The Staff Recommended Plan to alleviate the overcrowding in the Cross Keys cluster has just been announced. I’m working on a response at this point, but I wanted to get the information out there for people to see what DeKalb County planning officials are proposing.
Round 2Online Comment Form (Comment form will close on Thursday, February 18th at 11:59 PM)
Please be sure to leave comments at the link above. A few quick points of concern I have:
This current plan does not even attempt to address the overcrowding at Sequoyah Middle School (and Chamblee Middle School has around 150 seats open and ZERO trailers).
Chamblee High School should receive more than the 230 students allotted in this plan, and — I say this with great hesitancy — it should be willing to use at least a few trailers in order to alleviate the overcrowding at Cross Keys High School.
This current plan calls for students in the Woodward and Montclair ES attendance zones to travel all the way to Fernbank ES — a good 30-40 minute ride during traffic.
I do want to say, however, that I am very encouraged by the school system’s use of two of the top schools in the district to help alleviate the overcrowding. But, as many others (including Dunwoody School Daze) have pointed out, this plan does not offer much relief for our community. That will hopefully happen after this short-term plan is executed.
Another positive about this plan is the fact that Warren Technical School seems to have been preserved as it currently is. It is encouraging to see that Mr. Drake, Mr. Williams, and others in the planning department listened to many of the concerns raised regarding that important program.
Please stay involved in the process, as a final decision will be made at the March 7 Board of Education meeting after the superintendent makes his recommendation. Provide feedback because — as this second round shows us — DCSD is trying to listen to our community and is trying to be responsive to our needs.
l’m passionate about public education, especially its role in fighting poverty. Education gives people a chance to succeed, even when the odds are stacked against them.
Rebekah taught English for six years at Berkmar High School in Gwinnett County Public Schools and for two years at Cross Keys High School in the DeKalb County School District (both Title I schools). During her time as a teacher, she coached volleyball and basketball, served as the Co-President for the Berkmar High School PTSA, participated as the teacher liaison on the School Council at Cross Keys High School, and helped spark the student-led initiative Unify BuHi.
In the past, she has also worked for the Center for Pan Asian Community Services (CPACS) doing advocacy and civic/community engagement. She has served on the Board of Directors for Presencia, a non-profit located on Buford Highway that exists to provide economic, educational, and social support to refugees and immigrants through after-school programs, job creation, and leadership development. In addition to this work, she has also worked for the Atlanta Children’s Shelter and for the Latin American Association teen summer program.
Throughout the past few years, she has spent her time co-founding Vecinos with an incredible group of Cross Keys cluster students, alumni, and residents to establish a community association within the apartment complexes along Buford Highway. The idea of vecinos or neighbors working alongside one another is integral to the idea of a strong, healthy community.
This year, Rebekah begins studying law at Georgia State University. She also serves on the Doraville City Council.
Rebekah lives in Doraville, Georgia, with her husband, Andrew Morris, who works for the Metro Water District at the Atlanta Regional Commission. She has two beautiful daughters.
Please email rebekahcmorris@gmail.com with any questions or concerns. To submit a guest piece, please send the article (up to 1400 words) and a brief biographical note.
There are a couple things you appear to have assumed.
First, you sound disappointed, as if there was a better option which was not chosen. Due to ignoring this for five years, there are no “good” options. Cross Keys overcrowding was identified in the 2011 Master Plan, but not addressed.
Second, you assume magnet programs have the same class sizes as non-magnet classes. They don’t. The class sizes in the magnet program are smaller. What looks like open seats at Chamblee Middle is an example of the disconnect between paper and the classroom.
Third, you make it sound as if Chamblee H.S. and Chamblee M.S. had a say in the decision. They didn’t. All decisions are made in the central office. I am surprised and encouraged by the fact that public feedback seems to have considered. Dr. Green is making positive changes.
Georgian Educator 
February 15, 2016 at 8:27 am
There are a couple things you appear to have assumed.
First, you sound disappointed, as if there was a better option which was not chosen. Due to ignoring this for five years, there are no “good” options. Cross Keys overcrowding was identified in the 2011 Master Plan, but not addressed.
Second, you assume magnet programs have the same class sizes as non-magnet classes. They don’t. The class sizes in the magnet program are smaller. What looks like open seats at Chamblee Middle is an example of the disconnect between paper and the classroom.
Third, you make it sound as if Chamblee H.S. and Chamblee M.S. had a say in the decision. They didn’t. All decisions are made in the central office. I am surprised and encouraged by the fact that public feedback seems to have considered. Dr. Green is making positive changes.
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