Dawson County Fights State Takeover of Schools

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DAWSONVILLE, Ga. – Dawson County Board of Education has joined a growing number of counties across Georgia determined to oppose a ballot referendum in November that allows state government to seize control of chronically failing schools from local school systems.

State legislators approved the ballot question last year. Now it will be in the hands of the voters.

If passed, the amendment would create an Opportunity School District (OSD) that could seize control of chronically failing schools that do not achieve a 60 on the Career and College Readiness Performance Index (CCRPI) for three consecutive years. The OSD would be operated by the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement (GOSA) and supervised by a superintendent appointed by the governor.

Last week, Dawson County’s Board unanimously approved a resolution opposing OSDs although none of the county’s schools could be considered chronically failing.

Fetch Your News interviewed School Superintendent Dr. Damon Gibbs Tuesday to explain Dawson County’s opposition

“It’s not that we’re opposed to seeing the state helping chronically failing schools but there are other avenues the state can use,” he said. “We’re opposed to a Constitutional Amendment that takes authority away from local school boards elected by the citizens they serve to create a board that answers to nobody but the governor.”

Gibbs also questioned where the funding would come from. “Right now, the state only provides about 45 percent of the money needed to fund schools. That won’t be enough to fund an OSD.”

The amendment would set the bar at 60 or below on the CCRPI and establish a maximum of 10 years that the state can control a failing school.

But Gibbs said, “The scary part is who is to say the state can’t set the bar at 70 on the CCRPI or extend the maximum number of years. We’ve been working under the CCRPI for three years now and the way it is calculated has changed each year.”

In a recent speech, Deal lashed out against critics of his proposed constitutional amendment. “The General Assembly and I have lost our patience in trusting superintendents and local boards of education,” he said.

Asked about the governor’s comment, Gibbs said, “Our school board cares more about our kids than any Board I’ve been involved with. If I take the governor at face value, it’s a little like a slap in the face but there are some school districts that may need a slap in the face to do what’s right for their kids. I didn’t take it personally.”

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