Included Articles:

7/2- Public transportation worthy of study- no author; Opinion piece that discusses the positive impacts of public transportaton on the community. Article states that public transportation assists with welfare reform, unemployment, access to schools, healthcare, and shopping.

7/2- City schools group sets priorities- Pamala J. Williams; School Superintendent Dr. Gary Walker met with a strategic planning group composed of parents, business people, and retired educators. The group developed a list of priorities to be reviewed by school principals to develop a plan of action. The session discussed the faciliator model approach to gifted education.

7/3- BOE attorney holding interviews in ongoing investigation- Pamala J. Williams; Attorney Gary Moser began investigation of Valdosta City Schools. Assisted by retired superintendt Paul Chambers, deposition-style interviews were conducted with individuals with specific grievances.

7/3- BOE has responsibility to parents- Charlene Davis, Valdosta; Letter to the editor by parent of Valdosta Middle, CPIE Partner of Valdosta City School System, and PTO board member. Letter states that gifted studentar are being denied the challeng to their full potential. Letter further states that teachers are faced with the task of teaching to multiple skill levels and learning abilities as a result. Davis recommends that students should be nurtured in an enviornment based on their needs as individual students.

7/3/1997- Hardee leaving VSU- Jodi M. Scott; Dr. Jerry L. Hardee, assistant to the president for Equal Opportunity Programs/Multicultural Affairs accepted a position as the Vice President for Academic Affairs at Albany State University. Article mentons that Hardee will lead the development of a comprehensive Title III program for Albany State and assume responsibility for the University's Affirmative Action program.

7/4- City school investment not ‘paying off’- Wesley Force, Valdosta; Letter to the editor by a parents of a student at West Gordon Elementary School. Author feels that their taxes are not providing a "return" on their investment into their child's education. Author states that the superintendent's office is likely tired of hearing about West Gordon. Author mentions the removal of the leveling system has led to chaos in the classrooms and the learning enviornment is less than adequate for students.

7/6- Officials shouldn’t bow to special interests- William M. Eanes, Valdosta; Letter to the editor discusses the grievance policy and the internal investigation of the school board policy.

7/7- Does Valdosta Middle School discriminate?: Federal investigation seeks to determine whether classes are grouped by ability or race- Pamala J. Williams; The U.S. Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights (OCR) is conducting a compliance review at Valdosta Middle School. The OCR is investigation whether Valdosta Middle is practicing within-school segregation - where classes are grouped by race. The OCR first became interested after the state Department of Education sent data that indicated an under-representation of minorities in advanced science and math classes. A concerned parent, Mary Willis, said that inequities are visible and she noticed that there were almost entirely white classes when visiting the school. Willis also stated that children at the school were calling other students "Bo Kids" claiming that it was short for "Dumbo" and that the term was used to describe students in majority-black low level classes. Alum from schools within the Valdosta City School system also provide input stating that they were not segregated and did not feel discriminated against.

7/7- There is a better way than ability grouping- Sheryl Giddens, Valdosta; Giddens is concerned that the ability grouping seperation is creating a disadvantage in educational opportunities for students in the lower-tracks.

7/7- Gifted program reaches out to minorities- Pamala J. Williams; 7/9- Race is not the issue in school controversy- Chris Keener, Valdosta; Article discusses the percentage of students admitted into the gifted program as well as the testing and score methods for admittance.

7/9- Race is not the issue in school controversy- Chris Keener, Valdosta; Letter to the editor argues that the separation of abilities is not race related and the most effective level of learning is to create classrooms of students with similar academic backgrounds irrespective of race.

7/11- Hardee looking ahead- Jodi M. Scott; Artile highlight states that colleges and universities around Georgia and the US often turn to Valdosta State University to learn how to retain minority students.

