Posts by Meria

Whenever a long break approaches, we all have a tendency to want to take it easy and coast through the last few days of school. But at Atlanta Public Schools, we have been gradually changing that mindset so that we keep focused on the education of children every single school day … even with everyone…

Over the last three years, Atlanta Public Schools has done a great deal of work in right-sizing the district to more effectively direct resources toward our students. As part of this effort to improve quality while increasing efficiency, we consolidated small schools in the Carver, Therrell and Washington clusters and single-gender schools in the first…

Today marks the 100th day of the first year of full implementation of our transformation in Atlanta Public Schools. As part of that work, APS is changing some of the ways we teach our students, giving them an authentic voice as they interact with the curriculum and shape learning for themselves. When I was preparing…

As part of the work for students, Atlanta Public Schools has had to strive to improve quality while increasing efficiency. That is why we have continued the work to right size the district to more effectively direct resources toward the students. That has been difficult when you continue to work within an infrastructure that at…

As we recognize the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday today, we will certainly hear about “The Dream,” explained eloquently by Dr. King as he spoke from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on Aug. 28, 1963. The Dream: Hope. Equality. Nonviolence. Opportunity. Reflecting today, I know how blessed I am by The Dream and that…

As temperatures in metro Atlanta threaten to dip near freezing this week, I am reminded of how stressful the inclement weather associated with this time of year can be on everyone. Will I get caught in the snow? Will my child be stuck on a bus on the interstate? Is it too cold to walk…

With the Winter Break upon us and 2016 drawing to a close, I wanted to take a moment to encourage all friends and stakeholders of Atlanta Public Schools to reflect upon the difference we make in the lives of Atlanta’s children. A great joy of being a part of APS is the opportunity to work…

On Sunday, October 23, I finished my first official marathon. Five hours and 40 minutes. It wasn’t easy. It wasn’t pretty. But it was a respectable finish – running and not crawling to the finish line, beaming with pride (and not weeping) after I crossed it. I did it after nearly a full year of…

  Thirty-five years ago, the Centers for Disease Control first reported about the growing prevalence of a disease that soon would become known as Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome or AIDS. I can remember the early 1980s when reports of the disease or the presence of HIV – the virus that causes the disease – began…

As we near big holiday seasons, we often spend time counting the days, then the hours and then the minutes until we can leave APS for a while and spend extended time elsewhere. Our teachers, staff and students have worked hard so far this semester, and they need this much-deserved break. But for a moment,…