Archived Posts
2022-23 School Year
FAQ – New Replacement Cherokee High School
The Cherokee County School District is building a new replacement Cherokee High School.
Why do we need a new replacement Cherokee HS?
The core buildings on the Cherokee HS campus opened in 1956, with numerous additions and renovations since including $16 Million in investments since 2002. The school, which currently serves 2,850 students, has seen its enrollment jump by 25% during the past eight years. Expansions, most notably the absorption of the neighboring Canton Elementary School campus now known as Cherokee North, gave the campus breathing room with school capacity now at 83%. While capacity no longer is considered overcrowded, there are lingering issues due to the age of many buildings on campus ranging from narrow hallways and small bathrooms to more costly regular maintenance work. Further campus expansion is not possible due to the current usage of surrounding property including, most notably, the City of Canton’s wastewater treatment plant that is undergoing significant expansion.
When will it open for classes?
The school board in October 2022 voted to hire NJ Wilbanks Contractor Inc., at a cost of $23 million, to complete the site development work for the project. The construction contract will be advertised beginning in January 2023 for proposals from contractors, with the School Board expected to select a company at its April 2023 meeting. Construction then will begin and, weather permitting, the campus will open in August 2026. The project will take that long due to the high square footage of classrooms including specialized classrooms and the school’s athletic complex, as well as the subsequent work to equip and furnish the classrooms and other facilities. All grades, 9-12, will move to the new campus at the same time when it opens.
How much will it cost and where is the money coming from?
The voters of Cherokee County in November 2021, with a 75% approval rate, renewed CCSD’s Education SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax), with the Cherokee HS project at the top of the to-do list funded through those collections and associated bond borrowing. High schools are the most expensive school construction project due to their size and the specialized construction needed for classrooms such as science and career labs, arts classrooms and auditoriums and athletic complexes. With current higher than usual construction costs, the project is estimated to cost more than $100 Million. The actual cost will not be known until the School Board approves the contract for construction.
Where will the school be built?
The site is in Canton on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. between Bluffs Parkway and Reservoir Drive. It is behind the Riverstone Plaza shopping district and adjacent to the current campus of Teasley Middle School. There are signs at the intersections indicating it is the future site of the new replacement Cherokee High School. The school will be a multi-story campus style facility with an adjacent athletic complex.
Where will the main entrance be?
There will be multiple entrances to the campus. The main entrance will be on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. A secondary entrance will be from the access road used for the Teasley MS entrance (which recently gained a new longer turn lane and a traffic signal from the City of Canton). School buses will enter the campus from Reservoir Drive to the Hickory Log Drive entrance. More details, including how student drivers will access their parking, how parents will pick up car riders, etc., will be shared with parents closer to the school’s opening.
What about the cemetery in that area?
The historic Hickory Log Cemetery will not be affected by this construction project just as it was not affected by construction of neighboring Teasley MS. Additionally, contractors have been advised to be on the lookout for any historic artifacts, such as Native American artifacts that have been found at other area construction sites. If any artifacts are discovered, CCSD will give them to appropriate organizations for preservation.
What will happen to the current Cherokee High School campus?
The current campus includes both the main Cherokee HS buildings and the Cherokee North annex, which previously served as Canton ES. Although the School Board has not taken any formal action, there has been discussion about returning the Canton ES building to usage as an elementary school and using the main Cherokee HS buildings as a new home for the Cherokee College & Career Academy, which is currently housed as part of the ACTIVE Academies campus. Should the School Board decide to reopen the former Canton ES building as an elementary school, they would begin the attendance boundary line drawing process, which includes public hearings, to determine what neighborhoods and areas the school would serve. Currently, the former Canton ES attendance area is split between Knox ES STEM Academy and R.M. Moore ES STEM Academy.
2021-22 School Year
I saw a post on social media that the School Board is raising taxes ... is that true?
No. The Cherokee County School Board on Thursday night (May 20) reviewed the proposed budget for next school year, which calls for a reduction in the tax rate for all property owners and well-deserved pay increases for teachers and support staff.
The proposed 1.5 mills decrease in the tax rate is the first reduction proposed since 2014 and has been recommended by Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian V. Hightower in light of rising home values.
“We do not determine property values – those are driven by the market and set by the county tax assessor’s office. We do control the school district’s millage rate, which is what property values are multiplied by to determine your tax bill,” he said. “We know homeowners are receiving their assessments this week, and the sticker shock is real, as home values are significantly up here. Cherokee County, with our great schools and safe community, is a very desirable place to live. Based on the budget I’ve proposed, your actual tax bill that you receive later this year will be lower due to a lower millage rate.”
