The City Schools of Decatur Board of Education has agreed to slow down its school utilization process, bringing relief to some parents and other community members.
In response to feedback at community meetings, board members agreed at a retreat last Tuesday not to make a decision that would affect the 2026-27 school year.
At an Oct. 14 meeting, the board announced the plan, which included the possibility of closing one of the district’s five K-2 schools next year. The plan was questioned and criticized by many parents and residents, with some springing into action by developing a “Save Our Schools” website and posting yard signs in their front lawns. A vote had been scheduled during the board’s Dec. 9 meeting, but is now postponed.
“The board affirmed that the central need is to balance K-2 schools by evaluating total enrollment figures, building usage, and staffing resources, all while ensuring fiscal responsibility and honoring the unique culture of Decatur’s small, neighborhood schools,” the district said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The statement went on to say the board will work with community-led committees starting in January to “determine solutions that are student-centered, fiscally responsible, and aligned with our community’s values.”
Officials released an analysis that showed for the past several years, three K-2 schools have enrolled fewer than 200 students, the threshold required for elementary schools to qualify for capital outlay funds from the state. The report projects enrollment at those schools will remain below 200 for the next several years. However, the tallies don’t include pre-K students who live in the K-2 school zones, which some parents argue would make a difference.
The calculations confused some school board members at Tuesday’s retreat, leading Vice Chair Hans Utz to point out the irony in the situation.
“We, as a body, … with all of our expertise, are confused sitting here,” Utz said. “So, it is shockingly unsurprising that the community is also confused.”
Parents have implored the school board to slow down and consider options other than closing a school, such as rebalancing the K-2 school populations. Some seem cautiously optimistic about the board’s agreement not to make a decision that would affect the 2026-27 school year.
Caroline Morgan Berchuck is a CSD parent and graduate. Berchuck, a physician, moved her family back to Decatur for its small, walkable school district.
“Decatur is the best town in the world to raise and educate a child, and I’m grateful the Board chose to keep every school open next year,” she said in an email. “This gives our community the space to take a thoughtful, strategic approach — one that helps us understand where we are today and what it will take to move from one of the best districts to the number one public school system in the country for every child.”
Rudy Colberg and his wife, Kate Casolaro, said they’re encouraged by the board’s decision to keep all schools open next year, calling it a “positive first step for all.”
“We hope CSD and the Board use this time and opportunity to rebuild trust and partnership with the community,” the parents wrote via text message. “That will require transparency, responsiveness, consistency, openness to discussion, seeking to understand, care in tone and words, walking the talk, and more.”
The school board is expected to discuss the next steps at the Dec. 9 meeting.
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