DeKalb County School District

Among the top finishers were Kameicia Norwood of Cedar Grove High, who earned gold in the Family Career and Community Leaders of America's (FCCLA's) Entrepreneurship category, and Zachary Howard of Lakeside High, who earned gold in the FCCLA Occupational category. Joshua Binyard and Randall Richmond of Columbia High also earned gold in the FCCLA Occupational category.

"It took a great degree of dedication and skill for these students to compete, and to see the results of their hard work is very exciting," said Dr. Kathy Howe, deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction. "

Please open the link for the full list of students and their honors [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/www/documents/news-and-info/press-releases/dekalb-students.pdf ]

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

National Blue Ribbon Schools are those that are committed to accelerating student achievement and preparing students for success in college and careers. Schools are categorized as either Exemplary High Performing, meaning they are among the state's best performing academically, or Exemplary Improving, which are those that have at least 40 percent of their students from disadvantaged backgrounds and have reduced the achievement gap by improving performance to high levels.

"This is an outstanding honor for this school," said Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson. "The Kittredge staff weaves high levels of academic rigor throughout every course from core subjects to extracurriculars, and as a result, the school helps children become high-level thinkers at an early age."

Kittredge Magnet School for High Achievers offers students in grades four through six a challenging and rigorous curriculum. Students are selected to attend Kittredge through an application and lottery system. In order to qualify, students must test in the 75^th percentile or above in reading and math, in the 85^th percentile or above in the complete composite and maintain a 3.0 grade point average or higher from the fall semester of the application year. Kittredge is only open to residents of DeKalb County.

"Our nation has no greater responsibility than helping all children realize their full potential," said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan during the official Blue Ribbon announcement. "Schools honored with the National Blue Ribbon Schools award are committed to accelerating student achievement and preparing students for success in college and careers. Their work reflects the conviction that every child has promise and that education is the surest pathway to a strong, secure future."

Top education officials in each state select schools that best fit the Blue Ribbon criteria and submit those nominations to the U.S. Department of Education. Kittredge will be formally recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at a ceremony on Nov. 12 and 13 in Washington, D.C.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

"The process for creating a comprehensive school calendar requires high levels of flexibility and thoughtfulness," said Sequoyah Middle Principal Brittany Cunningham. "While scheduling 180 days of instruction, we must also build in nine teacher workdays, accommodate for holidays and adhere to state-designated testing dates, and do so in a manner that best suits our students, employees and greater community."

Among the options being discussed are a weekly early release day to support professional development for teachers as well as a "balanced calendar," which adds in an additional week of vacation each semester and therefore extends the school year an additional week at the beginning and end of the summer. Similar calendars have been utilized by other districts to reduce the amount of time that students are away from the classroom during the summer to prevent "summer brain drain."

The calendar committee will recommend multiple calendars, which will be shared with the public for comment from Sept. 17 through Sept. 26. All public comment will be reviewed by the committee, at which point a recommendation will be made to the superintendent to present to the Board of Education on Oct. 1. The Board of Education will vote on the calendar at its Oct. 8 meeting.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Through the National Backpack Program, which is now in its 12th year, the Office Depot Foundation has helped deserving children prepare for school by donating specially designed sackpacks throughout the United States and internationally. DCSD was one of 17 organizations to be included in this year's Back to School Celebration in Atlanta.

"It's really great to be joining the Office Depot Foundation for another event during this back-to-school season," said Stewart. "These cool sackpacks continue to make a positive impact on the kids who receive them, and I'm very proud to be a part of such an important program. Being able to help provide kids-in-need with the essential school supplies necessary to start the year off right is the most rewarding thing I'll do all year."

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

As the district-wide Teacher of the Year, Floyd received an official ring from Jostens, as well as $1,000 from ING Direct. Floyd also received a complimentary membership to the Organization of Professional Educators, Georgia Educators Association and National Education Association courtesy of the Organization of DeKalb Educators, a classroom library makeover courtesy of Scholastic and a $100 gift card from the Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE). The three runners-up also received $500 each from ING Direct, as well as gifts from Scholastic and Professional Association of Georgia Educators (PAGE).

In his application essay, Floyd wrote: "Without effective communication, it is impossible to maximize the education experience of our youth. As a teacher leader within my school, I attack every situation as though the buck starts and ends with me."

"We are incredibly proud not only of Mr. Floyd, but also of our nearly 7,000 teachers in DeKalb County who commit themselves to the great calling of educating our children," said Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson. "It is an honor to be able to come together to celebrate them and their remarkable dedication. As a district, our greatest resource is our people, and this event only begins to scratch the surface of our appreciation for our employees."

More than 100 school-level Teachers of the Year were presented with plaques from Coca-Cola Refreshments. The event was made possible through the generosity of ING Direct, Dell Computers, Scholastic Inc., the PAGE, Coca-Cola Refreshments and the Organization of DeKalb Educators.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

"One of our five guiding principles is about accountability at all levels, and this balanced scorecard speaks to that," said Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson. "As a district, we know we have work to do in order to achieve 'Victory in Every Classroom,' and we look forward to being able to measure growth and be transparent with our community."