The county tax assessor’s office, which sets property values, estimates the value of all property in the county (known as the tax digest) has increased by approximately 20% this year due to rising home values. As a result, Dr. Hightower has proposed reducing the millage rate by 1.5 mills. Due to timing issues for budget approval, the school district must take into account appeals to property values that will be filed and addressed by the tax assessor’s office and its board over the coming months, which will reduce the digest before it is finalized later this year. Citizens age 62 and older can file with the tax assessor’s office for an exemption from school taxes up to $446,700 of fair market value on their home.
The School Board and the public now can review the budget, which is posted online here, with three public hearings scheduled prior to the June 16 vote to approve the budget and property tax millage rate. The proposed total budget of $706 Million includes the $471 Million day-to-day operating budget, new school construction, bond debt retirement, School Nutrition and grants. As a companion to the budget, CCSD annually publishes Financial Facts, a report that shares important news from the budget with employees, parents and taxpayers. Read the new edition online here.
Dr. Hightower said, through long-term budget forecasting, he and his staff determined the millage rate reduction could withstand a market correction, but it would not be financially responsible to reduce it further this year. If the economic trends remain positive, he added, the School Board could be in the position to consider another millage rate reduction in 2023.
In addition to reducing the millage rate, the budget also calls for shifting .25 of the total mills from daily operating expenses to debt service reduction. This allows the school district to reduce the need for long-term debt for capital outlay projects and instead use Education SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) revenue. Additionally, this allows the school district to pay off construction debt faster, reducing interest costs to taxpayers. Last month, the School Board was able to retire some of its school construction bonds 11 years early, avoiding $7.8 million in interest payments.
The proposed millage rate reduction still leaves the school district with enough revenue to fund: increases to teacher and staff pay through “step” longevity raises, associated employer costs like FICA and Medicare for the Governor’s $2,000 pay raise for teachers taking effect in July and, in keeping with the school district’s practice of extending such raises to all employees, 2% cost of living raises and salary scale changes to provide parity, and increased teacher allotments to further lower class size. Pay rates for temporary workers including substitutes that were established as a pandemic relief measure will become permanent for next school year.
I saw a post on social media about a middle/high school book containing sexual references that is supposedly available in my child’s elementary school … is that real?
No. Posts are circulating on social media that make erroneous claims about books in CCSD catalogs. The third-party online media center catalog system mistakenly showed some high school books or high/middle school books as being available in two CCSD elementary schools. These listings were only for electronic/digital copies of the books, but we have confirmed that NO electronic/digital copies (or print copies) of the book are available or have ever been available to CCSD elementary school students; had an elementary student tried to access a middle/high school e-book, the system would have blocked access due to the student being in elementary grades. Thanks to the social media posts, we discovered the error in the online system that mistakenly showed these books as being in the catalog. We have confirmed that CCSD elementary school students were never able to access these electronic/digital copies. Our media specialists have worked to remove these inaccurate listings from the online system and check for others. If you are concerned about whether a book is available in your child’s school, rather than believing posts on social media, please consider calling the media specialist at your child’s school. She or he will be happy to assist you.
I saw a post on social media about a CCSD anonymous reporting form … is this real?
No. A social media post, made by a political group and shared by its candidates and supporters, advertised a CCSD anonymous reporting form as illustrated in the image above. This is NOT a CCSD form. This is data mining by the political group. CCSD offers two anonymous reporting forms: the Ask CCSD Helpdesk and Vector Alert (formerly SafeSchools Alert). Vector Alert is for any non-emergency school safety concern, and reports are received by CCSD School Police; you should continue to call 911 for emergencies. Ask CCSD Helpdesk is for any other non-emergency concerns, and messages are received by CCSD Communications. Neither of these forms records any personal information unless you choose to enter it into the form.
I saw a post on social media claiming that CCSD is dropping in rankings for outstanding schools … is that real?
No. There are many sources for school rankings/ratings that are unreliable due to misuse of data, political influence and/or a company’s structure that awards better scores to schools and school districts that pay for its services. Reliable measures of a school district’s success include consistent and/or increasing graduation rates, SAT scores, ACT scores and the percentage of students who need remedial education at the college level according to the university system. Reliable sources of information include the Georgia Department of Education, The College Board and the University System of Georgia. Even when reviewing a reliable source, it’s important to read footnotes and consider source data … for example, students were not required to take the Georgia Milestones during the pandemic, so that data and all rankings/ratings that use that data, are not reliable. If a source offers schools/school districts to pay for marketing services, such as Niche, those ratings should be viewed accordingly. CCSD does not pay any such companies to improve its rankings/ratings; even without such payment, CCSD does have an overall score of A- from Niche. We regularly post CCSD Fast Facts on our website and social media, as pictured above, to share reliable data including scores and rankings; these posts are archived online here.
I saw a post on social media about CCSD teaching CRT and using an example of a lesson called “Social Awareness” for Grade 12 from December … is this real?
