CSD Weekly, December 12, 2024

• School Newsletters: See What's Happening in Our Schools!
• Cheerleading Mini Camp, "Dinosaurs Before Dark," and YLOE “Sandwiches for Hope”
• District Updates: Chick-fil-A Foundation $200k Donation, Utility Associates Gifts
• NEW! Legislative Updates: CSD's 2025 Legislative Priorities, HB 581 Public Hearings

• Community News: School Grants and Events

Find out what's happening in CSD schools by clicking on your school's newsletter name.

College Heights Connection

Clairemont Bulldog

Glennwood Eagle Edition

Oakhurst Weekly

Westchester Weekly

Winnona Park Wildcat Weekly

F.AVE Falcon Flyer

Talley Street Update

Beacon Hill Weekly Update

DHS Weekly Update

DVA Weekly Update

Happening today! CSD Student Board Representative Sophie D'Elena brought greetings to attendees at the annual Georgia School Board Association/Georgia School Superintendent Association Annual Conference in Atlanta. Joining Sophie were Superintendent Dr. Gyimah Whitaker, Board Vice Chair Dr. Carmen Sulton, and Board members Dr. Jana Johnson-Davis and Hans Utz.

Superintendent Dr. Whitaker ended remarks at the December 10 board meeting with a special announcement! The Chick-fil-A Foundation is donating $200,000 to advance CSD's professional development of leaders through The University of Virginia Partnership for Leaders in Education Program (UVA-PLE). The grant will be applied to the professional development of leaders at CSD's four UVA schools: F.AVE, Talley Street, BHMS, and DHS.

CSD's partnership with the Chick-fil-A Foundation focuses on:

• Adapting and re-inventing how we do things to achieve the best outcomes
• The necessity and urgency of finding new ways to ensure equity in student achievement
• Achieving the best outcomes by investing in the development of our school and district leaders

UVA-PLE combines innovative leadership advancement, practical expertise, and proven methodologies to encourage education leaders to address inequities and foster student and school advancements for a more equitable, inclusive and excellent school system.

We are tremendously grateful to the Chick-fil-A Foundation for their generosity and partnership in developing strong leaders who cater to the unique needs of every student.

Brrrr, it's cold in here! There must be some Bulldogs in the atmosphere! This year's CSD elementary school cheer stars brought it for the DHS Cheerleading mini-camp fundraiser, and their smiles said all! On Tuesday night, our future Decatur Bulldogs showcased their favorite cheers at the Varsity girls' and boys' basketball games, boosting the teams to glorious region wins over Chamblee High School. Way to go, cheerleading mini-campers! You rocked it!

Let's cheer on our DHS Bulldogs again tomorrow, Friday, December 12, at 6 p.m. as they take on Lakeside at Lakeside High School.

Watch the mini-cheerleaders' performance here!

On December 3, DHS student Payton Sobon was awarded the Corporate Volunteer Council of Atlanta's (CVC) prestigious 2024 Carol D. Reiser Youth Service Award, which celebrates outstanding youth leadership and community service.

The award honored Payton's work as project manager and youth representative for the non-profit Decatur Prevention Initiative (DPI), which gives young people and families tools and resources to make informed decisions about substance use. Sobon organized an event at DHS for International Overdose Awareness Day to educate students about relevant laws regarding overdoses and drug misuse and how to use Narcan and respond to overdose situations. Well done, Payton!

Clairemont Elementary students recently performed a dazzling rendition of Dinosaurs Before Dark: Students from every grade rocked it, mastering their lines, songs, and choreography. The auditorium was filled with proud families and friends, cheering as the performers lit up the stage. A huge shout to Clairemont's music teacher, Monica Nelson, for her musical direction and Melissa Lawrence for brilliantly directing and choreographing the show!

The DHS and BHMS chapters of Young Ladies of Excellence (YLOE) joined together recently for the "Sandwiches for Hope" community service event. YLOE partnered with Feed Organization to pack an astounding 470 sack lunches for the homeless community, exceeding their goal by over 100 meals!

Parents, students, and community members worked side by side, demonstrating their commitment to making a meaningful impact. Their energy, dedication, and teamwork created an atmosphere of generosity and unity, meeting the immediate needs of the homeless community while showing our young leaders the joy of giving back. Thank you to the community for your donations and support!

