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At the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year, City Schools of Decatur will go from a system of K-3 elementary schools with a 4-5 academy to a system of K-2 elementary schools and two 3-5 academies.

CSD is building a new 3-5 school at Talley Street which is expected to be finished by the start of the 2019 school year. The new school will cost $22 million and will seat 750 students. The 4/5 Academy at Fifth Avenue, F.AVE, will become the other 3-5 school.

The new school at Talley Street and the new grade configuration for the elementary schools is prompting a reexamination of CSD’s elementary attendance boundaries. CSD’s Elementary Boundary Planning Steering Committee will hold a community meeting on Wednesday, March 28, from 6:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m. at the Decatur High School cafeteria, located at 310 North McDonough Street.

“The feedback received at the meeting will help determine the options that will be presented to the Board of Education,” the meeting announcement says.

People who cannot attend Wednesday’s meeting can see the options being considered and other presentations about this topic by visiting: http://www.dejongrichter.com/csdecatur/

Following Wednesday’s meeting, the steering committee will develop a recommendation to give to the School Board. That could happen on April 11.

The options being considered all have strengths and weaknesses. A survey on the options closed on Feb. 28. According to the survey results, parents who participated overwhelmingly favored option 4-A, with more than 50 percent of respondents supportive or very supportive of the idea. That option has been renamed Option B.

That proposal would not move any students at the lower elementary school level, maintains the ability for neighborhoods to walk to these schools and has a balanced use of the 4-5 schools. The drawbacks to that plan include Clairemont Elementary being underutilized while Oakhurst and Winnona Park Elementary will still be over capacity. Some students who were able to walk to F.AVE will now have to ride the bus to the Talley Street School.

Here’s the most recent list of options under consideration:

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CSD_CD_Presentation_20180327

 

Here’s a list of the previous options that were considered:

CSD_OptionsPacket

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