No. There is no teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT), under that name or any other name in CCSD schools. There are three levels of protection to prohibit such teaching: the Cherokee County School Board in May 2021 approved a resolution prohibiting teaching CRT, which was followed by the State Board of Education approving a resolution, which was followed by the Georgia General Assembly passing a state law that is being signed into effect today (April 28, 2022) by Governor Brian Kemp. As part of CCSD’s CCSDcares initiative, students participate in a brief character education lesson twice a month in homeroom, and those lessons are posted on the CCSD website. Character education, including the Word of the Week-type lessons, long have been a part of Georgia public schools since required beginning in 1997 by the State Legislature (OCGA 20-2-145). The #CCSDcares hashtag has been in use in CCSD since 2019, and earlier this year, the name was adopted to encompass this program. Screenshots, as pictured above, from a lesson that is not approved for use in CCSD are being shared on social media by School Board candidates and their supporters. The lesson being shared on social media was developed for possible use during last school year, prior to the School Board resolution. An administrator at one high school mistakenly sent this lesson, which had not been approved, to teachers for use in December 2021. That employee error was addressed as soon as it was brought to CCSD’s attention. Here is a copy of the email that was shared with parents who had concerns.
I saw a post on social media about pornography being in CCSD high schools … is this real? Ok
No. Please see the longer post below that clearly explains the false claims being made about pornography and CCSD. Additionally, social media posts now being circulated by School Board candidates and supporters falsely imply that an illustrated version of the acclaimed 1985 novel “The Handmaid’s Tale” is in all CCSD high schools. The 1985 novel, which is NOT illustrated, is in CCSD high school media centers for optional check-out by high school students (both Amazon and Lexile rate the book as appropriate for ages 14-18). The 2019 illustrated version, as pictured above, is available in only one CCSD high school media center (River Ridge High School); it is noteworthy to point out that this book has not yet been checked out by anyone. Neither the 1985 novel version, which has no illustrations, nor the 2019 illustrated version have been the subject of any book challenges filed by any CCSD parents or any other Cherokee County citizens.
Are CCSD teachers and media specialists forcing students to read “pornography” for class assignments and allowing children to check “pornography” out of school media centers?
No. Please be advised that serious misinformation about CCSD, books and book banning is being circulated on social media and political websites. This misinformation alleges that teachers and media specialists are forcing students to read “pornography” for class assignments and allowing children to check “pornography” out of school media centers. These are false claims. Please also be advised that this issue is not on the agenda for the April 2022 School Board meeting despite false claims otherwise. The School Board has no plans to take any action at the meeting in regard to books or policies related to books.
Books are selected for use in CCSD classes and for access in school media centers by certified teachers and library media specialists. They select books that have educational value and are age appropriate. Their supervisors, both principals at the school level and curriculum staff who serve in the district’s central office, all are longtime certified teachers and media specialists who now serve in administration roles. These teachers, media specialists and administrators care deeply about the students we serve – both their education and their overall well-being.
It is CCSD’s practice that any teacher who requires the reading of a novel as part of any class must offer students a choice of novels and also must honor a parent’s request for an alternative book or assignment for their child. Students and parents are notified in advance of the novels to be read in a class to allow for parent review and requesting alternate assignments.
Per School Board Policy, all Cherokee County citizens, including CCSD parents, have the right to challenge the use of a book in CCSD classes or the inclusion of a book in CCSD school media centers. It is a simple process that begins with talking with the school’s Principal. If the concern is not alleviated at that level, you can file an official challenge, which only requires completion of a simple form that asks questions such as whether you read the book and what concerns you have about the book.
The committee that reviews book challenges is made up of students, parents, teachers, media specialists and administrators. When they receive a challenge, the committee members read the book, discuss it and make a recommendation together to the Superintendent; the process takes no more than three weeks. Recommendations made by the committee are enforced districtwide to ensure consistency in all media centers.
So far this year, CCSD has received challenges to 14 books, two of which are not in any CCSD schools. The challenges were made by a total of seven citizens; of those, four are not CCSD parents. The committee, which was doubled in size and split into two committees to allow for two books to be reviewed at the same time, has reviewed more than half of these books already; the remainder are scheduled to be completed by the end of the school year. One of the challenges has resulted in a book being removed from general circulation in high school media centers to instead be available only with a counselor referral and parent permission. None of the challengers have filed any appeal. (A chart of this year's book challenges and the review status is online here and will be regularly updated; here is a 26-year history of challenged materials for perspective.)
Misinformation also is being circulated about a specific book that a member of the public read from at the School Board’s March 17, 2022 meeting that the speaker described as “pornography” and “illegal.” The book, “Homegoing” by Yaa Gyasi, is only available in high school media centers for optional check-out by students. It is not pornography nor is it illegal; it is a critically acclaimed book about slavery. The book is nationally recommended for high school students who hope to pass Advanced Placement (AP) English exams to earn college credit. It is not required reading to pass any CCSD classes. The speaker, who has not filed a challenge to any books, additionally submitted a list of 225 books to the School Board, via email on March 16, 2022, that she believes should be removed from CCSD schools; similar lists are being circulated nationally by political and special interest groups, but it is important to note that the majority of these books (123 of the 225) are not available in any CCSD schools.
