District Clarifies School Choice Procedures

HB 251 Choice Procedures

A new Georgia law (House Bill 251) provides that students who reside within the Cobb County School District may apply to transfer to schools deemed by the District to have adequate permanent classroom space for the 2009-2010 school year. The school district will not provide transportation for students who elect to transfer under HB 251. Transportation will be the responsibility of the parents.

The window for applications is from July 15, 2009 through July 29, 2009. The application window will close at 5 p.m. on July 29, 2009. There are no exceptions or extensions to the transfer window. Application forms will be available online at www.cobbk12.org and at the District Office from July 15, 2009 through July 29, 2009. Application forms may be mailed, faxed or brought to the District office. Forms are not to be sent to individual schools. If there are more applications than spaces available at a particular school, a lottery will be held.

Students may remain at the transfer school until they complete the last grade at that school. Students involved in sports or extracurricular activities should carefully consider their eligibility pursuant to the rules of the Georgia High School Association. Parents will be notified by August 5, 2009 via e-mail or regular mail, of the transfer status.

Read more, including the list of schools eligible for school choice on the District Web site.

No Child Left Behind Choice Procedures

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB Act) provides parents with the option to seek enrollment of their children in another designated school if their home school has not demonstrated three years of sustained improvement in overall student performance and is on the statewide Needs Improvement List. This requirement is called the "NCLB School Choice Option".

Cobb County schools are awaiting 2008-2009 school year test scores and other data used to determine whether schools made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under NCLB. Those results should be available in early July and will determine if schools will be required to provide choice options next school year. Schools that do not meet their Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) targets in the same content area for the third consecutive year are required to provide choice. Once a school achieves the AYP standard for two consecutive years, the school is no longer required to provide the choice option.

Letters explaining choice options and an application will be mailed to parents of students in schools that must offer choice for 2009-2010. The letters will be mailed around July 17. Parent information sessions will be held the week of July 27, 2009. Exact times and locations will be posted on the district webpage around July 15.

Only students enrolled in CCSD schools are eligible to participate in the NCLB School Choice Option. The NCLB application due date is Aug. 3, 2009 for students currently enrolled in a CCSD school.

Students new to CCSD must enroll in the home school before submitting an application for choice. The home school will verify residency and complete the registration process. New CCSD students need to apply by Aug. 24, 2009.

IN MEMORIAM:
David R. Krache (1952-2009),
Facilities & Technology Committee

The Board of Education expresses its sincere condolences to the family of David R. Krache, Post 1 appointee the Board's Facilities & Technology Committee. Krache, 57, passed away suddenly June 11, 2009.

A native of Piscataway, NJ and graduate of Tulane University, Dave Krache was a businessman with experience in banking, business operations and consulting. He and his family have lived and worked in Cobb for more than two decades.

He is survived by his wife of 30 years, Donna; daughters Allison and Anne; his mother Janet and three sisters.

Cobb Implements Higher Standards of Conduct For Students In Extracurricular Activities and Sports

The Board unanimously approved holding students who participate in sports and extracurricular activities to higher behavior standards. Administrative Rule JICDD (PDF) amends prior rules with more stringent consequences for infractions involving alcohol or drug use, tobacco use or charges of criminal activity. Effective immediately, the updated guidelines are applicable 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, on or off school grounds.

Read the full release on the District Web site.

Teachers Experience 'Classroom in a Classroom' During Model Teaching Week

Several Cobb teachers took part in a unique professional development exercise June 15-18 as they participated in the District’s Model Teaching Week at Sope Creek Elementary. Essentially a ‘classroom in a classroom,’ Cobb teachers observed a team of expert teachers as they engaged a classroom of Cobb students. Participants alternated between observing in the classroom and attending sessions that expand their professional knowledge base, along with their capacity to provide performance-based learning opportunities.

Three multi-age groups (K-2, 3-5, 6-8) focused on integrated thematic performance based activities, driven by the Georgia Performance Standards for Science. Specific content for the week emphasized using community locations as the starting point for creating curriculum that is naturally integrated. Skills that are often the target of standardized measures are taught in relation to the real-life location and topic under study.

The Model Teaching Week partnership began in 2007 between Clarkdale, Kennesaw Primary, and Varner elementary schools and has grown to include Sope Creek, Acworth Intermediate, Still, and Bryant elementary schools and East Cobb, Lindley, Cooper, and Floyd middle schools.

Web Site Upgrades and Web Address Changes

In an effort to better serve the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the CCSD Web site, we are currently upgrading our Web server.

Many of the Web addresses for our schools and departments are also being simplified. During this upgrade period, you may run into some broken links, which will be repaired as quickly as possible. Also, you may find that your previously bookmarked pages need to be updated. All school Web addresses will be in the following format: www.cobbk12.org/yourschoolname.

Thank you for your patience as we move forward to serve you better!

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