DeKalb School Board Reinstatement Hearings Continue

June 19th, 2013

A second suspended member of the DeKalb County school board appeared in court Tuesday in an attempt to reclaim her seat. Of the six suspended members, Sarah Copelin-Wood served on the board the longest.

Copelin-Wood testified she performed her board duties well. But when asked by her attorney, Jarred Wilson, why she was suspended, her reply didn’t seem to make sense.

“Well, but again, there was information brought to us,” Wood said, “We were looking at closing Sky Haven Elementary School and the information was that it was a mile from Sky Haven to Gresham Park.”

When asked again, Copelin-Wood deferred to Mark Elgart, the head of the district’s accrediting agency. In his testimony, Elgart said Copelin-Wood prioritized her own interests above the needs of the district. Elgart also said she often came to meetings unprepared and needed more time to review board matters.

By contrast, Elgart said, the new board members have made progress on the steps required for the district to regain full accreditation. Afterwards, Wilson, Copelin-Wood’s attorney, said Elgart mischaracterized his client.

“Ms. Copelin-Wood has acknowledged that, ‘Hey if I did ask for more time, it’s because other things came up, I just needed a bit more time,’” he said, “‘Not just that I totally disregarded the information before me.’”

Wilson likely needed to convince Judge Max Wood that Copelin-Wood’s reinstatement would help the district regain its full accreditation. However, Elgart testified her reinstatement would not help.

Gov. Deal issued the suspensions after the district’s accrediting agency put DeKalb on probation due to inadequate board governance. The governor has replaced the suspended members, although state law allows them to appeal.

Judge Wood wouldn’t say when he’ll issue a decision.