Board Bulletin for 11/10/2023

 

The Fulton County Board of Education met Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023, at the North Learning Center for its regularly scheduled work session. Following are meeting highlights, with the full agenda available online. Audio/video recordings will be posted at this link within 48 hours.

Superintendent's Report

Superintendent Mike Looney announced a new partnership between the FCS Department of Safety & Security, FCS School Police, the City of Milton, and the Milton Police Department. Based on community input, the Milton City Council approved the hiring of a school liaison officer to serve as a direct contact between the Milton Police Department and the schools in Milton. The position will collaborate with the FCS School Police and emphasize safety and prevention through positive-oriented community policing and relationships with students, parents and schools.

Dr. Looney also shared that November 6-10, 2023, is celebrated as National School Psychology Week. School psychologists help identify students with behavioral problems, developmental differences, and other learning roadblocks that may cause academic difficulties. He expressed his gratitude to all Fulton school psychologists for their work, dedication, and commitment to students and families.

Also, for a 24th consecutive year, Fulton County Schools has received the Best Communities for Music Education distinction. Awarded by the NAMM Foundation, the recognition is awarded to school districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in efforts to provide music access and education to all students.

And finally, as a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, Dr. Looney acknowledged the November 10, 1775, birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps and the upcoming Veterans Day holiday, expressing appreciation to all who have served in the armed forces. Following his remarks, a U.S. flag flown on a combat aircraft was presented to the School Board.

Superintendent's Contract Amendment
The School Board unanimously approved a one-year extension to Superintendent Looney's employment contract, extending it to the maximum three-year contract allowed by state law. Board President Kimberly Dove acknowledged Dr. Looney's efforts to support the Science of Reading and the multi-year Every Child Reads initiative as well as his work to increase achievement for all students. She shared the Board's praise for successes under his leadership - an increase in Georgia Milestones scores, an all-time high graduation rate, staff retention improvements, and continued fiscal accountability.

Dr. Looney thanked the School Board for their support. "This Board is doing incredibly difficult and challenging work," he said. "They have a laser focus on achievement, and it is a blessing to serve with them. I am an extension of the employees of this district, and I am proud of each and every one of them."

Division Update: Human Resources
Continuing the series of divisional presentations, an annual update was given by the Human Resources Division. Chief Human Resources Officer Gonzalo La Cava shared the division's transformational journey, recent successes, areas of growth, and an overview of the new Level Up Fulton professional development academy.

Dr. La Cava emphasized the Human Resources Division has been listening and learning to identify process and system improvement for its hiring efforts, onboarding and orientation practices, and staff retention strategies. Collaboration with schools and departments is strengthening, and Balanced Scorecard data shows that over the past year, customer service and staffing levels have improved.

Successful staffing efforts continue year-round as the recruitment team visits local colleges and universities, conducts virtual open houses, creates branded recruitment materials, social media posts and videos, and interviews for hard-to-staff operational positions and special education vacancies.

Dr. La Cava and his team also identified areas for improvement, including a need to create more opportunities for professional growth. Dr. Brian Keefer, executive director of FCS Professional Learning and Leadership Department, spoke about the district's newest initiative: Level Up Fulton. Available to all school and central office staff, Level Up Fulton aims to help employees achieve skills and competencies that translate to increased knowledge and higher job performance. The program launches in January 2024. To view the full presentation, click here.

2025-2026 Instructional Calendar
A draft 2025-2026 instructional calendar was presented to the School Board for their initial review. District staff created the draft using the parameters approved at last month's board meeting and with parent, student, employee, and school leader feedback. The proposed calendar takes the approach of a "modified balanced calendar" and calls for 180 instructional days (89 first semester; 91 second semester) with a start date of August 4, 2025, and the last day of school occurring before Memorial Day on May 21, 2026. School breaks include a newly added week in September as well as a full week in November around the Thanksgiving holiday. Spring Break is kept as the first full week in April and two weeks are set aside in late December/early January for the winter break. The draft calendar also includes four professional development days for staff and six teacher workdays.

Board members emphasized the calendar is still in the proposal stage and that they will be soliciting feedback at their November community meetings. The draft calendar can be viewed here along with a comparison to the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 calendars.

FY 2025 Budget Parameters
Chief Financial Officer Marvin Dereef presented the proposed budget parameters for Fiscal Year 2025. Scheduled for approval at the Nov. 18 Board meeting, these will guide development of the next year's budget and maintain the School Board's commitment to fiscal responsibility.

• Seek alternative funding sources
• Continue to maximize revenue from State QBE via improving FTE count coding
• Allocate at least 75% of the General Fund to schools
• Identify opportunities for cost efficiencies
• Maintain a competitive compensation structure
• To extent possible, be revenue neutral as defined by the tax rollback form
• Maintain at least two months of fund balance
• Continue with a transparent Modified Zero-Based Budgeting process
• Continue to demonstrate sustainability related to budget recommendations
• Provide a path to transition to less federal support (i.e., American Rescue Plan “ARP”)

 

New Hires & Promotions
The following individual was approved for a new position at the Nov. 9 work session:

• AJ Smith | Principal, Elkins Pointe Middle School