The Fulton County Board of Education met November 15 for its monthly meeting and approved 28 agenda items, including the name for a new high school in North Fulton and the 2012-13 school year calendar. The board also voted to send its charter system application to the Georgia Department of Education for approval.
New school name
Cambridge High School will be the name of the high school currently under construction on Bethany Bend in Milton. Approved by the school board tonight, Cambridge was the top choice of two names submitted by a panel consisting of students, parents and staff, and represents a historical view of the area and a unifying vision for the school. Providence High School was the other name submitted but Cambridge was the leader among the name selection committee.
The “C” in Cambridge is in honor of the Cogburn family, the original owners of the school site. The “A” represents the students coming from Alpharetta High School and the “M” represents the students coming from Milton High School. The “bridge” is both metaphorical and physical, representing how students will come together to form a new school community as well as the 126-foot bridge on the property. The school will open in August 2012, and earlier this month, incoming students voted on the “Bears” as its mascot and blue and white as its official colors.
2012-2013 school calendar
The board also approved the 2012-13 school year calendar. Monday, August 13, will be the first day of school, with the last day being May 23, the Thursday before Memorial Day. Eighty-seven days are in first semester, which ends December 19, and 90 days are in second semester.
In 2010, Georgia law changed to allow school systems to move away from a mandated 180-day calendar, provided there is no reduction in instructional time. The 177-day calendar follows the same model as the previous three years, where the year is shortened by three days but 10 minutes of instructional time are added to each day.
Charter system application
After nearly two years of exploration and development, the Fulton County Board of Education approved its charter application for submittal to the Georgia Department of Education.
The 50-page petition outlines the charter’s three main themes – people, instruction and finances – and how the model would improve student achievement. Specifically, the charter application suggests how the school district could adjust its hiring processes and give schools more flexibility in its staffing. The charter system model also supports curriculum innovation, such as how students receive instruction and how technology could be leveraged in the classroom.
And as the final charter tenet, financial flexibility also could be realized through the way certain resources within each local school are allocated and through waivers from state-mandated spending requirements.
The now-approved charter application will be sent to the Georgia Department of Education for approval and the district expects to learn its status in the spring.
