EDUCATION In this 2014 rendering, the new Heards Ferry Elementary School uses a multi-story design in order to fit into the small parcel located at 6151 Powers Ferry Road in Sandy Springs.
Local schools reopen in August. Here are their starting dates.
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Heards Ferry expects to open on time BY JOHN RUCH With the first day of school just a few weeks away, the new Heards Ferry Elementary is still under construction. But Fulton County Schools says the school will be finished in time for its Aug. 10 debut. “It will be a tight fit, but we do expect we will be able to open on time,” school system spokeswoman Susan Hale said on July 15. “It’s quite amazing what you can do in three or four weeks.” The school is moving from its aging Heards Ferry Road location to the new building at 6151 Powers Ferry Road in Sandy Springs. Fulton County Schools recently relocated its administration headquarters next door, where Hale said she sees the heavy construction equipment outside the school every day. “Visually, you drive by and it looks like a hot mess,” Hale acknowledged. But the contractor, Parrish Construction Group, told her on July 15 that there will be “no problem” finishing the work in time. Work on both the exterior
and the interior is still underway. Hale said school construction and renovation projects often go down to the wire because they have to be squeezed into the shorter school-year calendar. Some parts inevitably fall behind schedule, while other parts go ahead of schedule, she said. “It’s not uncommon for us to be sweeping dirt out as kids come in,” she said. If a major construction problem pops up in the next couple of weeks, the old Heards Ferry Road building is still usable as an alternative. “If worse came to worse, we could still potentially hold classes there,” Hale said. Heards Ferry Elementary uses a multi-story design new to the school system. It’s needed to fit full-size schools onto smaller parcels in heavily developed places such as Sandy Springs, where open land is at a premium. While opening day is Aug. 10, Heards Ferry construction needs to be
Atlanta Jewish Academy’s upper school on the move BY JOHN RUCH
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The Atlanta Jewish Academy is preparing to relocate its upper school from Doraville into a brand new building at its Sandy Springs campus. “We will become one family on one site,” said Evie Weinreich, AJA’s director of facilities and security. Sandy Springs City Council approved the new building for the 5200 Northland Drive campus at its June 16 meeting. AJA aims to start the 10- to 12-month construction project in the fall. AJA was born a year ago as the administrative merger of two separate Jewish schools: Greenfield Hebrew Academy and Yeshiva Atlanta High School. The result is metro Atlanta’s first Jewish day school to offer a full educational track from preschool to grade 12. Weinreich said that, under zoning, the school is allowed to have up to 720
students in Sandy Springs, and that cap will not change. Its current expected enrollment this fall is about 500 students. The new upper school structure will be a “state-of-the-art building” with classrooms, a gym and science labs, Weinreich said. A soccer field is part of the plan, too. The building will be placed on the Northland Drive side of the campus, attached to the existing performing arts center. At the council’s June 16 meeting, council members heard support of the project from the Northpoint Civic Association. The council approved the project unanimously. AJA has sold its upper school in Doraville for use as a DeKalb County charter school, Weinreich said. Until the AJA’s new upper school is complete, AJA is leasing the Doraville space.
completed a bit earlier to host a planned Aug. 7 open house.
Aug. 5 – Atlanta Public Schools Aug. 7 – St. Pius X Catholic School Aug. 10 – Atlanta Jewish Academy; DeKalb County schools; Fulton County schools, St. Jude Catholic School; Weber School Aug. 11 – Atlanta International School Aug. 12 – Atlanta Girls’ School; Holy Spirit Preparatory School; Mount Vernon Presbyterian School Aug. 13 – St. Martin’s Episcopal School Aug. 17 – The Westminster Schools, grades 6-12 Aug. 18 – Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School; Lovett School; Pace Academy; The Westminster Schools, grades 1-5 Aug. 19 – The Galloway School Aug. 24 – Brandon Hall School Aug. 26 – The Marist School –Mary Helen Kelly
Dan Sasser loves coming and going as he pleases. That’s just one of many reasons he chose Canterbury Court to be his home. “I left a tenured position so I could live wherever I wanted. Then I retired at 60 and was working part time when I discovered Canterbury Court. I thought, ‘How wonderful it would be to live there.’” When he decided to move to Canterbury Court, he chose a studio apartment, which he says “is more than big enough for me.” The maintenance-free lifestyle also lets him keep a second home in Florida and take frequent road trips. Dan says people are “missing the boat” by not moving to a retirement community sooner. “Here you have several restaurant options, all kinds of activities and excursions, a theater with daily showings, a heated pool and wellness center, 11 acres of beautiful gardens ... it’s like being on a permanent vacation!”
3750 Peachtree Road, N.E. Atlanta, Georgia 30319 canterburycourt.org Canterbury Court is Atlanta’s first and foremost continuing care retirement community, non-profit, and committed to welcoming all people.
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