More Teachers, Better Tech, Expanded Safety Mark New School Year

Expanded school safety, total wireless connectivity in classrooms and more teachers hired are some of the positive signs this school year, says Michael Thurmond, superintendent of the DeKalb County School District, in his welcome message to students and parents.

The message is on the school district website, and follows:

Dear Parents, Students, Staff, and Friends,

On behalf of the DeKalb County Board of Education, Welcome Back!

On August 11, more than 100,500 enthusiastic young people will join our community of learners in a quest for excellence. The District’s 14,000 employees and 6,200 teachers are prepared to receive our students for the best year yet!

You’ll notice a lot of positive changes in technology, safety and instruction. In the classrooms, you will see a 21st Century learning environment with interactive boards, new computers, 100 percent wireless connectivity, expanded Internet capacity and controlled access to the web. Parents and students will have access to the new Infinite Campus technology to monitor students’ progress and manage class schedules, among other essential functions. Remember to download the new, free app to your devices. DeKalb students will have their own television series, “The Bridge” on PDS-TV24 that is created, produced and stars DeKalb students.

We are improving school safety with new Student Resource Officers in the elementary schools and improvements to outside access to schools. All buses will have a Global Positioning Systems for efficient tracking and monitoring capability.

Our Growth and Achievement Model (GAM) will continue to emphasize the learning needs of each child. Classroom instruction will prepare our students for the new Georgia Milestones, the new state testing model. Mathematics instruction will be a top priority.

Also this year, we will be drafting our district-wide charter petition for the state Department of Education. When approved, the District will become the largest charter system in Georgia.

The new system will allow parents and school staff to have greater control over the direction of their school, and we invite the collaboration of parents, communities and friends in this effort. The District has also received a $3 million grant from the Wallace Foundation to improve instructional leadership of school principals.

We accomplished a great deal last year. The District was lifted off its probationary status and recognized for “significant progress” by AdvancED/SACS. The budget deficit was eliminated; a surplus of $20 million created; and the new budget allowed us to eliminate all furlough days for teachers. One hundred new teachers, media specialists and other school-based employees have been hired for the new school year.

The foundation for a great school system has been established and together with your collaboration and active participation in the academic growth of each student, there is no limit to what we can accomplish.