendum as it was vague, not necessary and did not come from the people. He signed it anyway.

So, we determined that even though it might not go our way, at least it would tell us a few things that could be beneficial.

1. First, any area that answered yes, or even close, could be an area that is uninformed of the dangers and problems a cell tower could bring. We could focus more effort with our PR there.
2. Second, if we felt there were areas well informed that still said yes, we might be able to see specifically where corruption was influencing the voters.  Why wouldn't we think a yes could be a sincere, honest vote? Because we have been at this for more than a year and have never met anyone who has thought it was a good idea. Even those who like to debate us on the blogs will not take a pro-cell tower stance.
3. The third thing we thought we would learn would be where these "rural" Dekalb areas actually are located where Mr. Cunningham said they "welcomed the towers." Going by the way things appeared in the media, the South regions wanted the towers and money, while the North was leading the protests against them.  What we expected was to see strong opposition regardless of the location.

But, oddly enough, here is how the vote shook out:

(click chart to enlarge)

Here are some questions we had:

• Are these areas (highlighted in yellow) actually ignorant of the dangers of cell towers?
• Is the difference of just a few percentage points even enough statistically to be concerned about or is it safe to say that overall the entire county was against the idea of placing cell towers on the public school grounds?
• Should the school board inform T-mobile about the few areas that skewed slightly in favor of cell towers so they can be the ones to receive them?
• Is there a chance that the very few areas that skewed in favor of the towers had some sort of "inside information" to reassure them that they would not actually be the ones to receive the towers? 
• Are the areas of the county that were not selected for tower placements not going to receive the cooresponding technology either? 
• What is the purpose of a "non-binding advisory referendum" anyway?  Why did state legislators create this alternative to the total ban on towers that the citizens wanted?
• What did they expect to do with the results of this referendum?
• But, who are we advising?  Who will listen? 
• Who will actually do something with these results?
• If no one is going to act upon this ballot question and it will not influence (or "advise") anyone in a decision-making capacity, then why did taxpayers have to pay for it? 
• Why did we even have to take our time and resources to educate people about the question, and its poor wording, if the outcome was for no viable purpose? 
• Or, as we suggested originally, was this question created for someone else?  Someone OTHER than the citizens?  Perhaps if the results would have gone in the favor of the towers, they would have used the results.  If that is the case, then shouldn't THOSE PEOPLE (or businesses) be the ones who should have paid for it?  Not the voters of DeKalb County. 
• Were we really successful in stopping the towers? 
• Is the school board aware that the contracts have expired?
• Why won't our School Board or our county CEO tell us anything?

We may never know for sure, but we plotted the districts marked in yellow, above, on a map of the voting precincts.  After studying the areas and their relationship to each other, here's what we saw. 

 

(We are working to get a scanned version of this map

uploaded here for you.  Check back soon.)

WHERE WERE THE YES VOTES?

1. A small number of Dunwoody communities, and a

2. A small portion of the Lakeside or Emory-Lavista "Corridor" of schools.  

Note:  Almost all areas in favor were ITP, or "Inside the Perimeter."

WHO COULD THEY BE?

Of course this is all speculation on our part, but there could actually be four types of "yes" votes in these areas:

1. Voters who are completely unaware of the issue (just like we once were before this started)
2. Voters who think tower radiation is harmless for children and therefore our public land should be leased to T-mobile without concern (we have not actually met anyone like this, have you?)
3. Voters who have been told to vote yes (by an employer or friend) and do so because they do not have a personal, vested interest in the outcome.
4. Voters who have spoken to their board member, believe they will not be receiving a cell tower and therefore they do not care if a tower goes up somewhere else.

Note:  It is important to note that none of the areas (in the chart in yellow) actually had a cell tower going up near them. 

Of course we have no way of knowing why people voted the way they did.  We cannot go back and review the votes to ask follow-up questions.  And, people who were unaware of the issue had no way of selecting "I don't know" or "unaware" as their response.  These are just a few of the reasons we asked the Governor to veto this bill, but he went ahead and signed it.

Dunwoody

Those who voted in the Dunwoody area may have done so because they were not faced with this issue at their local schools.  Dunwoody did not have any of their schools on the original or reduced list for cell towers.  Does this mean they do not get the technology, either? 

If cell towers are actually a means for distributing the material of a virtual charter school, did certain folks in Dunwoody already know about this concept?  They have been advocating on the School Watch Blog for separate school districts.  So, have they been promised a way that they can make this happen in return for supporting the cell tower idea? 

Do we have a case of ignorant, but financially well-off, neighborhoods where they do not follow school news?  Or is this a case of yet another area of DeKalb selling someone else's neighborhood out when offered something they want for themselves? 

Lakeside / Fernbank and the Emory-Lavista Corridor

That leaves only a few districts that were either divided in their responses or barely tipped the scales in favor of towers on school grounds. But, with the exception of Lakeside High School, these areas were not facing the possibility of a tower at their own neighborhood school, at least not according to our Open Records Requests to see their contracts. 

So, Lakeside High area again emerges as one sticking out like a sore thumb. The school that reportedly initiated the request to their district representative, Paul Womack, who in turn brought the item to the Budget, Finance and Audit Committee while he was the chairman. Lakeside High School wants a tower, and the money of 12 towers so the Vallhalla Group can "finish the dream."   And the rest of us must endure all the baggage that it means to get roped into this issue while they sit back and smile.

