Bulletin Board

The BOE meeting recap newsletter is shared after each regularly scheduled monthly meeting. The February Board of Education meeting was held on February 20, 2024.

Meeting Agendas:

Pre-Work Session

Work Session

Board Meeting

The recording, which includes the pre-work session, work session, regular meeting, and public comment, is available here.

Mr. James Herndon, Chair

Dr. Carmen Sulton, Vice Chair

Mrs. Jana Johnson-Davis, Board Member

Mr. Hans Utz, Board Member

Ms. Tracey Anderson, Board Member

Mr. James Herndon and Dr. Carmen Sulton were reelected as chair and vice chair of the Board.

National School Counseling Week was celebrated February 5th - 9th. During that week, school administration teams across the district showered school counselors with praise and gratitude for their never-ending support, tireless dedication, and overall contribution to student success. The CSD school counseling staff are definitely All In Decatur.

Only approximately 1300 schools nationwide hold a Recognized American School Counselors Association (ASCA) Model Program (RAMP) designation, and CSD schools represent 5 of that 1300. The RAMP designation, awarded for aligning with the criteria in the ASCA National Model, recognizes schools committed to delivering a comprehensive, data-informed school counseling program and an exemplary educational environment. Those 5 schools are Glennwood, Oakhurst, Westchester, Talley Street, and Beacon Hill Middle School.

As part of the recognition, Dr. Whitaker presented a proclamation from the National School Counseling Week to the 20 members of the CSD School Counseling Department and Assistant Superintendent of Student Support Services.

Beacon Hill continues to stand out as a leading example at the state level for musical performances. Ensembles from both the band and chorus have been chosen four times to showcase their exceptional music talents at the state in-service conference for the Georgia Music Educators Association.

In just three years of in-person learning, the BHMS Orchestra has expanded to 126 students, with the original 50 students now part of the high school orchestra program.

The dedication, creativity, and engagement of our music students shine through in their learning and performances. Recognizing this outstanding achievement, the National Association of Music Merchants Foundation has honored the City of Decatur as one of the nation's top communities for music education.

Talley Street would like to recognize twelve student leaders who have served as House Leaders all year. These students were required to apply for this position at the end of their 4th-grade year. Since assuming their roles, they gave speeches to their other House members and participated in Talley's "Amazing Shake," where they interacted with community members and engaged in rounds of interviews. As a House Leader, these students plan House meetings, school-wide events, Talley Rallies, act as ambassadors for Talley at various events, and represent Talley at the Ron Clark Academy Leadership Conference for student leaders.

Talley Street House Leaders:

• Connie Bhasin and Lillian Gutman from the House of Rêveur

• Cleo Saliers and Chloe Bell from the House of Amistad

• Zinn Olson-Masick and Elanor Coblentz from the House of Altruismo

• Suria Pillay and Taylor Hall from the House of Isibindi

• Madelyn Edney and Anna Schoeman from the House of Nukumori

• Uma Raman-Baksi and Malachi Stauffer from the House of Onraka

Greetings, CSD students, staff, and families:

On behalf of the Board of Education, I want to welcome our students, staff, and families back from what I hope was an enjoyable winter break. We appreciate the community for being All In for CSD.

Like Dr. Whitaker, I want to begin by acknowledging February as Black History Month, where we honor the triumphs and struggles of African Americans throughout U.S. history. Earlier this month, I know several schools also held a variety of activities for the Lunar New Year.

We have had very robust and informative meetings today. Following our executive session, we began our meeting with pre-work and work sessions, consisting of discussions on important items, including a protocol to support us in drafting a nutrition policy. The board remains committed to providing healthy meal options for all students while working diligently to proactively prevent future debt reoccurrences.

As we know, this issue is not unique to CSD. Before the break, Vice Chair Dr. Sultan, Dr. Whitaker, and I were invited to meet with Dekalb County State Rep. Imani Barnes at the Capitol to discuss our recent school debt challenges and her nutrition legislation (HB 510). We commend and fully support Rep. Barnes for her efforts to guarantee funding for school breakfast and lunch meals for all of Georgia’s students.

Financial stability and sustainability remain essential outcomes to achieving our five-year strategic goals. As we continue through the FY25 budget process, I want to thank our Dekalb County Tax Commissioner, Irvin Johnson, again for joining us. We look forward to a presentation next month by Andrea Arnold and the City of Decatur, and strengthening this relationship in our efforts to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars.

We have a lot to recognize. I want to thank the counselors for showing up as we celebrate National School Counseling Week and the Beacon Hill Middle School Performing Arts Program. The recognition of the twelve student leaders of Talley Street in their new “house’ system was fantastic.

Congratulations to all of our students and staff for their well-deserved recognition and commitment to excellence!

Finally, I want to remind everyone that registration for the Decatur Education Foundation’s Tour deCatur is officially open. This is a 5K extravaganza that unites Decatur residents of all ages to raise funds so that ALL students have the resources they need.

Good evening, and Happy Black History Month! Frederick Douglass passed away today, February 20, 1895, at age 77. Douglass was a reformer, abolitionist, orator, and statesman. One of his most notable quotes is, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” The majority of my superintendent’s report will focus on how we will strengthen our equity work by building strong children.

My core beliefs have been echoed from this seat before:

• Equity is the vehicle to excellence. By equity, I believe in providing support to all teachers and leaders that ensure academic and affective outcomes are positive.

• Leadership matters. Leaders identify the barriers to those outcomes and strategically think through the solutions, change management, and implementation of those solutions.

• Engagement inspires. The engagement comes from all students, staff, and the community as we implement All in Decatur. These core beliefs are underscored by a system where we build the capacity of all adults to sustain positive outcomes for all students.

After my first 90 days in CSD, I posited three key findings that must be addressed to sustain positive outcomes for all students. First, coherence instructionally and through the governance structure (policy to regulation to practice). Secondly, capacity building through business functions and organizationally in our instructional infrastructure. And third, the clarion call for all students. Our equity work has been good work. But it can be great work when we put the structures in place to ensure ALL truly means ALL.

Over the past few months, we have taken a deep dive into our MAP, STAR, and Milestones data. We have also looked into our College and Career Readiness Performance Index Data. One of the indicators of our CCRPI is at or above grade-level reading. Districts typically tout being at or above grade-level reading for elementary students as a key indicator of success. Essentially, we are teaching children to read and then reading to learn. But what does it mean when we have students in 10th grade and the percentage who are reading at or above grade level is 38.46%?

If you refer to the fourth slide of this presentation, the first four high schools are deemed schools like mine as they have similar economically disadvantaged (ED) percentages and race/ethnicity makeups. All have significantly higher percentages of economically disadvantaged students reading at or above grade level. The next high school has a very similar economically disadvantaged student percentage as DHS, with a performance that is significantly higher than ours.

Lastly, you see schools with significantly higher percentages of students who are ED in buildings that are not as resourced as ours with higher outcomes than ours. This sort of data compels this administration to think about what these students, the 61% who do not read on grade level, will do when I hand them a diploma in 18 months. What will we do to not have socio-economic status, race, gender or any other designation be a predictor of success?

We must strengthen our equity work in three ways, starting with becoming more student-focused. Then we need to provide greater degrees of support for teachers while optimizing leader effectiveness.

Two key partnerships will assist us in becoming more student-focused - One Goal and Communities In Schools. One Goal is an elective course taught in the 11th and 12th grades at DHS. The course targets students with a 2.0-3.1 GPA who are eligible for free and reduced lunch and first-generation college students from traditionally marginalized communities. The identity-affirming postsecondary access and success curriculum ensures students are advised and progress, and are monitored through their pursuit of diverse college, technical school, and career paths for a minimum of three years. That is right. The support goes on through their first year of post-secondary education.

The second partner, Communities in Schools (CIS), will provide student caseload support in attendance, academics, school behavior, and end-of-year status (promotion, retention, graduation, or dropout). The students served will be at DHS, Beacon Hill MS, Talley Street, and Clairemont. I will save the remainder of my comments about CIS for our Board Retreat on Tuesday, where they will present.

We must provide greater degrees of support to teachers to teach ALL students! One of the partnerships that will be integral to supporting teachers launched on January 3 this year, CT3. Through a workshop on No Non-Sense Nurturer, staff began the process of collective efficacy building regarding relationships and replacement behaviors for students. This knowledge has received unsolicited praise from long-serving CSD staff and has led to CT3 creating a school bus driver edition of the learning. The second strategy is not a partnership but a focus on professional learning, as it will become a part of the duties and responsibilities of the equity director.

Finally, we must optimize leader effectiveness. Two key university partnerships will assist us in differentiating and aligning our support to ensure necessary urgency, capacity-building, and defined flexibility exist in CSD. The first partnership is through the University of Virginia’s Partners for Leaders in Education. This program combines the Darden School of Business and the Curry School of Education. Select school leaders and district staff will engage in executive education over the next 2.5 years. You will discover more about the UVA/PLE partnership next week as they will also present at the Board Retreat.

The last partnership is in the finalization stage. CSD will have a Harvard Graduate School of Education Doctoral Resident next school year. Specifically, CSD will provide the Resident with various opportunities to engage in internal strategic initiatives on which we are actively focused. The Resident is expected to lead at least one major project on behalf of CSD, such as the creation, implementation, or evaluation of such strategic initiatives. The Resident reached out to me with an interest in being matched with CSD due to our focus on equity, the ALL In Decatur strategic plan, and the optimal location of the Atlanta Metropolitan Region.

The preliminary draft of the FY25 budget includes the funding for all of these partnerships - the outcomes approach to equity - ensuring ALL means ALL. Let us not forget the words of Frederick Douglass, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.”

Also, as a part of my GEM entry plan, I committed to listening sessions. The winter round of the sessions will occur over the next two weeks. February 21, 5:30 p.m. at Oakhurst, February 27, 5:30 at Beacon Hill, March 1 at 11:30 virtually, and most recently added to ensure maximum staff participation, February 28, 2-3 p.m. which is an Early Release Day.

