Superintendent Recommends Closing Medlock, Redistricting at Some Schools

DeKalb County schools chief Ramona Tyson recommended Monday the school board close this summer and scale back previously proposed plans to redraw schools' attendance zones in the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area.

Most of the change Tyson proposed is in southern DeKalb County, which hosts most of the more than 11,000 empty seats the DeKalb County School System is trying to consolidate. Medlock Elementary is one of eight schools she tagged for closure and the only school in northern DeKalb County. The system was considering closing up to 14 schools.

Tyson's recommendation for the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area is a decidedly softer one than the two plans proposed last month by school system consultant MGT of America. In Tyson's recommendation, the attendance zones for , , , and elementary schools will remain as they are. That wasn't the case before Monday. Between both of MGT's plans–the decentralized and less aggressive centralized plan–all of those schools stood to face possible change.

The area around Medlock Elementary would change pretty dramatically under Tyson's recommendation. Once it was closed, its students would be split and fed into three nearby schools. would absorb 56 students, would take 104 students and the remaining 71 students would head to Avondale Elementary School.

Tyson also recommended some changes at the middle and high schools. But they're small–again–in comparison to MGT's plans. would receive 71 students from , and would receive 76 Druid Hills High School students. Shamrock Middle's attendance zones would also expand south considerably, taking 183 students from Avondale Middle School, which will also close, and 15 students from Freedom Middle School.

Fernbank Elementary School's parents were among the most vocal in the North Druid Hills-Briarcliff area in opposition to change at their school. Under Tyson's plan, only four Fernbank Elementary students would be shifted to Briar Vista Elementary School. That's a dramatic decrease from MGT's plans, both of which recommended sending more than 100 Fernbank Elementary students to Briar Vista Elementary.

The school board is scheduled to vote on Tyson's proposal March 7.

School system officials and MGT said the changes reflect the wishes of thousands of parents and community members who packed public forums and other meetings held across the county over the last month – many of them demanding the process be slowed down and that the school system provide more financial data to back up their proposals. The system did release some financial data showing the changes will save about $12.4 million yearly.

"My primary concern is the well-being of the boys and girls in DeKalb County schools," Tyson said. "The recommendations I'm presenting tonight respects what we learned [from community feedback]."

Parents seemed generally relieved by Tyson's proposal. If the board signs off on Tyson's plan, the Emory LaVista Parent Council may look into alternative uses for the Medlock Elementary building so that it isn't entirely abandoned next year, said Marshall Orson, co-president of the parent council. Many Medlock community members expressed concern about their homes' property values and the community's future when the school was tagged for closure.

But on the whole, Orson said he largely appreciated the recommendations.

"I'm optimistic because I do think they listened to the public," he said. "That's how that process should work."

Overall Tyson's proposal will affect fewer students than MGT's plans would. Nearly 9,000 students will be affected by her recommendation (or 9 percent of the school system). The proposed closures and redistricting will cut the number of empty seats from 11,310 to 6,185, a 45 percent decrease.

All maps and documents related to Tyson's recommendation can be found on the school system's website.