The School Board stopped the speaker from reading from “Homegoing” because it is a high school-level book, and children younger than high school age have access to the meeting video. CCSD uses a YouTube channel for livestreaming School Board meetings, with a special “child friendly” setting so that YouTube will not place inappropriate ads in any videos on the channel. To avoid the inclusion of these ads, we must ensure the channel’s videos are appropriate for all ages. Additionally, CCSD’s website, where School Board meeting videos are posted the day after the meeting, is used by the majority of CCSD students daily to access numerous online learning resources including Canvas. As a result, we must ensure the CCSD website content is appropriate for all ages.
If you, as a parent, are ever unsure about the content of a novel your child is assigned to read or brings home from the media center, we make the following suggestions. Please contact your child’s teacher if you have questions about an assigned novel, as they will be happy to help you and, if you would like, provide an alternate assignment. Please contact your child’s media specialist if you have questions about a book they have checked out, as they will be happy to help you and, if you would like, can restrict your child from checking out books. Please consider having a conversation with your child about media center use … if you are concerned your child may choose a book you don’t approve of, ask your child to bring it home before they read it. If you do not have time to read a book your child checks out from the media center or an assigned novel and/or do not want to have a conversation with the teacher or media specialist , a website that provides parent-focused reviews, such as Lexile Find a Book (https://hub.lexile.com/find-a-book/search) or Common Sense Media (https://www.commonsensemedia.org/), may be helpful to you.
The School Board and Superintendent are dedicated to providing the best education possible to every student, strong stewardship of the resources entrusted to them and effective governance, which includes transparency. We hope that this information has provided you greater insight as to what is occurring locally in regard to the national issue of book banning.
Does the Superintendent or School Board plan to privatize bus drivers or School Nutrition?
No. Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian V. Hightower has no plans to ask the School Board to privatize bus drivers or School Nutrition or any other part of CCSD operations. The School Board also has had no discussions about privatizing these services.
The idea of possibly privatizing these services was brought up by a candidate who is running for School Board during a Cherokee County Republican Party candidates’ forum on March 21, 2022 and then moderators at the forums on March 22, 28 and 29 asked the other candidates their opinion on the issue. Videos from these events are available on the Cherokee County Republican Party’s Facebook page.
It also has been falsely stated that Dr. Hightower proposed privatization of custodial services in 2013. That recommendation was not made by Dr. Hightower; he did not begin serving as Superintendent until 2016.
Is CCSD vaccinating children at school?
NO! Please be advised that false rumors are deliberately being spread in our community about CCSD and COVID-19 vaccinations. CCSD is NOT holding ANY COVID-19 vaccination events for students at our schools or elsewhere. CCSD is partnering with the Cherokee County Health Department to offer COVID-19 vaccination boosters to employees, if they want to receive one, at the health department’s clinics on Friday, Nov. 19, 2021. More than 1,800 employees have requested an appointment, which is why that day is a Digital Learning Day for all students. CCSD does host annual flu vaccine clinics at schools for employees, if they want to receive one, as we have for more than a decade. CCSD does NOT administer ANY vaccines to students at our schools or elsewhere. It is deeply troubling that anyone in our community would deliberately spread misinformation and lies and even more upsetting that they appear to be doing so for political and/or personal financial gain.
Panorama SEL Survey
2/17/2022: CCSD announced the Panorama survey will not be used for next school year. Learn more here.
Does the Panorama SEL survey include open-ended questions?
No. The Panorama Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) survey used by CCSD for students in Grades 4-12 does not include open-ended questions; it uses scale responses for students to self-assess their core SEL competencies of self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness. A set of sample questions is posted online here.
Is my child’s information shared outside of CCSD?
No. CCSD does not share individual student responses externally; only aggregate data from the results is used for external presentations by CCSD, such as in annual SEL initiative reports presented to the School Board. Panorama does not have access to any data other than the survey responses, which only include a CCSD student ID number; Panorama is not provided with students’ names or other personal information. CCSD does not use Panorama curriculum or resources other than the Panorama SEL survey. Parents are given the opportunity to opt their children out of participation if they have any concerns about this optional survey (less than 2% of students opted out of the survey this year).
Is this survey data used against my child?
No. The survey results are used by CCSD to support students and to review our SEL initiative for continuous improvement. Parents, teachers and counselors, as part of each student’s support teams, have access to the student’s perspectives in order to support the student.
2020-21 School Year
10/27/2020: Cherokee County’s 1-percent Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (Ed SPLOST) is up for a renewal on the Nov. 2 General Election ballot, with early voting underway now. This post is design to provide the community with accurate information about the continuation of the existing penny sales tax. More information about the Ed SPLOST is on our website at https://bit.ly/CCSDsplostinfo. If you have questions about the Ed SPLOST, please email communications@cherokeek12.net.
