Students, leaders confident APS probation will be lifted

ATLANTA — Students remained optimistic as investigators with a school accrediting agency wrapped up a visit to Atlanta Public Schools on Tuesday.I feel it will work. With us being put on probation, it was the warning shot that we needed, Grady High School student Alexander Foster told Channel 2’s Tom Regan.Two days this week, representatives of the Southern Association of Schools and Colleges have spent hours meeting with APS leaders, school staff and representatives in the community.

It is the final visit before SACS decides whether they will fully restore the district’s accreditation. The school district was put on probation in January after a school board feud and a cheating scandal. District officials were required to make improvements in board administration and policies and refocus energy on improving education for Atlanta students.

Without accreditation, high school students can have a difficult time getting accepted to colleges and earning scholarships.

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed told Regan he spoke with SACS representatives for about an hour Monday.

We had a good conversation. We’re making steady progress, which I conveyed, Reed said.

Board chairwoman Brenda Muhammad told Regan she felt confident about getting the probation status lifted.

I am very excited where we are and I feel very good about our report, Muhammad said.

SACS will make a decision on the accreditation status of the school system at the end of October.