The newly elected Atlanta Public School Board laid out the priorities for the early part of its term on Monday, as the body officially met for the first time since a contentious election last fall.
The nine-member board, which included new members Ken Zeff and Alfred “Shivy” Brooks, who is the first active teacher elected to the panel — is aiming to complete its search for a new superintendent to lead the district before the next school year starts in August. The search will hinge on identifying a candidate that satisfies the criteria laid out in a 92-page “leadership profile” that was also discussed Monday evening.
Beyond that, the board divided up committee and liaison assignments among its members and hashed out plans for disbursing long-awaited retention bonuses to APS employees.
APS has seen a revolving door for its top educator in the past few years. Prior to the November election, the previous board decided not to retain APS’ latest superintendent, Lisa Herring, who has since been replaced temporarily by interim Superintendent Danielle Battle.
Since announcing its robust timeline to fill the permanent role, the board has laid out specific guidelines for its ideal candidate and hired a firm, Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates, to aid in its national search process. According to documents, the new superintendent is expected to have a tentative start date of July 1, 2024.
Detailed in the job posting, the district is looking for an experienced chief communicator who knows Atlanta and is comfortable with transparency and equity. The district previously used HYA in the hiring of Herring back in 2019, which cost the district nearly $40,000, not including travel and other expenses. Along with the new board members, the next superintendent will be tasked with many responsibilities, including presiding over the district’s annual budget — which is currently set at $1.7 billion — as well as addressing stagnant literacy scores and racial equity gaps in achievement among students.
The board also discussed necessary budget adjustments to distribute the $1,000 stipend extended to eligible public employees by Gov. Brian Kemp back in December. APS employees qualify for the money despite not working directly for the state government.
Battle addressed confusion about the gift, stating that the district wished to extend the retention bonus to more than just the eligible employees determined by the state, which will cost the district an additional $3.26 million. The state allotted $4.9 million.
The district previously was criticized by Georgia state Superintendent Richard Woods when APS told its employees that a December retention bonus, given by APS, would supplant the governor’s pay raise and that funds given by Kemp would be utilized for “district priorities” instead of providing employees with an additional $1,000 in time for the holidays.
“It takes all of us to make this ship sail,” Battle said in a written statement. “Each role is vital to increasing student achievement. It is our desire to expand the state’s contribution to each eligible employee who touches the lives of our students.”
Zeff and Brooks along with the seven other members of the board, also learned their new committee assignments for the next two years, which are as follows:
- Accountability: Jennifer McDonald (Chair), Katie Howard, Zeff
- Audit: Howard, Eshé Collins, Aretta Baldon
- Board Development: Baldon (Chair), Jessica Johnson, Erika Mitchell
- Budget: Howard (Chair), Johnson, Baldon
- Policy Review: Collins (Chair), Brooks, Cynthia Briscoe Brown
- City of Atlanta/APS Joint: Brooks, Baldon, Brown
Board members were also appointed to liaison roles, where they will serve as the official representative of APS in those capacities. These appointments include:
- Legislative Liaisons: Johnson, Brooks
- Atlanta External Communications Liaison (WABE-FM): Brown
- Atlanta Partners For Education Liaison: Zeff
- Georgia School Board Association Liaison: Mitchell
- Council of Great City Schools Liaison: Mitchell
- Invest Atlanta Liaison: Collins
- Council of Urban Board of Education (CUBE) Liaison: Brooks
- Fulton County Attendance Protocol Liaison: Johnson
