ATLANTA (AP) — The suspension of two-thirds of the school board members in a troubled suburban Atlanta school district has rendered the board temporarily powerless and set up a legal battle over a state law that gives the governor the power to remove local school boards.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal this week announced the suspension of six of nine of the DeKalb County school board members. The targeted board members have sued to challenge the 2011 law that allows him to take that action, saying they have a constitutional right to stay in office until voters say otherwise.
The turmoil has left the board hobbled, unable to make decisions because it can't muster the required five members for a quorum.
"As elected representatives on the DeKalb Board of Education, we find ourselves in a unique and confusing situation," the remaining three board members said in a statement this week.
Dekalb County is the state's third-largest school district, serving about 99,000 students. It was placed on probation in December by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, an accreditation agency, following a six-month investigation. In a report, the agency cited long-term leadership issues including nepotism, fiscal mismanagement, inappropriate micromanagement and intimidation within the district.
"Despite attempts of various experts and organizations to bring about sustained change in the culture and operation of the Board of Education, the extensive efforts, costs and resources expended in this endeavor appear to have been wasted," the agency wrote in its report.
The State Board of Education voted unanimously to recommend the removal of the six elected board members who were in office during the time when the alleged problems took place, but said three board members who took office in January have been allowed to stay. The governor on Monday announced he was following that advice and appointed a five-member panel to choose potential replacement board members.
A federal judge was to hear a legal challenge on Friday to the law. An order issued by the judge last week said Deal could go ahead and suspend the board members and appoint replacements but that new members couldn't take office until after the hearing. Similarly, the order allowed the suspended members to remain in office but prohibited them from taking any action until the hearing.
The law allows the governor to suspend the members of a local board of education if a school system or school is put in a status immediately preceding loss of accreditation. DeKalb is on probation through the end of this year. This isn't the first time Deal has used the law to remove a board. He previously removed and replaced the entire 5-member board in Miller County.
The school district and the county board of education chairman argue in the federal lawsuit filed last week that the law allowing the governor to remove elected local school board members is unconstitutional because they were lawfully elected and removing them would violate their right to due process.
U.S. District Judge Richard was to hear arguments from both sides Friday, but it wasn't clear whether he will immediately issue a ruling. The board is likely to remain in a state of uncertainty as the legal battle and procedural steps play out.
As the legal and political drama plays out, Dekalb County's interim schools Superintendent, Michael Thurmond, said everything is going on as normal. Thurmond took the helm of the troubled school district about four weeks ago after the previous the previous superintendent reached a "mutual understanding of separation" with the board, leaving the district halfway through her three-year contract. Thurmond's appointment marked the third time in three years the board had to find a new person to lead the district.
"We have 15,000 employees who reported to work. Our teachers are in the classrooms. Our bus drivers are transporting kids to school and back. Cafeteria workers are preparing the food," he said. "We are going about our business of focusing on job No. 1, which his educating our children."
Still, he said, he'd like to see the situation with the board resolved sooner rather than later.
"It's time for us to pivot from the courthouse and judges and lawyers and focus on agenda item No. 1, which is earning full accreditation for the district and giving our full attention to improving academic performance," he said.
Education experts say the flap won't have a noticeable impact on the ability to provide an education — at least immediately. Longer term, the situation becomes more urgent as time passes, said Jack Parish, a former Henry County superintendent and a professor of education administration and policy at the University of Georgia's College of Education. Some important issues boards might be considering this time of year include budgets for the upcoming fiscal year, approving personnel recommendations and actions, and looking at instructional materials for the upcoming school year, he said.
Tim Callahan, a spokesman for the Professional Association of Georgia Educators, declined to comment specifically on the situation in DeKalb County, but he did say that problems with a school board can end up hurting students the most when they jeopardize a district's accreditation.
"A school district that is not accredited is graduating students who may or may not be able to get into the schools of their choice, who may have some problems advancing in their education and their careers as adults," he said, adding that it can also affect property values in a community. "It's sort of a black eye for everyone.
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