A big thank you to Utility Associates for their generous contributions to the "Unexpected Gift" initiative that supports over 100 CSD families during the holidays! Utility Associates has participated in this initiative with CSD’s ESOL & Federal Programs office for the past three years. Thank you for being All In and bringing joy to our students and families this season!

CSD has a long history of honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King by celebrating many of our students who embody the values of freedom, justice, democracy and service. Through an annual program, we highlight their dedication to using these values to impact our community positively. This year, the award will be presented to two students from each upper elementary school, four from middle school, and four from high school.

Click here to learn more about the application guidelines. Application deadline: December 18.

Please take a moment to participate in CSD's climate survey relevant to your school and ensure your voice is heard! Your participation is vital, as the data collected will help determine the School Climate Star Ratings for the 2025-26 school year. These surveys are open through March 31, 2025. City Schools of Decatur values input from parents, students, and staff!

(Note: GaDOE administers climate surveys for K-12 schools. College Heights ECLC is omitted.)

Clairemont Family Climate Survey

Glennwood Family Climate Survey

Oakhurst Family Climate Survey

Westchester Family Climate Survey

Winnona Park Family Climate Survey

F.AVE Family Climate Survey

Talley Street Family Climate Survey

Beacon Hill Family Climate Survey

DHS Family Climate Survey

CSD will focus on four priorities for the 2025 legislative session: safety & security, mental health, funding, and local authority. These priorities will support CSD's All-I Strategic Plan accelerator, "Organizational Effectiveness and Excellence."

Safety & Security

CSD is committed to ensuring every student feels safe, seen, and successful by proactively providing safe learning environments for all students and staff.

• Priority: Continue to allocate funding for school safety in the state budget, and making this a stable, ongoing priority.

• Priority: Require safe and secure firearm storage for all citizens.

• Priority: Allocate funding for monitoring potential physical and cyber threats and continuous training for school administrators.

• Priority: Allocate funding for the installation, licensing, and maintenance of physical safety and cyber security systems.

Mental Health

CSD opposes any legislation that prevents schools from creating inclusive learning environments where all students can thrive in a manner consistent with their identities.

• Priority: Expand mental healthcare access, particularly for teens and young adults.

• Priority: Ensure the mental health and safety of all students, including those from historically marginalized populations.

• Priority: Increase funding for training for mental health professionals and expand student and staff access to services.

• Priority: Increase funding for school counselors for students in special education and gifted programs.

• Priority: Lower the student-to-school counselor ratio to 250:1 as recommended by ASCA.

Funding

CSD opposes the expansion of tax credits and private school vouchers that divert public funds to private education.

• Priority: Fully fund the QBE Formula.

• Priority: Modernize the QBE Formula to account for inflation and adequately fund public education.

• Priority: Increase state funding for quality early learning programs.

• Priority: Increase funding for student transport to and from school, electric buses and green infrastructure

• Priority: Continue to increase funding for state-required literacy and dyslexia programs.

• Priority: Reduce barriers to attracting/retaining talent.

• Provide funding to support increases in the employer portion of non-certified employee health benefits.

• Support MRESA’s proposal to allow non-certified personnel to join the Teacher Retirement System (TRS) instead of the Public School Employees Retirement System (PSERS).

• Provide funding for annual salary increases for all job categories.

Local Authority

CSD opposes any legislation that overrides the constitutional authority of the locally-elected City Schools of Decatur Board of Education.

• Priority: Maintain local control over school governance and operations.

• Priority: Maintain local authority over educational and curriculum decisions, instructional resources, local revenue sources, and local exemptions.

• Priority: Maintain local control and flexibility in implementing legislative priorities.

CSD will host three hearings on January 14 and January 21 for the public to learn more about the district’s plans to exercise the one-time option for local governments to opt out of Georgia House Bill 581, which establishes a statewide floating homestead exemption and cap on property taxes.

Passed during the 2024 Legislative Session, HB 581 impacts property taxes for cities, counties and school districts by capping the annual increase in property values for tax purposes, effective January 1, 2025. The bill aims to provide property tax relief for local residents, using the Consumer Price Index as an inflationary index. Since school districts rely heavily on property taxes for funding, this cap could impact the availability of CSD schools' resources and programs.

As with all Constitutional amendments, the bill required voter approval. More than 55% of the City of Decatur voted in favor of the amendment, which will go into effect on January 1, 2025. HB 581 allows cities, counties, and school districts a one-time opt-out of the property tax cap.

