On Thursday the State Board of Education approved Governor Kemp and State Superintendent’s recommendation to provide a one-time, $1,000 bonus payment to every public school teacher and support personnel. This bonus, provided by federal stimulus, is a good faith effort that helps with the ability to recruit teachers and retention of talent as educators have […]
Author Archives: Zelda Andrews
We used to teach now we write full-time about all things education in Atlanta.
Posted inNational News
U.S. Department of Education to Cancel $1 Billion in Student Loans for Borrowers
On Thursday, The U.S. Department of Education announced that it will streamline debt relief for millions of borrowers with claims that their secondary institution engaged in misconduct. Recalculating the formula made in the DeVos administration, Cardona and staff will rescind the formula for calculating partial relief and streamline an approach for granting full relief. This […]
Posted inAnti Racism
Opinion: Stop the Hate Against Asian Americans Forces Us to Speak Up
Caroline Diaz is the preschool director for Westminster Schools, an independent school in Atlanta. She has a strong passion for leadership and mentorship in the field of early childhood education. Caroline began her career as a lecturer for De La Salle University’s Psychology Department in Manila, Philippines. She also operated two early childhood learning centers while […]
Posted inGwinnett County Schools
Wilbanks out as Gwinnett County Superintendent on June 30
In a surprising 3-2 vote, the Gwinnett School Board voted to end Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks’s contract a year early than his contract. With Board Chairman Everton Blair, Vice Chairwoman Karen Watkins, and board member Dr.Tarece Johnson voting in favor of the contract ending and Mary Kay Murphy and Steven Knudsen voting against the move. […]
Posted inClayton County Schools
Clayton County Set to Resume Face to Face Classes in April
In a startling move, Clayton County Superintendent Moreace Beasley announced Tuesday that students in grades K-5 starting April 12 via his YouTube Live Townhall meeting. “April 12, it is our plan if the vaccination distribution goes as planned, if we continue to see decreasing numbers, make no mistake, we will be returning our Pre-K through […]
Posted inCoranovirus
Biden Wants Every Teacher Vaccinated With One Covid 19 Shot in March
As teachers continue to push to be pushed ahead of the lines for COVID-19 vaccines, President Joe Biden said Tuesday that he wants every teacher, school staff, and child care worker in the United States to get at least one shot in March. This comes amidst more guidance that says the schools can safely reopen […]
Posted inCobb County Schools
Cobb County Teacher Caught Blaming Breonna Taylor for Her Murder
Susan McCoy, a forensics science teacher at Pebblebrook High School in Mableton, Georgiaa was caught on camera this past week telling her class of students that Breonna Taylor was responsible for her own death. “I’m sorry she was killed but if you hang out with people with guns that shoot at cops you’re likely to […]
Posted inGwinnett County Schools
Gwinnett County Schools Halts the Gateway Requirement for Students
In a startling move, Gwinnett County Schools has decided to waive the requirement that the Class of 2021 seniors must pass the Gateway exams in order to graduate. The Gateway exams are essay exams that requires sophomores to write about science and juniors about social studies prompts. Students who fail them can retake them but […]
Posted inAtlanta Public Schools
Kemp says Atlanta Teachers Can’t Move Up in the Vaccination Line
On Friday, Governor Kemp denied a request from the Atlanta Board of Education to move teachers in the 1A group for vaccinations against COVID-19 saying that there’s not enough of the supply and that indeed schools are safe to open. This comes after the School Board approved a resolution urging the state to begin vaccinating […]
Posted inHot Topics in Teaching
Perceived Threats of Caring Male Teacher
By Nathan Brown “Nathan Brown is a student of elementary education at Hamline University. He is a future educator who stands against the implementation of postmodern theory into public education and writes about these issues at NateBWriting.weebly.com. He also creates children’s music under the name ‘Captain Cool Kid’, and his first album, “Songs 4 Every1”, is […]
Posted inPolicy
Biden’s $170 Billion+ Plan to Reopen Schools in 100 Days
President Biden unveiled his administration’s first legislative priority in a $1.9 trillion stimulus package that pushes $130 billion to reopen schools in 100 days in a quest to get the pandemic under control and mitigate the economic and social impact on the country. While he intends to get bipartisan support of this package, Democrats hold […]
Posted inUncategorized
Betsy DeVos Resigns: Most Teachers Say Good Riddance
In the wake of the domestic terrorism by Trump supporters, Betsy DeVos was the second Cabinet from the Trump administration who has resigned. In her resignation letter sent on Thursday, she directly pointed to President Donald Trump for flaming the seeds of tension as his supporters stormed the nation’s capital. In her statement released to […]
Posted inNational News
