Lakeside PTSA to Parents: It's Time to 'Take Action'

's PTSA e-mailed the school's parents with a simple message this week: It's time to take action.

The group encouraged parents to attend as many of the forthcoming public forums regarding a proposal to close schools and redraw attendance zones to reduce the 11,000-plus empty seats across the DeKalb County School System. The proposal, which includes two options, was created by MGT of America, which is working for the school system.

From the letter:

For the Lakeside community, the proposal included moving attendance lines for most elementary schools, in some cases removing students from the Henderson-Lakeside district. It includes sending a percentage of students from Briarlake, Oak Grove and Sagamore, who now attend Henderson and Lakeside, to Druid Hills Middle (formerly Shamrock) and Druid Hills High. One option sends a portion of the Evansdale community to Livsey.

At minimum, the PTSA wants to preserve the "Lakeside-Henderson" cluster, the letter said.

We have data that shows that when construction is complete at Lakeside, we will have room for every high school student in the attendance area. Therefore, we do not see a need to remove students from our feeder pattern as the options now suggest. We understand that the attendance lines of some of the elementary schools within our feeder pattern may need to change to avoid overcrowding, to adequately use the existing buildings and to qualify for maximum state funding. We are willing to do that to keep Lakeside's entire existing attendance area in place.

The letter gives yet another look into the ways different school groups hope to challenge the proposal as it winds its way through the school system and, finally, to the school board. parents . The school faces closures in both options of the proposal.

The Lakeside PTSA encouraged parents to attend the forthcoming public forums about the proposal. They have been rescheduled due to the past weeks snow and ice that canceled school for five days.

The new public forum dates are:

• Tuesday, Jan. 18 @ Miller Grove High School
• Wednesday, Jan. 19 @
• Thursday, Jan. 20 @ Chamblee High School
• Tuesday, Jan. 25 @ McNair High School
• Wednesday, Jan. 26 @ Bethune Middle School
• Thursday, Jan. 27 @ Stone Mountain Middle School

Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson was initially scheduled to make her recommendation to the school board Jan. 31. That as well has been pushed to Feb. 7.

The board will hold two public hearings regarding Tyson's recommendation on March 1 and 3, and the board will give vote March 7.