Fulton County Celebrates School Board Appreciation Week

From Fulton County Schools: Today marks the first day of “Georgia School Board Appreciation Week,” a weeklong celebration to show Fulton County School Board members how much they are valued for their service and dedication to the students of Fulton County Schools.

The current school board is comprised of President Linda Bryant, Vice President Linda McCain and members Julia Bernath, Gail Dean, Catherine Maddox, Katie Reeves and Katha Stuart.

As constitutional officers of Georgia, school board members are responsible for setting educational and personnel policies, providing buildings and equipment, operating a transportation system and approving the school system budget. As community leaders, school board members serve as advocates for the children in local public schools, and must study, evaluate and decide what actions are in the best interest of all students.

• Experience and Expertise. The Fulton County Board of Education has one of the most veteran school boards in Georgia, with its current members collectively serving more than 85 years. This breadth of knowledge allows the school board members to make experience-based decisions regarding the school system and the children it serves.
• Good Stewardship of Taxpayers’ Dollars. The Fulton school board led the school system during some of its most difficult economic years. Critical decisions made by the board years ago have resulted in the district’s sound financial health today. As a result, Fulton County Schools is in a better financial situation than many neighboring school systems and employees have not been affected by furloughs or pay cuts for the past six years, and in recent years, the board has been able to give a pay raise as well as step increase to eligible employees. School millage tax rates also have remained the same for seven years.
• National Award-Winners. Three years ago, Fulton County Schools was a national winner of the Annual Award for Urban School Board Excellence by the National School Boards Association’s Council of Urban Boards of Education (CUBE). As part of the award, Fulton County Schools received a $2,500 prize and was featured in the Urban Advocate, CUBE’s quarterly publication.

• AdvancED Reaccreditation. Due to strong school board leadership, Fulton County Schools is fully accredited byAdvancED. This signifies that the district and its schools is focused on raising student achievement, providing a safe and enriching learning environment, and maintaining an efficient and effective operation. In addition, it means that the school system and its leadership adhere to high quality standards based on the latest research and successful professional practices.
• SPLOST. Fulton school board members also have been strong community leaders through past and current SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) educational campaigns. The most recent referendum was passed in 2016 by a large margin of victory.
• Safety. Using SPLOST funds, the Fulton school board has funded comprehensive video surveillance systems that help keep students and staff safe, inside the school and out, as well as new technology to allow instant background checks of all school volunteers. Buzzer entry systems with audio and visual capabilities are installed at all school entrances.
• Charter System. In 2012, Fulton County Schools is the first large school system in Georgia to receive charter system status and became a model for other school systems, largely due to the support of the school board. All schools have created School Governance Councils to guide the creation of their school’s strategic plan, and schools also are engaged in the Request for Flexibility progress where they can use the charter model to request additional flexibility options that support their strategic plans. Last year, the school system’s charter status was reauthorized for another three years.

• Strategic Plan. Fulton school board leadership also was evident through the school system’s creation of a five-year strategic plan, which was launched in 2012 and is now in its final year. The strategic plan serves as the district’s road map to improving student achievement. The strategic plan has three large goals that serve as a measure for long-term student success: 90% of Fulton students will graduate on time; 85% of Fulton’s seniors will be eligible for admission to a University System of Georgia college or university; and 100% of Fulton’s graduates will be work-ready. A new five-year strategic plan is under development.
• Community Engagement. The Fulton County Board of Education strongly believes that the public must be involved in public education, and board members go above and beyond to encourage community participation in decision-making activities. Time is set aside at each school board meeting to hear from the community, and public hearings are held to receive feedback on various issues. The board also requests that school system committees include parent and community representatives.
• Community Meetings. In addition to the monthly agenda-focused meetings, each Fulton school board member also sponsors a community meeting open to the public that gives an opportunity to discuss upcoming board issues and other system-related activities. These community meetings have been hosted for a number of years and Fulton is believed to be one of the few school boards in the country to use such a process for gathering input. The meetings provide an opportunity for direct contact with community members and give board members a chance to listen to local issues and concerns.

The Georgia School Boards Association, sponsor of the annual celebration, is a voluntary statewide organization of local boards of education. The organization serves as an advocate for the interest of the state's public school students and local school boards and provides in-service training and technical assistance to Georgia’s local school systems and school board members.

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