New buses, elementary sports, free SAT/ACT

School superintendent Horton outlines goals, what’s ahead for 2024.

Now 90 days into his role as superintendent of the Dekalb County School District, Devon Horton has some plans.

Horton began working as the leader of the state’s third-largest district in July. In his first three months, he’s announced the IGNITE Dekalb teacher residency program to train new teachers, overseen the creation of a new timeline for the district’s transition to new software for human resources and financial information, and restructured the district’s central office, outlining more than 50 new positions and dozens of others that will be shuffled or changed.

“This has been a very fast 90 days,” he said at a recent school board meeting. “I want to show you that we’ve been planning.”

A newly released 142-page report outlines dozens of priorities that Horton and district leaders will focus on in the coming months and, in some cases, years.

Here are five noteworthy initiatives in the report that the district will be working on in 2024.

Free SAT/ACT

The district is planning for all high school juniors to have the opportunity to take the SAT or ACT during the school day for free in the 2024-2025 school year. The district plans to meet with parents, students and school staff to decide between the ACT or SAT. The cost to the district is not yet determined. Each test usually costs students around $60. The initiative would aim to increase access and exposure for marginalized students.

Athletics program for elementary students

During the 2024-2025 school year, fourth and fifth graders in Dekalb will have the chance to participate in an after-school competitive athletics program. The report specifically mentions teams for flag football, basketball, soccer, dance and track and field. The program will set up a competitive league with scheduled practices and games against other Dekalb elementary schools, awards, playoffs and championships. Clayton County Schools last month launched a flag football league for elementary schools.

Updated Wi-fi

Dekalb is already working on plans to replace all wireless access points in classrooms and school buildings to improve wireless performance by the end of 2024. The district will also update its Ethernet cables and will begin a refresh of all devices used by students and staff.

Partnership with the Georgia Aquarium

Dekalb will partner with the Georgia Aquarium to address inequities in science education and promote careers in STEM. By December 2024, the goal is for all schools to have access to experiential, relevant learning opportunities.

Electric buses

By January 2024, the district plans to purchase 50 brand-new electric buses, and replace an additional 25 buses that are at least 20 years old with electric buses. This is dependent on federal grant funding.