Clairmont Heights Civic Association

From MANA: Medlock Elementary Still on List for Consideration of Closure - Please Send E-mail Today!
Medlock Elementary School is included on a list of 14 DeKalb area schools "being considered" for closure by the DeKalb School District attempting to reduce a $115 deficit. 62 were on the initial list considered by the Task Force and four will be selected for final recommendation to the school board next month.

The Task Force will hold a meeting this Tuesday evening to make final recommendations to the board for their decision in April. To ensure they hear a strong voice from our community, please cut and paste the following letter template (or feel free to write your own) and send an e-mail to the following Task Force and School Board Members TODAY!

Special Citizen's Task Force:

Bob Chambers: robertcchambers@bellsouth.net
Don Broussard:TownPlanAtlanta@aol.com
Marcia Coward: mkcoward@hotmail.com
Faye Andresen: faye_andresen@hotmail.com

Board of Education:

THOMAS_BOWEN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
SARAH_COPELIN-WOOD@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
JAY_CUNNINGHAM@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
don_mcchesney@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
PAM_SPEAKS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
JIM_REDOVIAN@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
ZEPORA_W_ROBERTS@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
EUGENE_P_WALKER@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us
h_paul_womack@fc.dekalb.k12.ga.us

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Dear DeKalb School Board and Task Force Members;

We are aware that the burden of budget deficits requires DeKalb County to make some harsh decisions when it comes to our public school system, and that one of these decisions involves closure of more schools.

Obviously, we want Medlock to remain open for the sake of our children, our teachers and staff, and our community. But, there are other reasons Medlock should remain that you may not be aware of:

· Medlock has a thriving special needs program (14% of our student body), serving children with learning, physical, and emotional challenges. We are the REGIONAL program for this; in other words, special needs kids come to Medlock from areas far outside of our own school district. We have five classrooms dedicated to this program.

· Medlock is one of the most diverse schools in the county, with six ethnicities and over 50 nationalities represented. We truly are a representation of Dr. King's dream of a multi-cultural, harmonized educational environment.

· Our school is a community hub, nestled on the outskirts of the city of Decatur. Many of our teachers grew up in this area and went to school at Medlock. The Medlock Area Neighborhood Association (MANA) centers on activities at the school and homeowners in the immediate vicinity are concerned about the effect to their property values if Medlock closes. We want this factor to be publicly addressed in your decision.

· Medlock is operating at or near capacity. Though recent reports estimated 108 vacancies, the truth is, some of our students are in classroom trailers and all of our classrooms are being utilized. We assume it is the system's exclusion of Special Needs and Pre-K students that leads to this discrepancy, but it doesn't change how well the school space is utilized.

· The property itself is large enough to expand the school building if another school is folded into it.

Please consider these factors as you make your final decisions. We believe closing Medlock Elementary would be an irrevocable mistake, and its role in the community and the lives of its students is too valuable to put at risk.

We understand you face tough decisions, but we wanted to make sure you knew why Medlock matters so much to us.

Gratefully,

________________
(signature)
Medlock Resident and MANA Member
Check us out online at: www.medlockpark.org

Sincerely,
The Medlock Area Neighborhood Association Board