What is Ed SPLOST?
It is a 1% sales tax dedicated to funding capital costs associated with public schools. Cherokee County enacted its Ed SPLOST in 1997. Currently 157 of the 159 counties in Georgia have a 1% sales tax dedicated to K-12 public education.
Why do we have an Ed SPLOST?
A blue-ribbon committee of business, civic and elected leaders in 2001 recommended our community use an Ed SPLOST to build a better Cherokee County School District. They recommended, and the community voted to approve, a plan that would leverage the penny sales tax through bonds to secure large amounts of funding up front in order to catch up with the community’s rapid residential growth. This plan has since been renewed every five years. Without the Ed SPLOST, CCSD would need to raise property taxes to pay the “mortgage” on bond debt created over the past 20 years of rapid school construction.
Why can’t you pay for those projects using property taxes? Or State funding?
Residential growth doesn’t generate enough property taxes to pay for its impact on schools. Residential property taxes, combined with property taxes paid by businesses and other land owners, generates more than half of the funding for daily operations: salaries and benefits, utilities, fuel, supplies, etc. The remainder of the funding for operating costs comes from state and federal income taxes. Neither property taxes nor income taxes raise enough money to pay for school construction and renovations, the replacement of aging school buses, technology infrastructure or purchasing land for future school sites. The State provides some funding for capital costs, but not enough to pay for projects … for example, for the new/replacement Cherokee High School, the total cost will be an estimated $100 Million, and toward that cost the State will contribute $30 Million. This lack of adequate State funding is why almost every school system statewide use an Ed SPLOST to pay for these projects.
Is the Ed SPLOST the same as the county SPLOST?
No – the county government has its own 1% SPLOST, which is used for roads, public safety, parks and other public infrastructure needs. These are the only local sales taxes charged in Cherokee County as part of the 6% total, which is the lowest total in Georgia as 155 other counties (out of 159) have higher rates ranging from 7% - 8%.
What projects will be funded by the renewal?
1. New construction projects. A new/replacement Cherokee High School near the new Teasley Middle School campus is planned, as is a new/replacement Free Home Elementary School near the current campus in that community. Both of these schools are among our oldest … the core campus of Cherokee High School is nearly 70 years old! The renewal also would fund classroom additions and a second gymnasium at Creekview High School; classroom additions at Woodstock High School, Creekland Middle School and Oak Grove Elementary School STEAM Academy, and a second gymnasium at River Ridge High School. Safety and efficiency improvements also would be made to athletics facilities at Etowah High School and Sequoyah High School; and a much-needed professional development/training facility for teachers and support staff is planned.
2. Major renovations and repairs. The proposed upgrades would benefit every school in the district, with work ranging from installing new roofs to upgrading HVAC systems.
3. Continued investment in technology. With minimal State funding for technology, Ed SPLOST remains a main revenue source for infrastructure improvements and classroom hardware.
4. Continued replacement of school buses. We plan to replace 30 aging buses a year over the next five years, and little State funding is available for this critical need.
5. Continued land acquisition. Ed SPLOST revenue remains the main source of funding to stay ahead of residential growth and ensure we have school sites spread throughout the community for future school construction.
6. We’ve been retiring the “mortgage” incurred by the necessity of quickly building so many schools. With the new projects we’ve planned for the Ed SPLOST renewal, we’re on track to retire the mortgage by 2038. Without the Ed SPLOST, our property tax rate would immediately increase by 5 mills to continue retiring our bond debt, and all construction projects, technology investments and school bus and future school site purchases would halt.
What will happen to those projects if the Ed SPLOST isn’t renewed?
The proposed projects will immediately and indefinitely halt. All school construction, renovations, school bus replacements, technology updates and future school site property acquisitions would stop. Schools would become more overcrowded, school buses would be used past acceptable mileage, technology will become outdated, and CCSD will not be able to purchase land ahead of residential growth to prepare for future school site needs.
What happens to my property taxes if the Ed SPLOST isn’t renewed?
In order to continue making CCSD’s required bond debt payments, property taxes would need to increase by 5 mills, which would be a 20% increase in property taxes countywide. Increased property taxes will negatively affect property values, as will underfunded schools that will be unable to adequately serve students.
Does the Ed SPLOST pay for salaries?
No – the Education SPLOST only can be used for capital costs: bond debt retirement, construction of new or replacement schools, renovation projects, replacing school buses, upgrading technology and purchasing future school sites.
I don’t have kids in CCSD schools – why should I care about the Ed SPLOST renewal?
School property taxes are not user fees. Most residents do not pay enough, through property taxes and State income taxes, to fund the full cost of their children’s public education. Public schools are a public service for the entire community, just like roads and public safety. Excellent public schools not only educate the emerging generation, who will work in our community and lead in our community, but they also maintain and increase residential property values. It’s also important to note that our community has a very generous practice of waiving the education portion of county property taxes for senior citizens -- not because their children are grown, but because they’ve paid to support schools for decades.
