Apparently an earlier statement from a consultant with Educational Planners has been disqualified as “completely inaccurate and inappropriate.”

The statement, shared by Holly Seel on Stan Jester’s  blog (here), ignited quite a stir. The comment contained the following:

“After hearing the feedback from the community, the option to move the magnet programs is no longer on the table. Our recommendation is to leave them where they are. Please feel free to share this with other concerned parents and students.”

This is what the Chief Operating Officer, Joshua Williams, had to say in response to this misunderstanding (forwarded message below; shared with permission):

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Joshua Williams (Operations) <joshua_l_williams@dekalbschoolsga.org>
Date: Fri, Aug 5, 2016 at 6:07 PM
Subject: Re: DeKalb Magnet at CCHS will not move
To: Kim Gokce <kimgokce@gmail.com>
Cc: “Daniel Drake (Operations)” <Daniel_Drake@dekalbschoolsga.org>

Mr. Gokce,
The email from [name removed to protect employee’s privacy] with Educational Planners was completely inaccurate and inappropriate. The District will be presenting options which incorporate the community’s feedback to consider the relocation of the District’s magnet programs, in addition to other strategies to help address the overcrowding concerns throughout the District. Various options will be presented during the upcoming public meetings scheduled to take place on August 23rd (at 6:30 PM at Clarkston HS) and August 25th (at 6:30 PM at Cross Keys HS) for the community to weigh in on which option(s), or combination of options, should be used to develop a final recommendation for the Board’s consideration.
I apologize for the confusion and assure you that the District is committed to being transparent, collaborative, and open to stakeholder and community input as we work together to develop a recommendation which supports all students and communities. We look forward to your participation and hearing your feedback at the upcoming public meetings.

Respectfully,

Joshua L. Williams, MBA, MSM, PMP
Chief Operating Officer
Division of Operations
DeKalb County School District
1780 Montreal Road – Tucker, GA 30084
678-676-1446 (O) | 678-676-1350 (F)
Joshua_L_Williams@dekalbschoolsga.org

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