POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS
There are a lot of options, and APS is going to have to be creative.
The most sustainable and equitable, long-term solution involves a multi-tiered approach.
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We are open to various solutions. We want to be creative. But we also want long-term, responsible, and sustainable solutions that work for all APS students. Solutions that APS and its consultants have proposed to date, along with our current questions surrounding the proposed solutions, are set forth below.
aps PROPOSED SOLUTION #1
TAX-PAYER FUNDED CONSTRUCTION AT VARIOUS APS SCHOOLs at a PROPOSED COST OF $245,000,000 TO $835,000,000
Recent APS proposals recommend construction at nine of the 103 Atlanta schools at a proposed cost ranging from $245 million to $835 million, a large portion of which would be funded by a ballot tax placed on Atlanta residents.
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Construction at some APS schools is necessary to ensure that students have a habitable education environment.
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Many of the proposed projects, however, including a proposed repurposing of Midtown High to add 300 seats and a parking deck at a cost of between $35 million to $45 million and would not take Midtown High through the growth that is anticipated to hit the cluster over the next decade. Per APS' consultants, "future growth beyond current addition [300-seat] capacity would require cluster boundary change."
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Midtown High School is currently at 104% capacity, which is "not functioning" nor safe for Midtown High School students. As noted in PTO and GO Team meeting minutes from Midtown High in recent years - "in light of overcrowding and continued increases to enrollment, Midtown needs to more aggressively pursue 'out of school' options such as work-based learning, dual enrollment, AVA, early dismissal, early graduation for those with enough credits, etc. The school needs to find ways to get kids off campus and may need to reduce AP and other courses to focus on core/graduation requirement classes. Midtown should explore allowing students to take a maximum of 5 AP classes per year." Current students cannot get into desired classes or extracurriculars. Adding 300 seats to Midtown High's limited footprint in the heart of Atlanta will not solve the problem even with the proposed $35 million to $45 million construction.​​
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So our question is: "Why would APS not redirect the $35 million to $45 million to other APS schools that are in greater need and go ahead and address the inevitable cluster boundary change that Midtown High School will require for long-term and responsible sustainability?"
A solution that was proposed on September 22, 2025, was to repurpose APS high school Carver High School as a Fine Arts Magnet school.
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We want to hear more from APS Board members on this proposal but we have many questions, including the following:
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Will students currently zoned for Carver High School be given preference for the Carver Fine Arts Magnet School or will they be automatically zoned to another cluster? Has the Carver community been consulted about whether this is a desired solution? Have transportation scenarios been explored for these students who were previously in the Carver zone?
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What will happen to various shining star programs at Carver High School? Carver parents have already raised concerns about what will happen to Carver's award-winning sports program, which is very important to many residents in the current Carver cluster.
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What is the capacity of, and the desired enrollment for, the proposed Carver Fine Arts Magnet School?
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Will students in all APS clusters be allowed to select Carver Fine Arts Magnet School as an option? If APS students select Carver Fine Arts Magnet School for 9th grade but decides in 10th grade to return to their zoned traditional high schools, then will that be allowed? ​
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Has APS polled current APS elementary, middle, and high school parents (including those who live 30 minutes to an hour drive away from Carver) to see how many parents would opt for their children to attend the proposed Carver Fine Arts Magnet School if they are not currently zoned for the school?
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Has APS prepared transportation scenarios for how students would get from other clusters to the Carver Fine Arts Magnet School and back? How long would the transportation take each way on a daily basis from each cluster? There are real and valid concerns about Atlanta traffic and the lack of infrastructure on many Atlanta streets, especially since Carver is not centrally located to a Marta station (the closest is Oakland City, which is over 2 miles away).
aps PROPOSED SOLUTION #2
REPURPOSING OF CARVER HIGH SCHOOL AS A FINE ARTS MAGNET SCHOOL
why not...
holistically re-examine and redraw cluster lines to benefit aps as a whole and all aps students?
"Just Redraw, Y'all" may sound like a simple concept to some and a heated concept to others but wouldn't a comprehensive, responsible redraw of the current APS cluster lines solve many of the current capacity, enrollment, and utilization issues at APS at a much lower price tag than the currently proposed construction at only certain APS schools at a projected cost of $245,000,00 to $835,000,000?
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Boundary realignment could be done with planning units moving neighborhood by neighborhood to ideally create the best case scenario for all APS students. It will take time but wouldn't a comprehensive redraw be the most cost-efficient and quickest long-term solution to the myriad of issues facing APS? Our children and all APS students deserve a long-term, stable, and responsible solution that works for all APS students.
Instead of spending close to $200 million dollars for short-term band-aids in the three wealthiest APS clusters (Jackson, Midtown, and North Atlanta), why not invest in the schools that have been begging for investment from APS for years, if not decades? Don't all APS students deserve the same opportunities, no matter the cluster for which they're zoned? Can we please work together, take a strong and responsible stance, and make APS work for all students not just those in certain neighborhoods?
why not...
invest in chronically under-funded and under-enrolled aps clusters and schools?