Why was the CCSD administration building constructed before a new/replacement Cherokee High School?
The administration building was first approved by voters in 2001 but postponed by the School Board and Superintendent of School for 15 years to allow first for the construction of schools needed to meet enrollment growth. The new administration building and auditorium, which cost $16 million, replaced three historic office buildings, which would have cost significantly more than that to renovate and still not meet the needs for training space and public meeting capacity. The new/replacement Cherokee High School project will cost $100 Million, more than six times the cost of the administration building, and CCSD did not have the capacity or the property five years ago to borrow enough money through bonds, to be repaid by Ed SPLOST revenue, for that project.
What will happen to the existing Cherokee High School?
When the new/replacement Cherokee High School campus is built, which is contingent upon the Ed SPLOST renewal, the current campus will be repurposed. Ideas being considered include repurposing the main campus to serve as the new home for the Cherokee College & Career Academy, which opened this school year with one Career Pathway – cybersecurity -- at the ACTIVE Academies campus (also home to ACE Academy, Transition Academy and i-Grad Virtual Academy on the former Teasley campus). The Cherokee North campus could be returned to use as Canton Elementary School, or it could be repurposed as a districtwide preschool and/or Pre-K center. These ideas remain very preliminary, as the School Board would use the traditional community review process to hear stakeholder input before voting on a plan.
What was the cost of artificial turf installed at the six high schools?
The cost to install artificial turf at all six high schools in 2018 was $4.9 Million. The cost of maintaining grass fields was significant and continuously increasing. The installation of artificial turf provided a more cost effective solution, and a solution that the majority of athletic coaches agreed would provide safer playing fields and fields that would better prepare teams to compete at other high schools and at the college level. The turf installation also significantly enhanced scheduling and improved the rate of postponement of events due to inclement weather.
I don’t like some decisions the School Board has made – why should I support the Ed SPLOST?
Supporting the Ed SPLOST is a decision between whether to pay for bond debt retirement and capital costs with a 1% sales tax or to pay bond debt retirement with 5 mills of property taxes (a 25% increase from the current rate) and to postpone indefinitely school construction, renovations, school bus replacements, technology updates and future school site land purchases. The Ed SPLOST vote does not decide who serves on the School Board. The Ed SPLOST vote does not affect State standards for learning, curriculum, lessons plans or staffing decisions. If you are not happy with decisions made by the School Board, as a citizen you can express opinions to them directly by email or phone call or during a School Board meeting. Contact information for School Board members is on our website at https://bit.ly/CCSDboard.
How are school districts funded?
Georgia school districts are funded in four ways: local property taxes, State educational funding (school districts receive funding from State income taxes based on student enrollment), Federal education funding (tied to specific programs such as Special Education and School Nutrition) and the Ed SPLOST. Local property taxes are collected by school districts based on a millage rate. The millage rate in CCSD has not increased in more than a decade. Your property tax bill may have increased during that time, but it is because your property has increased in value. The current millage rate for the county is 19.45 mills, which includes 12.21 mills for daily operations, 1.25 mills for debt service, .39 mills to pay for the county government for its tax collection services and 5.6 mills for the State required “local effort” … as Cherokee County is considered an affluent county by the State, 5.6 mills of our taxes are redistributed by the State to other counties. About 38% of the State’s budget is dedicated to paying for K-12 public education. If you take 38% of what your household paid in State income taxes, less any refunds, that’s a ballpark number for your share of State K-12 funding. If you add to that the education portion of your county property taxes, you’ll see about how much you chip in each year for all of your children’s education … CCSD is spending $11,379 on each student this year. CCSD earned top ratings from the State for FY2019 financial efficiency, tying for the best rating among Metro Atlanta counties. It was the third consecutive year that CCSD achieved a top score. CCSD’s spending on administration is among the lowest 10% in the state: CCSD’s rate of $142 per student is 39% below the state average. Instead of increasing property taxes to pay for capital costs like new schools, renovations, school buses and technology, most school districts in Georgia instead use an Ed SPLOST, which is a consumption tax allowing for the cost to be shared by the entire community – including those who do not pay property taxes and/or state and federal income taxes – and by visitors. More information on how CCSD schools are funded is on our website at https://bit.ly/CCSDfunding101 More information on CCSD’s current operating budget is on our website at https://bit.ly/CCSDff21 CCSD financial information, including detailed budgets and annual independent audits, are posted on our website’s award-winning transparency page, called Open CCSD, https://bit.ly/OpenCCSD.