In the Oct. 1 meeting agenda, a donation was accepted to finish the Lakeside construction for an outdoor eating area.  Yes, you read that correctly....

Did people really just vote "yes" to radiating other people's children for 30 years in exchange for an outdoor pavilion so their kids can get a little sun while they eat their non-free, non-reduced priced lunches?  Tell us that is not what is happening here? 

Then again, Lakeside has so many towers in a four mile radius, one more could not have possible been what made the difference, could it?

It appears that everything is proceeding according to plan.   But, who's plan is this??

Protests Come From the "North" (But the Public Votes Yes?)

"South" Board Members Vote Yes, but the Public Votes NO? 

Don't you find it interesting that we saw bigger than life protests coming from the areas where many people voted to be in favor?  AND, at the other end of the county, in the areas where we were told they "welcomed the towers," we saw the largest portion of people who voted against it? 

Have you figured out that things are not always as they seem here in DeKalb? 

And, many board members publically stated that they would have voted differently if they knew then what they know now.  See our story on this subject, here.

The cell towerss are a great lesson in not judging a book by its cover.  Rather, we should be judging our school books by the fact that they will soon not have any covers, just screens.  Hell, we don't even have librarians any longer! 
 
Most important:  Most People in Most Places Across the County Said NO CELL TOWERS AT OUR SCHOOLS.  And, for those of us who agree, if it is not a good idea for my school, then it is not a good idea for any school!

But, these are just a few of the ideas we came up with.  We would love to hear what you think.  Email us at sayno2celltowers@yahoo.com and let us know!

We did it once, now let's do it again! 

Vote NO on the charter school ammendment this November!  This is NOT about charter schools!  It is about creating virtual schools under a sneaky initiative put forth by corporations seeking new ways to profit, NOT about our children or parental choice.

VOTE NO to changing the state's constitution! 

NO MORE CHARTER SCHOOL AUTHORITIES!

Don't GIVE AWAY our power!  Let's Take it BACK! 

What can we do instead?  Start looking for well-qualified people to run for the School Board in the next election!  WE can do this if we keep working together!  Stick up for your beliefs!  Inform your neighbors!  Talk about what is happening so that others will not have to suffer the same thing happening to them! 

See you at the upcoming meetings!  (see our meetings page) Ask Questions!  Remain Alert!  Do not Trust those in power who have something to gain from you.  Seek advice only from those uninterested third parties or people whom you trust before acting upon anything you see or hear in this school system.   

 

 

For more info, watch "The United States of ALEC" here:  http://billmoyers.com/



 VOTE NO TO CHARTER SCHOOLS! 

It is time to STOP FEEDING THE BEAST!

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Titelman, Gregory, Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings, Random House Reference, March 5, 1996p

Welcome Jim McMahan and Melvin Johnson Into the Inner Sanctum

 

RUNOFF RESULTS:

Shocking Only to Him,

H. Paul WOMACK is OUT,

Jim McMAHAN is IN for District 4

 

In District 6,

Voters Forfeited by a "No Call / No Show" Strategy

They Put Melvin "Know the Roles" Johnson

Ahead of Parent Activist Denise McGill

 

This adds some new twists to the same old story.  The other victors this election year were Marshall Orson in District 2 who defeated incumbent Don McChesney after leaking a torrid email to the press on the heels of his outright lies to the media about the rules and outcomes as related to the SPLOST IV vote last November.  As a lawyer with a huge smirk, this will be a slippery character to keep our eyes on, for sure. 

 

And, in District 8... we know, we know, you didn't think there was going to be a District 8, right?  Well, apparently the Superdistricts still exist because Dr. Eugene Walker is now the board's chairman and he hasn't finished updating his resume, yet.  So, as we were saying... District 8's Dr. Pam Speaks barely edged out some other woman whom no one really knows and whom no one reported ever seeing or hearing.  She didn't show up for any of the forums and a computerized voice machine made all her campaign calls.  Strange, but true, is that she nearly won, but Speaks will be around for the next two years or until Dr. Walker decides to rewrite the rules again.  Stay tuned...

 

It's the start of a new day in DeKalb County, GA.  At least that is what we would like to believe.  After yesterday's school board runoff elections, we're just not sure what the next two years will be like exactly. 

 

Like all good suspense novels, the story about education, civil rights, political battle lines, corruption and scandal has been unraveled for the past several decades here in DeKalb County, GA.

 

This particular thriller, however, is non-fiction and the innocent victims are the poor, under served, mostly minority and handicapped children who do not know about the price tags being placed on their heads or the reasons why so many venture capitalists and other investors are suddenly turning attention their way.   

 

We will have more of the behind-the-scenes analysis coming up in the next week, so check back with us.

 

Don't forget that the Crawford Lewis trial will begin soon.  We will be covering that story as well.

 

You can "subscribe" to Get the Cell Out - Atlanta by selecting the email option on the right hand column of our home page.  (Hover over to reveal the toolbar.)

 

Comments are welcome.... if you see a link that says comments, below, then we would love to hear your take on this election and how your family is handling this most unusual start of the school year.