Decatur school task force urges grade restructuring

Proposal would split elementary level into k-2, 3-5.

A facilities task force recommends reconfiguring the grade structure of Decatur’s school system, a change that the district’s chief operating officer said earlier was not likely.

The task force presented its report to the school board Monday night, and favored creating two elementary levels, k-2 and 3-5. Under that plan, k-2 buildings would be Clairemont, Glennwood, Winnona Park, Westchester and College Heights. College Heights would be renovated to hold 293 students. The 3-5 buildings would be at Oakhurst, Fifth Avenue and a new structure at the recently purchased property on Talley Street and South Columbia Drive. Renfroe Middle and Decatur High Schools would remain unchanged.

A second option the task force presented keeps the current k-3 and 4-5 structure but adds a sixth elementary, College Heights, and a second academy for grades 4 and 5 on Talley Street.

The recommendation is surprising considering what City Schools of Decatur Chief Operating Officer Noel Maloof told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution during a mid-September interview, shortly after the committee’s first meeting.

“In my mind,” said Maloof, who also heads up the 30-person committee, “changing the format is not on the table. We’ll stick with the current model unless there’s a compelling reason to change.”

The committee has met four times since early September. It gave several reasons for proposing the reconfiguration: more collaboration between schools, an expansion of the International Baccalaureate program and more community involvement because of the extra year at the 3-5 level.

Superintendent David Dude, however, emphasized that the final decisions lies with the board. He said Monday that the board could choose either option or come up with its own original alternative. He also added that the board will receive more detailed community input than the facilities committee.

The district wants to open its new Talley Street building and College Heights renovation by the middle of the 2018-19 school year at the latest. That means, Maloof said Monday, the board needs to make a final decision by February or March. “If we go much further than that,” he said, “we won’t get those buildings finished in time. Plus the costs will go up. Anytime we delay anything, we pay the price.”

The fate of the Early Childhood Learning Center, currently at College Heights, remains uncertain. It could get a brand-new building in in the new E.Co East development, scheduled to break ground this month in the Avondale MARTA parking lot.

“We are planning for contingencies” if talks with E.Co East developers Columbia Ventures fall through, Dude said. “But I will tell you, we are committed to that school and keeping that program.”