4/23/21 FICTION: Is the content of this actual email sent to CCSD true? “It has recently come to our attention that Dr. Cecelia Lewis has been hired by the Cherokee County School District as an “administrator on special assignment.” This “special assignment” is implementing DEI and Critical Race Theory to our kids throughout the district. We will not let this happen. We will not stand by and let extreme and dangerous ideology spread to our kids. We respectfully request that this “special assignment” be terminated immediately or it will be met with very strong opposition.”
FACT: CCSD has created an administrator on special assignment position to oversee social and emotion learning (SEL) and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). The person hired for the position begins in July and will be a part of the Office of School Operations and report to the Chief Operations Officer. There are no plans to introduce "critical race theory" – this is a complete fabrication created through rumor mongering on social media. CCSD follows Georgia Performance Standards of Excellence, which determine what lessons students will learn and when, and those standards do not include "critical race theory"; these standards are detailed on our website at https://www.cherokeek12.net/Content2/divisions-curriculum-student-performance-standards-and-curriculum-maps. This new position doesn’t have the authority to independently select or implement curriculum in classrooms. CCSD’s SEL initiative began several years ago in response to rising suicide rates, self-harm and depression among our students. The DEI portion of the role is to assist with related priorities in the Blueprint strategic plan that the School Board adopted in 2019 after community effort involving students, parents, employees and business and community partners. You can read the plan and learn about its background on our website at https://www.cherokeek12.net/Content/strategic-plan-blueprint.
8/12/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard CCSD is only holding school for 10 days or for three weeks in order to earn funding or a grant, is that true?
FACT: No – this is not how school funding is determined. The State of Georgia requires public school systems submit attendance reports for two specific dates, one in October and one in March, and those totals are used to determine education funding. The standard school year is Georgia is 180 days, but CCSD has an approved waiver for that requirement, which was requested by the School Board in preparation for closures due to inclement weather or other emergencies. Federal education funding is based on specific needs, such as the number of students receiving Special Education services or who qualify for free or reduced-price meals. We are not aware of any grants that require school systems hold school on specific days or for specific periods of time. Our Superintendent and School Board are committed to offering in-person learning as long as it’s sustainable, as expressed in Dr. Hightower’s message on Aug. 7, 2020 archived at https://bit.ly/CCSDmessages.
7/24/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that class sizes are going to be 38 students or more, is that true?
FACT: There are no plans to increase in-person class sizes beyond last school year's levels -- which were the lowest class sizes in six years; for high school classes, that was normally a maximum of 32 students, but averaged 27. Class sizes decrease along with grade levels down to 20 students in a kindergarten class. School staff still are building schedules for both in-person and Digital Learning classes. Digital Learning classes will be slightly larger given that there is not a physical classroom constraint, so it is feasible a high school Digital Learning class could have 38 students.
7/23/2020 FICTION: I read online that CCSD bars teachers from posting on social media or talking to reporters?
FACT: Unfortunately, an online media source reported this false information and will not correct it, despite our requests. All CCSD employees are required to annually review and agree to various policies and guidelines as a condition of their employment; these include social media guidelines that are posted publicly here. There is a School Board Policy that specifically addresses news media, and that is posted publicly here. Additionally, educators must adhere to the Georgia Code of Ethics for Educators, which is posted publicly here. Neither the policies, guidelines nor the Code bar speech – they set agreed-upon limitations, similar to what most workers agree to in their various professions and/or places of employment … for example, a solicitor should not share his personal opinion about a pending case, a manufacturing employee should not share his company’s trade secrets, and a store employee should not argue with customers.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that the Superintendent is getting a 22% raise in the 2020-21 budget?
FACT: The Superintendent is receiving the same “step” salary increase as all eligible full-time CCSD employees, which, on average is 3%. With that step increase ($7,231), his proposed FY2021 base salary is $248,251. The total cost for all CCSD employee “step” increases, as noted in the budget’s Executive Summary on page vi, is $4.1 Million. From a budgeting and reporting perspective, new reporting changes from the IRS require reimbursable expenses (the Superintendent’s his contractual benefits, such as a car allowance, retirement, healthcare, and work travel expenses) be reported as salary expenses. As a result, those reimbursable expenses that total $47,650 and previously were reported and denoted under other Functions elsewhere in prior budgets, now must be added to his reported compensation as salary. We also believe this is a more transparent way of showing the public the total compensation for the Superintendent, rather than dividing it over multiple budget categories.
PERSPECTIVE: The CCSD Superintendent is CEO of Cherokee County’s largest employer, with 5,000 employees. The CCSD Superintendent salary is actually below market for superintendents of similar school districts in Metro Atlanta. (CCSD is in the top 10 largest districts in Georgia, however both superintendents of districts closest in size reported a 2019 base salary of $308,000 and $300,000) and significantly less than CEOs of businesses of the same size. Specific to current Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian V. Hightower, he has 35 years of experience in education, holds three education degrees, and is in his fifth year as a superintendent, which exceeds the national average.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that School Board Members are getting a raise in the 2020-21 budget, is that true?
