Medlock Elementary Parents: Don't Close Our School

Angel McLaughlin said she thought her daughter dodged a bullet last year when escaped potential closure after the DeKalb County School District decided to delay its school closure and redistricting effort until now.

But after the school district's announcement last night that the school is, once again, facing possible closure, McLaughlin said she's preparing for the worst and thinking about options for her third-grader, including paying for private school.

"I don't like it," she said as she waited outside the school this afternoon to pick up her daughter. "[Medlock Elementary is] one of the better schools in DeKalb County."

McLaughlin wasn't alone Tuesday afternoon. Many parents said they were frustrated to hear school district consultants presented to the school board a plan that recommended closing Medlock Elementary – one of 14 tagged for closure to help eliminate more than 11,000 empty seats countywide.

Jeff Fischer, who walked his son, a first-grader, home from school, said he fears closing Medlock Elementary could negatively affect nearby property values and discourage younger families from moving into the diverse Medlock neighborhood.

"It will definitely impact this neighborhood," he said."We'd consider private school [for our son] if we had to. It would depend on which school we feed into."

The district consultants–a company called MGT of America–created two options for the board to consider: a "centralized" option and a less aggressive "decentralized" option that impacts fewer students. Nonetheless, Medlock Elementary is recommended for closure in both. If the board follows the proposal, Medlock Elementary students would be reassigned to Avondale, and elementary schools.

Niya Flamer, whose daughter is in fourth grade, said she appreciated Medlock Elementary's diversity of students and teachers. The teachers and administrators also make time to work individually and keep parents up to date, she said.

"This is where my daughter's grown up," Flamer said. "This is a great school."

Yen Ly, mother to a pre-kindergartner, said she hadn't heard about the proposal but was concerned. She said she didn't know what her family would do if the school closes.

School Principal Fred Hammond declined to speak with Patch about the potential closure, saying all interview requests had to go through the school district's public relations team. Teachers also weren't permitted to talk, he said.

The school board has not approved the school's closure, and the issue returns to parents next week . Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson will make her final recommendation to the school board on Jan. 31. Public hearings will be held Feb. 22 and 24, and the board will give final approval Feb. 28.

Medlock Elementary parents loudly protested last year's proposal to close the school, said Karen O'Leary, who has a son in kindergarten and serves on the school's PTA. School board members should expect the same response this year, she said.

"A blight in the neighborhood is not good for anyone," O'Leary said. "We do have an active group here that will make sure our voices get heard.

"It's a little bit of a disheartening day," she said.