Trump Hold American Schools Hostage Until After the Election
In true fashion, Donald Trump took to Twitter today to let the world know that a new Coronavirus relief package wouldn’t come until after the November 3rd election. This decision has the possibility of being a hurdle to the thousands of K-12 schools who are depending on the aid from Washington to operate during the […]
Posted inUncategorized
Atlanta Public Schools Announces Staggered Start Date and Virtual Learning for Fall Semester
In a memo to staff today, newly minted Superintendent, Dr. Lisa Herring has made the decision to push school back for two weeks and starting virtually. This decision was made on the heels of Atlanta Mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms to move the city back to phase I with the mounting Coronavirus cases surging in Georgia. […]
Posted inCoranovirus
GaDOE Offers Guidance on Opening Schools for the 2020-2021 School Year
This morning in a 10-page document, “Georgia’s Path to Recovery for K-12 Schools” the Georgia Department Education offered guidance to Georgia’s 181 school districts that containing over 2,200 schools that employ over 114,800 teachers who educate approximately 1.6 million students every day. This document came after the Center for Disease Control gave federal guidance to prioritize the health and safety of […]
Posted inUncategorized
Dekalb County Schools Opts Not to Hire New Superintendent
In a surprising 4-3 vote, the Dekalb County Board of Education voted against hiring superintendent finalist, Rudy Crew during the board virtual work session. Crew an experienced leader from Miami and New York and currently as the acting president of Medgar Evers College had been met with criticism surrounding taxpayer’s dollars being improperly spent and […]
Posted inAtlanta Public Schools
With the Risk of 275,000+ Teacher Being Laid Off, Council of Greater City Schools Urges Congress to Act
In an unprecedented move, the Council of the Greater City schools drafted asking Congress for emergency funding of $200+ billion for the upcoming school year. Without this aid, the group says that an estimated 275,000 teachers may lose their jobs. The letter came upon a time when COVID-19 cases topped one million in the United […]
Posted inAtlanta Public Schools
Atlanta Public Schools Announces Plan for Graduation With Hashtag #Worththewait
In true Atlanta Public Schools fashion, senior students will go out with a bang with virtual graduation in May and later summer graduation in the summer- or later. After surveying 1,650 APS seniors across all 14 high schools, an overwhelming percentage expressed interest for a delayed open-air (78%) or fall (71%) ceremony while fewer did […]
Posted inDekalb County Schools
Dekalb County Schools Names Dr. Rudy Crew As Sole Finalist for Superintendent Job
Today the Dekalb County Board of Education announced Dr. Rudy Crew as the sole finalist in its search for a new superintendent. Bring to an end of a five-month search that yielded 68 applications and community input. While Dr. Crew will be voted on after the 14 Day Public Input Period mandated by Georgia Law, […]
Posted inAtlanta Public Schools
Atlanta Board of Education Announces Dr. Lisa Herring as Finalist for Superintendent
At Tuesday’s board meeting the Atlanta Board of Education announced the sole finalist for Superintendent job, Dr. Lisa Herring- current Superintendent for Birmingham City Schools in Alabama. To the surprise of many, in October the Board launched a nationwide search for a replacement of the sometimes controversial Meria Carstarphen. Dr. Herring will bring more than […]
Posted inOpinion
The Heart of a Teacher is Consistent
Guest Writer: Melissa Kloeckner Educators have gone and done it again. Despite the short notice, FAPE law restrictions, and the varying home resources and needs of students, they have stepped up to the plate and risen to the occasion. I can already hear the voices… “Well, teachers are still getting paid so they should be […]
Posted inOpinion
Opinion:Why Would Anyone Choose to Be a Teacher in 2020?
Guest Writer: Madison Woodward When I was a child, I used to play teacher and do lessons to my stuffed animals in my room, I even received an overhead projector for Christmas one year. But as I got older, I worried more about money and prestige than anything else; I did not want to be […]
Posted inAtlanta Public Schools
Atlanta School Board Poised to Announce Carstarphen’s Replacement
On Friday Atlanta Public Schools Board President, Jason Esteves, released a statement updating the community on the status of the search to replace Carstarphen who came to the district in 2014 after a massive cheating scandal that rocked the district. The announcement came after in September 2019, the board announced that it would not renew […]
Posted inCoranovirus
While Others Districts Close Early, Cobb, Marietta, Fulton, and Atlanta Public Schools Opt to Stay Open
While other districts have opted to end school early, four metro Area school districts (Atlanta Public Schools, Fulton County Schools, Marietta City Schools, and Cobb County) have opted to keep school going to the end of the school as previously scheduled. While Governor Kemp’s announcement that Georgia schools will remain closed through the end of […]