FACT: School Board Members are not getting any raise in compensation at all. School Board Member compensation is determined by local legislation sponsored by Cherokee County’s State Representatives and Senators; in 2017, it was set at $1,000 per month for each of the six Board members and $1,200 per month for the sole Board Chair, and has not been changed. This annual cost is $86,400 for all seven School Board members. New reporting changes from the IRS required this total to be reported in a different part/Function of the budget beginning at the start of the calendar year.
PERSPECTIVE: The compensation levels for Cherokee County’s School Board Members are significantly less than those of similar size school districts.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that the supplemental pay teachers receive for coaching sports or leading programs like band is being cut, is that true?
FACT: No – we are making a change to how frequently these supplements are paid, but all staff will continue to be paid for services provided to students. The payment schedule is the only change for the 2020-21 school year; this is an internal process decision, that can be changed in the future, if needed. This change is needed to avoid having to collect payments made when services were not rendered, for example, if a coach steps back from coaching responsibilities before the season begins or mid-season. If an employee receives this money in advance for services not rendered, it must be repaid, which can cause a hardship.
PERSPECTIVE: We cannot, by law, pay staff for services not rendered. The only exception is if, in an emergency situation, the School Board approves a resolution allowing for pay to continue. This is how CCSD was able to continue to pay staff during the school closures even if they were not actively working, such as school bus drivers and After School Program workers.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that a CCSD employee died from COVID-19 and CCSD is keeping it a secret, is that true?
FACT: CCSD, like any employer, must follow federal privacy laws regarding employees’ health information. The fact that a CCSD employee passed away earlier this month from complications related to COVID-19 was announced during the July 9, 2020 School Board Meeting (the video of which is online). The employee’s name intentionally was not shared publicly and will not be shared publicly due to federal privacy laws. In keeping with standard protocols within our organization for the internal distribution of news about the passing of employees and employees’ immediate family members, we did not disclose the cause of death in the emailed notice as is our practice and in keeping with the family’s wishes. However, in this case, and in all instances when a current employee passes, the employee’s coworkers were aware of the cause of his death. As this specific employee had tested positive for COVID-19, all Department of Public Health (DPH) protocols were immediately followed for notifications to potentially exposed coworkers and required quarantines. The same process for notifications and quarantines will take place should there be future incidents of active employees testing positive; should there be incidents of an employee in a school and/or student testing positive while school is in session, CCSD will follow DPH protocols for notification and quarantines.
PERSPECTIVE: Members of our CCSD family care deeply about their coworkers. Do not mistake our organization’s efforts to protect an employee’s and families’ privacy for a lack of care. It is incredibly unfortunate that citizens in our community would allege otherwise, with some even crossing a line we feel disrespects this man’s memory and his family and friends.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that CCSD deleted all the social media posts about school reopening, is that true?
FACT: Yes – those posts were deleted due to the volume of comments spreading misinformation about the plan and about COVID-19, as well as inappropriate language, libelous comments, defamatory comments, trolling and combative posts between citizens, and otherwise unacceptable behavior. CCSD has posted guidelines as to how users can interact with our social media accounts (posted on our website as well as on the account profiles); and we reserve the right to hide comments, delete comments and block users. CCSD also reserves the right to delete our own posts – there is no law requiring we have a social media presence nor is there a law stating we cannot delete our own posts. The video was uploaded to the CCSD website and is posted on both the meeting agenda webpage and our Open CCSD webpage, where we always post the video from the most recent meeting. The CCSD Reopening of School Plan and the FAQs are on our webpage and remain accessible to the public.
PERSPECTIVE: We appreciate feedback from our community, including criticism and differences of opinion; however, our accounts exist to communicate accurate information – these are not a free-for-all forum for users to post misinformation, make libelous and/or defamatory comments about CCSD employees or students, or attack each other.
7/16/2020 FICTION: I’ve heard that CCSD deleted the video from its last School Board meeting, is that true?
FACT: No; while there were technical issues during the July 9, 2020 meeting with the initial live-streaming platform due to demand, CCSD immediately began a second live stream on Facebook. The Facebook video was downloaded and uploaded onto our website, where it is both posted on the meeting agenda webpage and our Open CCSD webpage, where we always post the video from the most recent meeting. Through the CCSD platform, 3,225 people were able to view the July 9 meeting; and the Facebook live stream had viewership of 2,700 people at its peak.
PERSPECTIVE: CCSD is not required by law to live stream or record School Board meetings nor is it required to post and/or archive videos of its meetings. In recent years, CCSD has recorded these meetings as an additional effort to increase transparency. For the July 9, 2020 School Board meeting, while not legally required, live streaming was added for the first time to allow for greater access, due to the fact seating was limited to meet the Governor’s social-distancing mandate for public meetings. As these mandated measures remain in place, live streaming again will be used for the July 16, 2020 School Board meeting, and CCSD will use a different platform to accommodate for viewers.