Click here to see a video of Briar Vista students (Gaby, Leo, and little brother Braulio Maduro) and parents (Matt Huey) making a difference at the Tuesday, 3/30/10, task force meeting, courtesy of WSB-TV.
Click here to read the AJC article, which also includes a great shot of Gaby Maduro.
At last night's meeting, the Citizen's Planning Task Force removed Briar Vista, and all the other elementary schools in the Druid Hills cluster, from the "short list" of schools under consideration for closure.
This is GREAT news! A big thank you to all the Briar Vista supporters who showed up at the Bryant Center on Lawrenceville Hwy. last night.
Fair warning: nothing is final until the fat lady sings. This is only phase 1 of the task force's work. Phase 2 includes redistricting of the entire school system, including redrawing high school boundaries, a change that was off the table for phase 1. Stay in the loop by checking this blog for updates regularly.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Monday, March 29, 2010
Short List Maps: Moving Targets
How interesting that the Task Force keeps changing the maps around. Let's hope that they move Briar Vista right off the map after tonight's meeting.
The two earlier maps show all the schools that are under-populated. The new short list map is not nearly as damning.
The two earlier maps show all the schools that are under-populated. The new short list map is not nearly as damning.
New Short List Map
The new short list map on the DCS web page has been altered to show a change in our high school district "cluster". There is now a new "Druid Hills/Lakeside" attendance cluster. This did not exist yesterday. There is also a new "Columbia/McNair" cluster. Clearly this is concerning as it indicates that more attention has been given to the schools targeted for closing in our area. Have sent a message to the Board and the CTF letting them know we know.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
SAVE OUR SCHOOL
Hello Briar Vista Parents,
We need you to help SAVE OUR SCHOOL!
No sooner did we talk the school board into saving Montessori at Briar Vista, then we ended up on a list of schools to be CLOSED.
To help save Briar Vista, please take the time to send an email message RIGHT NOW to EVERY member of the DeKalb County School Board. Tell them how much you care about Briar Vista, and why you do not want them to close it. School Board members are politicians and will respond to pressure from concerned parents.
Thanks very much, and remember, SEND THOSE EMAILS NOW!
Just cut and paste these email addresses:
THOMAS_BOWEN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; SARAH_COPELIN-WOOD@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; JAY_CUNNINGHAM@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; don_mcchesney@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; PAM_SPEAKS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; JIM_REDOVIAN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; ZEPORA_W_ROBERTS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; EUGENE_P_WALKER@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; h_paul_womack@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
You can use this sample email text, or write your own, whichever you prefer:
Dear School Board Member,
Please keep Briar Vista Elementary School open. We need it to stay open because:
1. There are no nearby schools with enough room to take in our students without busing them for long distances.
2. There needs to be a Montessori school option in central DeKalb, not just northern and southern DeKalb.
3. Briar Vista is unique because it is very diverse ethnically and because it offers the Montessori teaching method.
3. There are many other schools with fewer students that would be easier to close.
4. As tax payers, we would rather you cut over-spending on central office personnel and questionable programs before you close schools that are working well, such as Briar Vista.
5. And most of all, we LOVE our school!
Sincerely,
YOUR NAME HERE
We need you to help SAVE OUR SCHOOL!
No sooner did we talk the school board into saving Montessori at Briar Vista, then we ended up on a list of schools to be CLOSED.
To help save Briar Vista, please take the time to send an email message RIGHT NOW to EVERY member of the DeKalb County School Board. Tell them how much you care about Briar Vista, and why you do not want them to close it. School Board members are politicians and will respond to pressure from concerned parents.
Thanks very much, and remember, SEND THOSE EMAILS NOW!
Just cut and paste these email addresses:
THOMAS_BOWEN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; SARAH_COPELIN-WOOD@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; JAY_CUNNINGHAM@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; don_mcchesney@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; PAM_SPEAKS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; JIM_REDOVIAN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; ZEPORA_W_ROBERTS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; EUGENE_P_WALKER@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us; h_paul_womack@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
You can use this sample email text, or write your own, whichever you prefer:
Dear School Board Member,
Please keep Briar Vista Elementary School open. We need it to stay open because:
1. There are no nearby schools with enough room to take in our students without busing them for long distances.
2. There needs to be a Montessori school option in central DeKalb, not just northern and southern DeKalb.
3. Briar Vista is unique because it is very diverse ethnically and because it offers the Montessori teaching method.
3. There are many other schools with fewer students that would be easier to close.
4. As tax payers, we would rather you cut over-spending on central office personnel and questionable programs before you close schools that are working well, such as Briar Vista.
5. And most of all, we LOVE our school!
Sincerely,
YOUR NAME HERE
Monday, March 22, 2010
Citizens Task Force
Per Don McChesney the "Citizen's Task Force" operates in an advisory capacity. The Board of Education as the final say in any school closings. He is asking everyone to remain calm noting that there is no reason to be worried at this time. Easier said than done I realize but the between the lines message is that the school will be protected for at least another year.
As information the task force members working with Don are Don Broussard and Faye Andriesen. Has anyone heard of these people? Do we know anything about them??
As information the task force members working with Don are Don Broussard and Faye Andriesen. Has anyone heard of these people? Do we know anything about them??
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Budget Cuts
To bring folks up to speed on what has happened with the DeKalb County School System over the past couple of months . . . due to the economy, there is now an $88M budget shortfall for the school system. They are obligated by law to balance the budget each year, so the School Board must cut the budget somewhere.
In January, they proposed to cancel the Montessori program at all three schools in the county. Due to the tireless work by parents at Huntley Hills and Midway as well as Briar Vista, they are now seeking only cuts in the Montessori program.
We need to keep the pressure on so that the Board and the School System realize how important keeping some form of Montessori at Briar Vista is to us.
In January, they proposed to cancel the Montessori program at all three schools in the county. Due to the tireless work by parents at Huntley Hills and Midway as well as Briar Vista, they are now seeking only cuts in the Montessori program.
We need to keep the pressure on so that the Board and the School System realize how important keeping some form of Montessori at Briar Vista is to us.
Welcome to the new Briar Vista School Forum blog
Welcome to the new Briar Vista Elementary School blog. The purpose of this blog is to make all the communications about the upcoming changes to the Montessori program at Briar Vista as open as possible. Parents, this is your blog. Kids too!
Things to remember: this is a conversation, not a shouting match. Everyone cares about their children getting the best possible education, so we are all on the same side. Also, this is not the place to make specific attacks on people, whether on the school board, DCSS employees, or parents. Lastly, spelling and grammar do not count!
Things to remember: this is a conversation, not a shouting match. Everyone cares about their children getting the best possible education, so we are all on the same side. Also, this is not the place to make specific attacks on people, whether on the school board, DCSS employees, or parents. Lastly, spelling and grammar do not count!
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