Accrediting Agency Says They’ll Investigate DeKalb Schools
The agency that accredits the DeKalb County Schools says they’ll conduct an investigation of the district. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools sent a letter to the school system last month, outlining several concerns. Mark Elgart, the CEO of SACS’ parent company, says they received more than 50 complaints in the last year about the DeKalb school board.
“The complaints we received indicated the system has not provided good oversight for its financial resources, that individual board members have interfered with the day-to-day operations of the school system,” Elgart says.
DeKalb Superintendent Cheryl Atkinson sent a letter of response, detailing changes she’s made since her arrival about a year ago. This week, SACS responded to Atkinson’s letter, saying they plan to investigate.
DeKalb school board chairman Eugene Walker says SACS’ response was unexpected.
“I’m not aware of any mismanagement so I was a little bit disappointed and surprised to get a letter,” Walker says, “But, now that SACS has sent the letter I welcome them with open arms so this will be an opportunity for us to clear up all the allegations that are floating around out there.”
The investigation is scheduled for October 17-19. If SACS finds the allegations to be true, the district’s accreditation status could drop from “on advisement” to “probation,” which precedes a loss of accreditation.
9(MDAxODM0MDY4MDEyMTY4NDA3MzI3YjkzMw004))
Top Stories