The scorecard, available here [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/www/documents/superintendent/balanced-scorecard-draft.pdf ], includes measures for content mastery at the elementary, middle and high school levels, as well as measures for personnel, operations school safety and communication. This tool will also be valuable in identifying areas of growth to ascertain what the district is doing right, but also in identifying areas of decline to determine where continuous improvement is needed. This is the mechanism to support and assist in the execution of the "plan, do, check, act" process.

Feedback from the DeKalb County community is encouraged. Comments may be sent to bsc-feedback@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Join us to discuss plans for the Consolidated Application Funding:

• Program plans - Federal and some State, including Title I
• Review funding
• Restrictions

Please confirm your attendance by contacting Karen Ealey at the Office of Federal Programs 678.676.0188 by Monday, July 23, 2012

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

The DeKalb County School District passed a resolution to issue Tax Anticipation Notes (TAN) with TD Securities, the winning bidder. The amount of the TAN is $90 Million and has a net interest cost of 0.56%.

The Tan will be repaid on December 28, 2012.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Stone Mountain, GA - DeKalb County students outperformed the state average on two new subject areas of the state-mandated End-of-Course Tests, offering yet more evidence that DeKalb students are showing encouraging test gains across all grade levels.

EOCTs are given in 10 subject areas to high school students, and the exams serve as 20 percent of a student's grade. This year, two new tests were introduced, Georgia Performance Standards [ http://georgiastandards.org ]' Geometry and Algebra. While the state's passing rate was 74 percent, DeKalb County students posted an 89 percent passing rate, exceeding the state's rate by 15 percentage points. Of the remaining eight exams, DeKalb students showed gains in another five subjects and remained constant in two.

"These results reflect on the outstanding work in the classroom by our teachers and administrators, as well as the dedication of our students and parents," said DCSD Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson. "Together we are setting new standards of excellence for our students, and they are responding positively."

The EOCT test results follow encouraging results on the 2011-12 Criterion Referenced Competency Tests, which are administered to students in grades three through eight. DeKalb students exceeded the state standard in third- and fourth-grade Reading, sixth-grade Social Studies and seventh-grade Mathematics.

Of the 30 possible CRCT targets, DeKalb students showed gains in 24 areas with two additional areas remaining unchanged, outperforming the state average, which saw increases in 20 of the 30 targets.

"The EOCT gains, coupled with the CRCT results, show that our students are making strides across all grade levels," said Dr. Atkinson. "While we are happy to see these results, we know we still have room to grow, and in the upcoming year we'll challenge our students and our staff to achieve more. The CRCT proficiency rates are some of the the best our district has seen in five years, and we plan to build on that momentum."

To view the full results, please visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/test-scores [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/test-scores ]

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

This is a change from the District's previous rating of AA-/Negative. While lowering the rating, Standard & Poor's cited a stable financial outlook for the District.

Standard & Poor's also credited DeKalb County School District Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson with implementing financial reforms that are expected to have a positive impact on the District's future credit rating.

"During tough financial times, we are taking strong steps to balance our budget, re-establish our reserve fund and strengthen our finances," Dr. Atkinson said.

"Standard & Poor's has indicated that the District is moving in the right financial direction, and by taking the appropriate actions, we expect the District's credit rating to continually improve," Dr. Atkinson added.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Interested DeKalb County residents who want to be considered for the committee should provide their information online at http://goo.gl/ZfoSV [ http://goo.gl/ZfoSV ] no later than Sunday, June 17, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. Only online applications will be accepted.

Qualified candidates must be citizens who reside within the boundaries of the DeKalb County School District, may not be members of the Board of Education or employees of the School District, and may not have any economic interest in any of the District's projects.

Experience in accounting, architecture, auditing, construction, engineering, finance, K-12 education, legal, planning, project management and/or real estate is desired.

Members must be volunteers who can dedicate at least two hours each quarter to meeting, generally in the evenings. Members must pass a background check and sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Questions about the Citizen's SPLOST Oversight Committee may be emailed to splostoversight@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

The event will be covered throughout the day on ESPN on Thursday, May 31, beginning at 10 a.m.

To watch or to see a schedule of ESPN broadcasts visit
http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/457761/2012-scripps-national-spelling-bee-semifinals [ http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_/id/457761/2012-scripps-national-spelling-bee-semifinals ]

Regular updates will also be provided on the DeKalb Schools Twitter feed at Twitter.com/DeKalbSchools [ Twitter.com/DeKalbSchools ] Updates are also available by following the Scripps National Spelling Bee at facebook.com/scrippsnationalspellingbee [ https://www.facebook.com/scrippsnationalspellingbee ] or Twitter.com/ScrippsBee [ https://www.twitter.com/ScrippsBee ].

