Posts by Meria

Atlanta Public Schools has a specific mission to see every student graduate ready for college and career. And while we often think mostly about high school students when thinking about graduation and entering college, we fully live the mission when we think about students in all grades. Today, we focused on middle school students; specifically…

About a month after the College Board released SAT data, the other leading college entrance exam has released its own data. According to figures released today by ACT, Atlanta Public Schools’ (APS) 2019 graduates achieved an average composite ACT score of 19.1, a slight increase of 0.4 points from the 2018 average of 18.7 and…

As we celebrate National School Lunch Week, so many reasons to showcase the APS Nutrition Department As a school district, especially one in an urban setting, Atlanta Public Schools often must make a priority of not only feeding young minds with good academics but young bodies with good food. Three of every four APS students…

In pre-kindergarten classes across the district this week, our youngest students reveled in the story of a totally turned up Baby Llama in red pajamas, waiting for his mama, coping with bedtime drama. As part of Georgia Pre-K Week, a celebration of the lottery-funded Georgia Pre-K program, school officials, board members, parents, caregivers and community…

When I arrived in Atlanta in 2014, so many educators, families, students and neighbors embraced me as the new superintendent. They not only welcomed me but also offered to be my friendly guides so that I could understand the unique characteristics of each school and every community. Among the first people I got to know…

Mornings like today are the ones I cherish most as part of my work in Atlanta Public Schools – getting to celebrate excellence in teaching and learning! Today was especially special because – as is tradition in APS – we surprised three extraordinary teachers to give them the news: You are a finalist for the…

Five years ago, the state required every school district to choose an official model for how it operates and establish a new contract with the State of Georgia. After many, many months of intense research, community engagement and planning, the Atlanta Board of Education on July 1, 2016, voted to become a charter system operating…

Number of APS seniors taking SAT college entrance exam soars to 90% thanks to high school principals, counselors and Achieve Atlanta When SAT scores for APS arrived from the College Board today, the most eye-popping statistic was this: 90% of the graduates from the Class of 2019 took the test, that’s a dramatic 33 percentage…

With pride, we call Atlanta the Gateway of the Southeast, the Cradle of the Civil Rights Movement, the architect of the New South, the home of the world’s busiest airport and even “The City Too Busy to Hate.” Yet it is sobering – no, make that heart-breaking – to know that it is also one…

Thank you … thank you … thank you! If I were to even attempt to non-stop to thank everyone who donates to Atlanta Public Schools through DonorsChoose.org, it would take me – assuming that each heartfelt thank you would take at least 10 seconds – at least one day, 19 hours, eight minutes and 50…