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CrossRoadsNews
December 15, 2012
School
“You’re proposing changes to successful academic programs but are not giving us specifics as to how they will benefit us.”
GPC woes get SACS’ attention
Thanks for School Board service
DeKalb School Board members presented plaques to departing colleagues Thomas Bowen (from left), Don McChesney and Paul Womack at their last meeting for the year. Bowen did not seek re-election, and McChesney and Womack lost their seats to challengers.
School Board to vote on draft By Ken Watts
DeKalb School Board members will vote on a draft of Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson’s controversial redistricting plan on Jan. 7 so that the public can comment on it. They will hold public hearings from Jan. 8 to 17 to gather public input before taking a final vote on the plan on Jan. 23 to a meet a deadline to qualify for construction funding. The board was to vote on the draft on Dec. 10, but in the face of mounting opposition from parents and students, it voted instead to delay the vote. Board members also put off a vote on an Atkinson’s request for $80 million in bonds to speed up school construction. During Monday’s meeting, angry parents from Evansdale Elementary spoke against proposed attendance lines they said would adversely affect their children and thousands of others in the Northlake area. Parents from Southwest DeKalb spoke against Atkinson’s earlier plan to move sixththrough eighth-grade students to Southwest DeKalb, Cedar Grove and McNair high schools to save money. Atkinson dropped the idea after strong
opposition. Parents also are upset that the redrawn attendance map calls for feeder middle schools’ magnet programs to be diverted from Southwest DeKalb High, disrupting the flow of talented students to the high school. Mark Seals, a Southwest DeKalb father, and other parents said they would fight the plan with lawsuits if necessary. “You’re proposing changes to successful academic programs but are not giving us specifics as to how they will benefit us,” Seals said. The four public hearings are: n Jan. 8 - McNair High, 1804 Bouldercrest Road S.E. in Atlanta. n Jan. 10 - Miller Grove High, 2645 DeKalb Medical Parkway in Lithonia. n Jan. 15 - Tucker High, 5036 LaVista Road in Tucker. n Jan. 16 - Dunwoody High, 5035 Vermack Road in Dunwoody. n Jan. 17 - DeKalb Schools Administrative and Instructional Complex, 1701 Mountain Industrial Blvd. in Stone Mountain. The meetings take place 6 to 7:30 p.m. and begin with a 30-minute presentation by staff, followed by 60 minutes of comment from the public.
ESTABLISHED IN 1879
YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE ★ GMC is an accredited two-year liberal arts junior college, with 10 campuses located throughout the state of Georgia. ★ GMC is a public educational institution whose purpose is to produce educated citizens by providing students with a liberal arts based twoyear undergraduate curriculum. High school diploma ★ Books are included in tuition cost or GED is required ★ Located near MARTA FINANCIAL AID TYPES:
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STONE MOUNTAIN CAMPUS I-285 to Memorial Dr., Right on Ridge Ave., Left to 5325 Manor Dr., Stone Mountain, GA 30083
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www.gmc.cc.ga.us
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools has issued a warning to Georgia Perimeter College over the lack of financial controls and the ensuing budget shortfall that were identified last spring. SACS, the accrediting organization for educational institutions in the Southeast, issued the warning at its annual board meeting on Dec. 11. The school canceled its December commencement ceremony to save money as it grappled with a $25 million shortfall that began to come to light in April. Anthony Tricoli, who had been at GPC since October 2006, stepped down as president on May 7, and Rob Watts, the University System’s former chief operating officer, was appointed interim president on May 9. In a Dec. 12 prepared statement issued by Barbara Obrentz, the school’s chief public information officer, Georgia Perimeter said a warning was not unanticipated, and that it will be able to demonstrate to SACS that the issues have been completely resolved within 12 months. Georgia Perimeter’s full accreditation remains in place under the warning, the school said. “Georgia Perimeter College has already made notable strides to correct budgeting
issues and return the institution to solid financial footing,” the statement read. “We will continue to implement and strengthen the controls put in place during the summer of this year so that we may resolve any remaining deficiencies and bring the budget back into balance.” GPC said that it values the standards that SACS sets for its members that allow them to achieve their mission as Georgia’s largest access institution. A review by the University System concluded that chronic overspending and the depletion of reserves to make ends meet were the culprit for the shortfall. The review found that “an emphasis on enrollment growth and program expansion took precedence over sound fiscal practice as management and leadership priorities.” Auditors concluded that lack of proper oversight from Tricoli and other top fiscal leadership led to GPC’s shortfall. GPC, which serves more than 23,000 students at five locations, has a current operating budget of $183 million, reflecting a budget cut of more than $20 million. It has laid off 282 employees, and travel and operating supply costs have been cut. The college said it expects to end this fiscal year on June 30, 2013, with a deficit of $5 million to $9 million.
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