About Simola Nayak

Simola recently completed the eighth grade at Henderson Middle School. She won the DeKalb County School District Spelling Bee in February and the Georgia State Spelling Bee in March. She prepared for her competitions by studying words and vocabulary from previous spelling bees and reading books like The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins and the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. She also enlisted help from her family, who quizzed her daily on different words.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

The District announced in April that it would consolidate more than 380 job titles into 17 job classifications, each with a new salary structure that is uniform across departments and aligned with the current market for salaries and positions.

The new salary structure will be implemented over a three-year period and will adjust the compensation of 489 positions including Central Office secretaries, counselors, psychologists, physical therapists and other positions. The process will realize savings of more than $800,000 in FY2013 and more than $2 million over the next three years.

The updated salary schedules are part of Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson's reorganization of the District's Central Office and overall district staffing, which is designed to drive and appropriately code personnel and resources to schools, align salaries and positions and streamline staff across divisions.

"The new job classifications and salary structure will create more equitable compensation across departments, bring our salaries in line with similar school systems and produce significant cost savings for the District," Dr. Atkinson said.

The reorganization of the Central Office and School District began in November 2011 with an independent audit of Central Office and school-based personnel, the first such audit in several years.

The reorganization has eliminated 73 Central Office positions for a savings of $5.1 million. The reorganization's second phase, which is underway, directly relates to Facilities and Operations and is scheduled to be completed by mid-fall 2012.

The reorganization process has also eliminated and/or reassigned 3,197 positions to schools that were formerly coded to the Central Office budget. These positions are now accurately allocated directly to the schools where the services are delivered.

With the reorganization, the DeKalb Schools Central Office has been streamlined from 4,098 positions to 814 positions, which represents 6 percent of the District's total workforce and is comparable to districts with similar student enrollment.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson began the reorganization process in November 2011 after hearing concerns from staff, parents and members of the community regarding the District's organizational structure, compensation and classification procedures and hiring and promotion practices.

"We heard loud and clear that we needed to take a hard look at our Central Office and drive our resources to schools and classrooms," Dr. Atkinson said.

The reorganization will result in the elimination of 73 positions from Central Office, including administrators, secretaries and other staff, for a total cost savings of approximately $5.1 million. This is the first audit and reorganization of DeKalb Schools' Central Office in more than 10 years.

The reorganization addressed 3,197 positions that were formerly coded to and counted among Central Office personnel. These positions have been assigned and coded to the schools where they deliver services, eliminated or had their funding assigned to appropriate schools.

These positions included, among other positions, Title funded teachers, Pre-K teachers, Montessori teachers, magnet school teachers, English for Speakers of Other Languages teachers, exceptional education teachers, paraprofessionals, lay coaches, interpreters, school security officers, psychologists, social workers, nurses, school crossing guards, bus monitors and bus drivers.

The reorganization consolidated more than 380 job titles into 17 job classifications, each with an aligned salary structure that is uniform across departments and comparable with similar school districts.

With the reorganization, DeKalb Schools' Central Office will convert from 4,098 positions to 814 positions, in line with school districts with comparable student enrollment. Changes to Central Office will be in effect for the 2012-2013 school year.

"This reorganization will right-size our Central Office, create a salary schedule that is fair, equitable and aligned to the market and make us more effective in providing support for our students and schools, which is what the Central Office is here to do," Dr. Atkinson added.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

Currently, there are 11 Title I Parent Resource Centers that have previously been funded and managed at the District level. For the 2012-2013 school year, Title I school principals will now receive funding in their Title I allotment from which they may outfit their Parent Resource Centers with materials and personnel.

Principals working with their school's leadership team will have the authority to determine what kinds of resources are needed for their individual schools, including the scope, services and hours of operation at the local Parent Resource Centers.

Based on goals outlined in the Excellence in Education Plan and Theory of Action for Change, the District is providing schools with additional support to raise student success, while also giving principals more authority to make improvements at the school level.

To learn more about the DeKalb County School District, please visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].

The Success for All curriculum includes creative and engaging reading lessons, school-wide, 90-minute reading sessions, regular assessment of student progress and one-on-one tutoring for readers who need extra help. The program also provides extensive support and training for teachers, as well as steps to invite parents to participate and help their children learn.

Success for All offers technology that teachers can use to engage students in reading, and a web-based system to track student progress that is aligned to the new Georgia Common Core Performance Standards.

Success for All will be introduced in a selected group of DeKalb elementary and middle schools beginning in the 2012-2013 school year. Success for All will be primarily funded through a federal grant that will provide a full-time teacher facilitation, as well as instructional materials and support.

"Reading is the building block for learning and Success for All has shown solid results in improving student reading at all levels, from gifted students to the earliest learners," said DeKalb County School District Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Atkinson.

"The name 'Success for All' means what it says. It provides the tools and support for students, teachers and parents to work together to improve student learning and success," Dr. Atkinson added.

Success for All is managed by the Success for All Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the development, evaluation and dissemination of research-proven reform models for preschool, elementary and middle schools, especially those serving many children considered at risk.

Success for All began in 1987 at Johns Hopkins University and currently serves approximately 1,000 schools in forty-six states.

For more information about the DeKalb County School District, visit http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us [ http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us ].