Is your county losing its accreditation for its schools?

Clayton County Georgia is.

The county was in trouble a couple of years ago and barely dodged the bullet by putting together a slick Powerpoint presentation to satisfy the accreditation committee, but they came back. The old Reagan philosophy of "trust but verify". Well they couldn't verify anything except further corruption among the members of the school board, and a school system that was woefully lacking.

So a couple of weeks ago the accreditation committee told Clayton county that the game was over, they are losing their accreditation at the end of this school year and effective Sept 1. At first the school board went into full denial mode, then after the citizens attended a couple of school board meetings to let their voices be heard a couple of board members resigned.

Oh no, not for their actions as members of the school board. One admitted he didn't live in the area he was elected to represent and is believed to have muttered something like"Are you crazy, I would never put my kids in this school system."
Well, Clayton continues to travel down the path to self destruction.

One of the finalists for Clayton County's temporary school superintendent post is asking for a $275,000 salary and $2 million for his consultant team, officials said Wednesday.

John W. Thompson also is asking for 24-hour security along with a car and a driver, said Dick Greene of the search firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates.

Yup they are interviewing somebody who obviously has the interests of the county and its children right at the fore front of his agenda.

In his interview, Thompson asked for up to $2 million to spend on a hand-picked consultant team and additional money for housing assistance and travel, according to an official who attended the interviews.

"He wants a driver available for a Lincoln Town car 24-hours a day, his own security team from his home town in North Carolina and large expense accounts," added John Trotter, chairman of the Metro Association of Classroom Educators, who did not attend the interviews but spoke with at least one school board member who was at the sessions.

The impact on the county since the announcement of losing its accreditation has been immediate and it will continue through the summer. Everybody who can is trying to sell their homes and move to adjacent counties.

Those counties in the meantime are trying to come up with plans to accommodate the expected influx of new students while warning people that they will be checking addresses of newly enrolled students to stem the tide of those who don't leave Clayton but try to attend their schools.

Losing accreditation means that the students will not be considered high school graduates for those in that situation, and therefore can not qualify for scholarships and meet the other requirements that colleges and universities require. It will also make them ineligible for military service.

In other words, it will totally screw up the lives of the children. And yes before you even ask this county is solidly and completely Democrat owned. Has been for years.

This is going to have deep and long ranging effects for this county.
Consider yourself warned. If you are planning a move to the Atlanta area, avoid Clayton county.