07 LC 37
0539
House
Resolution 888
By:
Representatives Benfield of the
85th,
Drenner of the
86th,
Oliver of the
83rd,
and Henson of the
87th
A
RESOLUTION
Urging
the DeKalb County School Board to offer the International Community School the
use of the Forrest Hills Elementary School property when and if that school is
consolidated under the present redistricting plan; and for other
purposes.
WHEREAS,
the International Community School (ICS) is a public charter school whose
mission is to provide refugee, immigrant, and mainstream children with an
outstanding education in an intentionally international environment;
and
WHEREAS,
ICS won the United Way's Valuing Diversity Award in 2006; and
WHEREAS,
ICS was chosen for showcasing by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in
Education; and
WHEREAS,
ICS continues to collaborate with several community partners including Emory
University, The Coca-Cola Company, the United Way, Home Depot, Refugee Family
Services, Hands on Atlanta, and many others; and
WHEREAS,
CNN profiled ICS in a nationally televised piece entitled "Diversity by Design,"
thereby providing a positive public face for the DeKalb County Public School
System and public education in Georgia; and
WHEREAS,
ICS continues to be one of the top recorded schools for attendance in DeKalb
County; and
WHEREAS,
the Forrest Hills Education Association and members of the Forrest Hills
Neighborhood Association have expressed their desire to see ICS occupy the
Forrest Hills Building; and
WHEREAS,
the United Methodist Children's Home, which donated the land for the building of
Forrest Hills Elementary, has also written a letter of support for ICS's use of
the facility; and
WHEREAS,
the charter school law states that property "otherwise unused shall make such
facility or property available for lease or purchase by a local charter school
on the same basis as it makes such facility or property available to other
public schools under the control and management of the local board of
education"; and
WHEREAS,
the law further states, "The local board and the state board shall treat a
start-up charter school no less favorably than other local schools within the
applicable local system with respect to the provision of funds for instruction
and school administration and, where feasible, transportation, food services,
and building programs."
NOW,
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the DeKalb County
School Board is urged to offer the International Community School the use of the
Forrest Hills Elementary School property when and if that school is consolidated
under the present redistricting plan.