The Fulton County Board of Education (FCBOE) met on Thursday, September 21, 2023, for its regularly scheduled work session meeting at the South Learning Center. The full agenda is available online. All items approved are available via BoardDocs. Meetings are streamed live on the Fulton County Schools (FCS) district homepage. Recordings will be available within 48 hours.   

Superintendent’s Report

Dr. Looney began his Superintendent’s report by thanking staff and students for a successful beginning to the school year. He then introduced the monthly FCS Bridge to Success update.

Bridge to Success Update
Yalanda Bell, executive director of Academic Programs, presented a high-level summary of Summer Learning 2023, highlighting the massive amount of collaboration and alignment within our district between our academic, transportation, school nutrition, IT, and other departments that contributed to the success of summer learning. Since the pandemic, the district has more than tripled its face-to-face summer learning enrollment this past summer, having the largest summer learning enrollment in the history of FCS at 16,110 students. Ms. Bell relayed that summer learning enrollment post-pandemic has increased in part because the district has expanded its learning program to serve students in grades 1-12 in 2021 and served grades 3-12 in 2023. The program culminated in the Summer Learning graduation with 69 graduates.

Director of Federal Programs Montreal Bell then presented her monthly update on the district’s Bridge to Success plan. As a part of the FOCUS plan initiatives, students were provided targeted academic support in extended learning and high dosage/small group tutoring from October 2022 to May 2023. More than 7,400 students participated in extended learning’s virtual and face-to-face sessions with support from more than 600 teachers and staff members. Similarly, almost 6,000 students were provided with high dosage/small group tutoring. Earlier this month the Professional Learning and Leadership Development team celebrated the completion of 28 additional graduates from the Aspiring Leaders Certification Program offered by Georgia State University. Additionally, 54 FCS staff members have received leadership certifications.

FCS was allotted $75.1 million under the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act, known as ESSER II. Ms. Bell reminded the Board that on September 30, the ESSER II grant will sunset. Since 2021, this funding has supported Summer Learning, extended learning, high dosage/small group instruction, online curriculum platforms, parent engagement, instructional software, FCS charter schools, school nursing and Covid-response work, and district utilities. The remaining 8% of this funding will be used to pay for federal indirect costs, increases to substitute pay, and 2% one-time retention payments.

Finally, in October, the district will seek feedback from the public through a stakeholder survey. See the full presentation here.

Instructional Calendar Parameters
As staff prepares to bring a calendar recommendation to the Board for school years 2024-25, the Board reviewed the instructional calendar parameters outlined at the September 12 Board meeting, which included the addition of a fall and winter break. Moving forward, the calendar parameters will be on the board agenda for the next few months and the community may still provide feedback. Based on both community and Board input, the calendar committee will then draft a proposed calendar for recommendation.

2023-24 Community Meetings with Board Members
Each Fulton County Board of Education member sponsors a monthly meeting open to all community members. The sessions provide an opportunity for direct contact with community members and give Board members a chance to listen to local issues and concerns. Click here to see the meeting schedules of all Board members.

Please complete our Satisfaction Survey