Atlanta Schools Placed on Probation

Students in the Atlanta Public School system are in danger of having their schools lose accreditation. On Tuesday, all Atlanta Public Schools were placed on probation and given nine months to turn things around or face loss of accreditation. This news affects one of the most visible school systems in the state of Georgia.
Surprisingly, this probation has nothing to do with the academics of the Atlanta Public School system. The probation is a result of the infighting and overall governance of the elected board that runs the city’s school system. This type of news is critical to almost 50,000 students because loss of accreditation can affect students’ ability to apply to college and their ability to receive scholarship money.

The possibility of accreditation loss not only affects students and their parents, it affects the entire city of Atlanta. If the school system loses their accreditation, property values in Atlanta could drop which can deter any companies that may be considering relocating to the city. Governor Nathan Deal has pledged to do everything possible to stop the situation from growing into a destructive one. The board has been given six required actions to improve its leadership and performance by September 30.
Atlanta is the sixth Georgia school system in three years to face a formal accreditation sanction. The announcement of probation comes while the school district is in the middle of a criminal investigation for cheating on standardized tests as well.
Via Atlanta Journal Constitution