CSD's Board of Education will follow the legal procedures to opt out of the exemption, including holding three virtual public hearings. Following the hearings, the board will vote to adopt an opt-out resolution at the February Board of Education meeting and file the resolution with the Secretary of State by March 1, 2025,

K-12 students will participate in the STAR Early Literacy, Reading, and Math Assessments during the winter screening period, which runs from December 2-6 and December 9-13. CSD compares the results from this winter assessment with those from the previous fall screening to monitor growth and tailor instruction to meet each student's unique needs. These assessments play a vital role in supporting students' ongoing success. Families can follow these instructions to opt-in for receiving the STAR Assessment results.

The Georgia Departments of Education and Revenue are launching a student license plate design contest to commemorate the United States semiquincentennial, the 250th anniversary of the 1776 Declaration of Independence, celebrated on July 4, 2026.

The final license plate will be selected from designs submitted by students in grades six through eight in Georgia schools. See the submission guidelines and submit a design by January 31, 2025, at 5 p.m. Contact licenseplatecontest@doe.k12.ga.us with questions.

Join Decatur Performs for this year's Holiday Spectrum Concert on Monday, December 16, at 7 p.m., at First Baptist Church Decatur. This event will feature the Wind Ensemble, Advanced Orchestra, Advanced Mixed Chorus, Advanced Treble Chorus, and Tenor/Bass Chorus. Buy tickets at DecaturPerfoms.org.

The Decatur Student Center, located at DHS, is hosting an ongoing winter clothing donation drive! Please drop off all sizes of sweatshirts, sweatpants, T-shirts, and jackets directly to the DSC. Visitors who are making a donation may check in at the DHS front desk under the spaceship to gain access to the DSC. A group of DHS volunteers will help sort and organize them for CSD students and their families who need them.

• Read a New Book Month, December 1-31
• STAR Assessments, December 2-13
• Hour of Code/Computer Science Education Week, December 9-15
• Early Release Day, December 19

• Winter Break, December 20-January 6

• Public Hearings about HB 581, January 14 and January 21

Lighten the Load

THANK YOU to the many DEF and PORCH-Decatur volunteers who helped with donating, collecting and packing 60 boxes of food for CSD families to use over the December break! We are absolutely blown away by your generosity! We even had food remaining, which will go toward creating a pantry for families experiencing food insecurity. All in all, we collected over 2,000 pounds of food to distribute!

To learn more about how you can help DEF lighten the load for Decatur families, email info@decatureducationfoundation.org for information about our weekend food bag program and similar efforts.

Do you have plans for a new garden or class project for spring? Are you full of fantastic ideas for incorporating farm-to-school principles into a teaching unit? Need funds for a "green" field trip?

The Wylde Center Decatur Farm to School Committee invites you to apply for a grant for 2024/25. Teachers, administrators, PTA members, and parent volunteers can apply on behalf of their CSD school. Please get your applications in before December 13, 2024.

2024-2025 DF2S School Grant Application

City of Decatur Parks and Recreation Upcoming Youth Events

Jingle Jam, Friday, December 13, 6-10 p.m., Ebster Recreation Center

Parents' Night Out - Holiday Pajama Jam Edition, Friday, December 13, 5:30-9:30 p.m., Oakhurst Recreation Center. Drop off kids ages 5-12 for a fun night of games, activities, and more while you enjoy some time to yourself. Dress the kids in their favorite onesie or holiday PJs. Dinner and a snack are included and discounts are available for siblings. Register here.

Breakfast with Santa and Rec! Friday, December 20, 10 a.m.-noon, Decatur Recreation Center. Join us for breakfast with Santa and Rec the Bulldog! Enjoy a festive morning, share your wish list, and snap a photo with our favorite mascot and Santa himself! Register here.

Learn more about upcoming events and programs here, or visit the recreation center webpages:

• Decatur Recreation Center
• Ebster Recreation Center
• Oakhurst Recreation Center

Visit Parks and Recreation's one-stop-shop website for information about after-school programs, school holiday programs, and summer camps. To stay updated on all things Decatur Parks and Recreation, follow them on Facebook and Instagram or sign up for their monthly newsletter here!

Read recent issues of CSD Weekly below. Older issues of CSD Weekly may be found on CSD's district newsletter webpage.

• CSD Weekly - December 5, 2024
• CSD Weekly - November 21, 2024
• CSD Weekly - November 14, 2024
• CSD Weekly - November 7, 2024
• CSD Weekly - October 31, 2024