Monday, April 9, 2012
The superintendent says there are two choices.
The Decatur School Board will meet Tuesday, April 10, and consider changing the start times for the high school, the middle school, the 4/5 academy and two elementary schools. In the online agenda packet, Superintendent Phyllis Edwards tells the board she is offering two options. One is to not change. The second option would change the start times like this: Times for Pre-K and Oakhurst and Winnona Park elementary schools would remain 8 a.m. Start times are a sensitive issue in Decatur because a change can radically disrupt a family's morning routine. Several different forces are at work. The system wants to cut transportation costs and encourage more kids to walk to school. Some parents are urging later start times for high school …
Monday, March 5, 2012
Award comes form the Georgia Department of Public Health and the Partner Up! for Public Health Campaign.
The Decatur Farm to School initiative (DF2S) has gotten a lot of attention for bringing healthy food to kids in the City Schools of Decatur. For instance, several media outlets, including Patch, ran stories when DF2S incorporated salad bars into the cafeteria selections. The program also introduced taste tests in which students ended up liking kale. Now the program has gained statewide recognition. On Monday, DF2S was named one of the first “Partner Up! for Public Health Heroes” as part of a new recognition program sponsored by the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) and the Partner Up! for Public Health Campaign. A press release from the joint program says, DF2S strives to connect parents, teachers, school administrators, local …
Friday, September 2, 2011
Candidates finish qualifying for Nov. 8 municipal elections.
Avondale Estates has three races contested posts on the ballot for the Nov. 8 municipal election -- mayor and two city commission seats. In Decatur, there's only one contested race, for the city school board seat now held by John Ahmann. Otherwise, established incumbents on the Decatur school board and city commission face no opposition. A week of qualifying ended Friday. This is how the list of candidates breaks down. Decatur School Board Decatur City Commission Avondale Estates City Commission: Besides the municipal elections, a countywide education referendum on a special local option sales tax, or SPLOST, will be on the ballot in Avondale and Decatur.
Monday, August 29, 2011
These guys say they won't run again: Incumbents Michael Payne of the Avondale Commission and John Ahmann of the Decatur School Board.
Voters in Decatur and Avondale Estates will find out this week who will be on the ballot for the Nov. 8 municipal elections. Two incumbents are definitely off the ballot. Avondale commission member Michael D. Payne and Decatur School Board member John Ahmann told Patch they won’t run. Two contested races look likely. Avondale Commission member David Milliron says he’ll challenge incumbent Mayor Ed Rieker. Garrett Goebel and Peg Bumgardner say they’ll both run for Ahmann’s post. Otherwise, all the other incumbents say they’ll give it another shot and will qualify for election this week. By the end of the week they may have competition. Here’s how it breaks down so far. Decatur City Commission Bill Floyd will run again for the District 1 …
Monday, August 15, 2011
'Dispatches' will examine how Decatur and Avondale Estates adapt.
We're excited to inaugurate a new series for our Patch Readers: "Dispatches: The Changing American Dream." Never has the American Dream been so shaky. Anybody who listens to the national media hears stories about American families, businesses, and neighbors adjusting to difficult times. National debates about unemployment, foreclosures, debt, religion, government and private enterprise all touch on the fundamental ways in which we see ourselves and our communities. At Patch, we want to explore that conversation on a daily basis so we can better understand how our neighbors are adjusting to the challenges and opportunities that surround us. At the purely local level, we want to know where we, as neighbors in Decatur and Avondale Estates, …
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
As the school year begins, parents and students are excited about the new 4/5 Academy.
Decatur Police said the first day of school started without any problems on the roads. "We just had a lot of extra folks on the road and a lot of people walking and biking," Deputy Chief Keith Lee said Tuesday afternoon. Lee said police beefed up the number of on-the-street officers for the first day of school. The most excitement occurred as students entered the 4/5 Academy at Fifth Avenue, a brand-new building that houses about 500 kids. Leslie Fouts and her son, fourth-grader William, paused outside the school after she took his photo. "I'm unbelievably impressed," she said, adding that her family recently moved from Smyrna to Decatur. "The staff has been terrific. ... I'm an architect and I'm impressed by the architecture." Even the …
lynn m keefe,md
9:12 am on Saturday, April 7, 2012
Compelling data from academic and medical researchers shows the benefits of later start times for middle and high school students. I commend the Decatur District Superintendent for her forward thinking and proposal for these start time changes. The academic and health outcomes for the students must outweigh the costs of transportation, not vice versa. Lynn M. Keefe,MD startschoollater.net more ›