School Rezoning

By Dyana Bagby

The Atlanta Board of Education could take a final vote in June to move forward with a controversial recommendation to open a new elementary school in VirginiaHighland. However, that recommendation may change before the vote after some board members said they want more feedback from Midtown residents who strongly oppose a new K-5 school.

The board voted 5-4 on the first vote at its May 2 meeting to approve Superintendent Lisa Herring’s recommendation to convert the former Inman Middle School into an elementary school. The plan requires some 850 students from Morningside, Mary Lin, and Springdale Park elementary schools to be rezoned to different schools. More than 500 would come from Springdale Elementary, known as SPARK, lowering its enrollment by nearly 50%.

Herring made her recommendation public a week ago. She bypassed a proposal to create a dual SPARK campus. She said the new elementary school offers flexibility for future enrollment growth across the Midtown cluster, creates balanced elementary schools, increases the potential percent of students in the walk zone, and maintains diversity where possible.

SPARK parents packed the May 2 meeting, wearing flowers pinned to school T-shirts, and criticized the process, saying one week was not enough time to study and review the plan. They urged the board to reject Herring’s recommendation and go with the dual campus. SPARK parents have started a petition to try to overturn the recommendation.

“Our kids deserve stability, and I don’t believe the recommendation prioritizes our students’ mental health and well-being,” said one SPARK parent whose child’s entire education has occurred during the pandemic. “There will be a tremendous amount of change for the over 800 students taken from their current schools.” Board members asked for more time to listen to the upset families and to understand better why a new school was recommended over a dual campus. But Herring said a final decision could be made by August to give time to hire staff for a new school for the 2023-24 year.

Parent Ryan Valduga urges the Atlanta School Board to reconsider its redistricting plan.

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