DeKalb may close, consolidate, or rebuild Vanderlyn, Chesnut schools, school rep says

Andrew Ziffer the Dunwoody-area DeKalb County School District representative discusses the future of aging schools Photo by Cathy Cobbs DeKalb County School District bureaucrats plan to close at least aging and underpopulated schools in the next three to four years and two elementary schools Dunwoody s Vanderlyn and Chesnut may be on the chopping block DCSD District representative Andrew Ziffer at the Dunwoody Homeowners Association meeting on July recounted attendees that under-capacity small and aging facilities are draining the system s coffers We have schools now which includes various underpopulated facilities and we need to have schools with students each in them he stated We re going to be closing schools in the next three to four years Ziffer specifically mentioned that students at two Dunwoody-area schools Vanderlyn which was built in and Chesnut in could be folded into in recent times built Dunwoody and Austin elementary schools or consolidated into a newly constructed facility However he noted the district is considering all possibilities and no concrete decisions have been made Chesnut and Vanderlyn are beyond their lifespan he stated It would be better to funnel students to Austin or Dunwoody Elementary School Any major infrastructure expenditures to schools like Kingsley Elementary will remain open for the the foreseeable future he mentioned Related stories DeKalb proposes millage rate reduction but taxes will rise APS announces raises for frontline employees including bus drivers Ziffer revealed more than billion in requirements have been identified for capital improvements but only about million is generated annually by the one-penny Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax If you do the napkin math we are never going to catch up he commented We may have to look at bonds at selected point down the road Other options to help tighten up the school s finances involve selling the system-owned surplus properties around the county Ziffer also briefly discussed during question from attendees the school calendar which both last and this year have the last day of classes occurring after Memorial Day He stated absenteeism after Memorial Day is vital and that the board would be exploring changing the calendar but perhaps not in time for the - school year In other action the DHA board heard that the th of July parade operated in the black thanks to increased sponsorships The board did not discuss an case during the parade that involved injuries to several adults and children and the subsequent arrest of two people who were driving a truck in the parade revealed dates and venues for its newly created social events including Aug at Vino Venue and Sept at Dunwoody Tavern revealed that the DHA s website now under construction will launch in the fall The post DeKalb may close consolidate or rebuild Vanderlyn Chesnut schools school rep says appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta