FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — Parklane parents, teachers, and students at Tri-Cities High School school for the final public meeting before the district personnel present their final recommendation to the Fulton County School Board next month.
Parklane is one of two elementary schools the district is looking to potentially close as enrollment is down throughout the county.
The district first gave word about potentially closing Parklane and Spalding Drive Elementary as both schools have low enrollment and are not considered to be in good condition.
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However, Parklane supporters say what makes the school special goes beyond the numbers.
“They would lose so much more than a place for their students to learn and excel academically. They would lose a place that would provide for their family’s most basic needs across the board. Like food and shelter and mental health and wellbeing,” Bernadette Naro said.
Naro’s daughter is a first grader at Parklane, and she says the low enrollment has made it a school where every teacher knows every student’s name.
“There is a place for small community schools that are intimate,” Naro said.
The district does not take into account factors like community impact, academic performance, or impact on property values when picking a school for potential closure.
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Teachers at Parklane also showed up to the meeting, saying that the school should stay open.
“We understand numbers, we understand the age of the school. Those are things that can be fixed. Taking our school away is not something that can be fixed,” 21-year Parklane art teacher Erica Pendelton said.
We are a special school, we want to stay open, and we have shown you that. So, give us a chance to show the broader community what we are about,” Naro said.
District officials will give their final recommendation to the Fulton County School Board in January. If the school board decides to move forward, two more public hearings will be held before a final vote in late February.
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