Chair Herndon, before ending my remarks, I must take a moment to address two topics that have recently emerged.

The first is about the adjustment of times for specials, specifically Spanish at the K-2 level. The Science of Reading is the bedrock of early literacy. As we move to become a Science of Reading district, we must adjust the K-2 schedule to allow for ample instructional time for all of the components of Reading instruction, the five pillars, and writing.

Additionally, building academic knowledge requires explicit instruction in Social Studies and Science. Another big rock in the K-2 master schedule is PE being taught 90 minutes per week. Our K-2 schools were well below state guidelines. Therefore, we have worked with principals in the K-2 space to allow for adequate instructional minutes for our big rocks while including all of the other offerings that make our schools unique and special.

Again, I know that changes to Spanish instruction at the K-2 level have been a topic of discussion for families. In working to provide consistency across schools, beginning next school year, each school will have 60 minutes of Spanish instruction. Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Ms. Jennifer Burton will work with the K-2 Spanish teachers next week to find additional ways to incorporate Spanish throughout the school day.

The second one pertains to the HVAC unit at DHS. I want to reemphasize that student and staff safety is paramount and of the highest priority in CSD. We are aware of the recent disruptions caused by an aging HVAC system in the main building at Decatur High School, which has resulted in multiple evacuations over the past month due to smells of gas and one actual leak. The HVAC system has exceeded its expected service life, resulting in more frequent breakdowns and malfunctions.

I want to reassure students, staff, and families that we are currently working to expedite the replacement of this equipment. The procurement process is currently being impacted by supply chain issues. We will also need an extended break to replace the six rooftop units with cranes. The best time to replace the units will be summer. In the meantime, we will continue working with Atlanta Gas Light, Georgia Power, and Decatur Fire to monitor the unit and provide repairs, as needed.

The district engaged the Mauldin & Jenkins, LLC firm to perform the annual audit, which was conducted in accordance with the generally accepted governmental accounting standards, and an unmodified opinion (i.e., "clean opinion") was expressed on our financial statements. The audit report can be found in the meeting agenda linked here.

Christopher McKellar, Partner at Mauldin & Jenkins, and Dr. Lonita Broome, CSD Chief Financial Officer, delivered a summary of the financial report.

The Board unanimously approved the amendment, and the presentation can be found in the meeting agenda linked here.

Dr. Lonita Broome, CSD Chief Financial Officer, introduced a revision to the FY24 budget for review. The amendment incorporated extra revenue and expenses, notably covering the costs related to fully funding the Governor's one-time salary enhancements for all CSD staff, as announced in December 2023.

DeKalb Tax Commissioner Irvin Johnson shared comments during the meeting. Johnson talked about the creation of the county digest (i.e., a collaborative effort by the tax commissioner's office, the assessor, and the school district). He also expressed that the digest is expected to increase.

Chief Financial Officer Dr. Lonita Broome presented the FY25 preliminary draft budget for discussion. This budget is preliminary and subject to change. Discussion and presentations on the FY2025 Budget began at the November 14, 2023, Board Work Session and have continued monthly. Budget presentations included budget priorities, budget calendar, school allotments, salary and benefits, and an E-SPLOST overview. The Fiscal Year 2025 Preliminary Draft Budget contains a summary of the five-year budget history and the preliminary FY25 draft budget. Dr. Broome’s presentation can be found in the meeting agenda linked here. The public is encouraged to share feedback on the FY25 budget on this form.

The Board unanimously approved the following consent items:

• December Financial Report School Nutrition Fund

• January Personnel Report

• December Financial Reports

• Chief Financial Officer Dr. Lonita Broome presented an overview of the monthly financials for December. As of December 31, 2023, the district has collected 56% or approximately $56.2 million of the budgeted revenues and has expended 38% or approximately $36.7 million of the overall expenditure budget. Approximately $874,290 is encumbered for the month of December (Encumbrances are open purchase orders that have been issued and have not been invoiced/paid). The overall effect of the financial statement is a net income of approximately $19.5 million. The $19.5 million represents the year-to-date difference between the total revenues and total expenditures. Additional information and Dr. Broome’s presentation can be viewed here.

• Overnight/Out-of-State Student Travel

Next Board Meeting: The next Regular Board Meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 12, at the Wilson School Support Center. The times for the work sessions and the meeting will be made available a week in advance of the meeting.

Next Board Retreat: The next Board of Education Retreat will be held on February 27, 2024.

Link to Join Board Meeting Virtually: https://csdecatur.zoom.us/j/95614159391

Board Agenda(s): To access the CSD Board of Education meeting agenda(s), supporting documents, and meeting minutes, go to Simbli Solutions.

Public Comments: Click here for information on signing up to speak at a CSD Board meeting.

Contacting Board Members: Email the entire Board at board@csdecatur.net. Click here to view board member bios and contact information.

Email: board@csdecatur.net
Website: csdecatur.net
Location: 125 Electric Avenue, Decatur, GA, USA
Phone: (404) 371-3601