7/11- Hardee (from page 1-A and 2-A)- Jodi M. Scott; Article continues by stating that over the course of 13 years, Dr. Hardee saw the number of African American students increase from 500-2800 and that over the most recent 8 years (1989-1997) that minority students graduated at a higher percentage than white students. Article discusses Hardee's experience attending traditionally black universities and discusses his upcoming role at Albany State University

7/11- Right to equal access belongs to everyone- Mark Parker, Valdosta. Letter to the editor discusses race and asks for a program or organization that sticks up for the rights of "non-minorities". Clipping starts on page 32 of PDF and finished on page 20 of PDF.

7/12- Parent’s mad over math test with drug, murder questions- Associated Press; Students in Charles Sanders summer math class at Norte Vista High School in Riverside California were given a math test that asked for the students name and gang affiliation at the top. Questions on the test tasked students with calculating the street value of drugs being sold and the amount of money an individual would have after release from prison after a murder-for-hire plot.

7/13- There is hope for city school system- Ernest and Gwendolyn Robinson, Hermitage TN; Former Valdostas residents and parents of students that were enrolled in Valdosta Public Schools discuss the factors that led them to move away from Valdosta. These factors included a federal investigation into a complain they filed about individuals at Roadway Express and a deterioration in the attitude of parents, students, and teachers in regard to Valdosta Public Schools.

7/14- The betrayal of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall- Nat Hentoff; Article discusses court cases Kadrmas vs. Dickinson Public Schools, Plessy Vs. Ferguson, and Brown vs. Board of Education. The NAACP was led by Thurgood Marshall who spent years to achieve the Brown Vs. Board of Education decision which ackowledged that segregated public schools are unequal and unconstitutional. The article goes on to discuss that in 1997, the NAACP was trying to decide whether to prioritize strengthening black schools rather than to continue to expend energy and resources to desegregate public schools. Article discusses opposition to desegregate such as forced busing. However, after busing ended in Norfolk, VA, school school system became more segregated under the new busing plan based on the communities one for the school.

7/14- Teachers respond to federal review- Pamala J. Williams; Teachers ackowledge that student success is not determined by complexion, rather by behavior, motivation and parental involvement. Teachers also state that students typically choose to work in groups that are familiar to them, not based on the race of the students.

7/14- School board got no mandate to restructure- Jacqueline Clark, Valdosta; Letter to the editor expresses anger at the school board for wholesale restructuring of the entire school system. Author defends Valdosta High School principal William Aldrich as being a caring individual that graduates high achieving students. Author also mentions large numbers of parents withdrawing children from the school system.

7/14- Parents important to students’ success- Pamala J. Williams; Article discusses trends in child success based on parental work and personal life. Article suggests that single-parent homes and homes with non-working parents receive less parental involvement with the child's education.

7/15- Speakers question BOE policies- Pamala J. Williams;

7/15- BOE (from page 1-A)-; Board Attorney Gary Moser stated that he was completing the 49th and final deposition-stule interview and anticipated presenting the results on July 21, 1997. School board mentioned that the meeting might be delayed so that board members had enough time to read the expected 2,000 to 3,000 page document. Quotes from teachers, parents, and community members mention concerns with the current school enviornment. CONTINUATION OF "SPEAKERS QUESTION BOE POLICIES"

7/15- Segregation in integrated public schools?- Kirk Johnson Jr., Valdosta; Letter to the editor begins by mentioning Diane Sawyer's segment on 60 Minutes titled "Tracking." The segment discussed ability grouping, which is seen by some as a form of racial segregation. Article discusses national educational and advocacy organizations recommending the abolition of tracking due to tracking creating class and race-linked difference in access to learning. Article discusses potential needs for alternative assessment to increase equity in education.

7/22- Transcripts from investigation read in BOE closed-door session- Pamala J. Williams; Valdosta Board of Education met in executive session and read transcripts of 40 of the 49 interviews. Moser planned to read all of the interviews, but 9 of them were missing. Board members were ready to begin work.

7/22- BOE- Pamala J. Williams; This part of the article discusses the legality of a closed vs open session for the school board meeting.