Cobb school district receives special review from accreditor

Cobb school district

UPDATED, 10:15 P.M.:

The Cobb school district Thursday night released the Cognia special review report, which does not recommend changing the status of the district’s full accreditation.

The agency did note several areas of improvement for the district to address over the next year, especially involving school board policy-making and ethics and fiscal responsbility.

Our follow-up story to the report below can be found by clicking here.

ORIGINAL REPORT:

The Cobb County School District has received the findings of a special review conducted in August by its accrediting agency, but isn’t commenting on them for now.

Nor is the district immediately releasing the report from Cognia, based in Alpharetta, which was responding to complaints from three members of the Cobb Board of Education and around 50 others from the community.

A Cobb school district spokeswoman told East Cobb News that “the District is in the process of carefully reviewing the report from Cognia in preparation for release in the near future. Cobb Schools remains committed to providing a world-class education and continuing the District’s legacy of student success.”

When asked if the report would be provided to media representatives upon request, the spokeswoman said that request should be directed to the district’s open records officer.

Under the Georgia Open Records Act, public agencies have three business days to respond to open records requests.

Cognia delivered its report to the Cobb County School District on Monday.

During its special review (previous ECN story here), Cognia representatives interviewed school board members, district staff, principals, teachers, parents, students and other stakeholders in its special review in August on a range of board governance matters and concerns over equitable opportunities and student performance.

The district announced in April that Cognia would be conducting the review, expressing concern that “determinations made through a Special Review Team can negatively impact college acceptance rates, college scholarships, enrollment, funding, and educator recruitment and retention . . . Impacts can also negatively affect a county’s economy, property values, and bond credit ratings.”

In 2019, Cognia reaccredited the Cobb County School District—the second-largest in Georgia, with more than 107,000 students—through 2024.

But Democratic board members Charisse Davis, Jaha Howard and Tre’ Hutchins went to Cognia after saying they were being ignored by the board’s Republican majority and Superintendent Chris Ragsdale to discuss early literacy, educator and employee support and board governance training topics.

Depending on the findings, a special review—which is a rare occurrence—typically affords school districts time to make recommended changes before a possible loss of accreditation.

In September, Cognia released its findings in a special review of Gwinnett County Public Schools, indicating several areas of improvement. But the accrediting agency did not recommend any change in that school district’s full accreditation status.

At a Cobb school board work session Thursday afternoon, the Cognia report was not on the published agenda, nor was it discussed until the very end, and then only in procedural terms.

(You can view the agendas by clicking here.)

The board heard several presentations about the district’s legislative priorities and its quarterly financial report.

Just as the board was to approve the agenda for the Thursday 7 p.m. business meeting, Howard asked board chairman Randy Scamihorn if an item for discussion of the Cognia review could be added.

“There was some big news that came out, and we haven’t talked about it yet,” Howard said. “I would like the agenda to reflect that urgent matter.”

But Scamihorn said the agenda can be revised for an emergency, and said he didn’t think Howard’s request was “applicable, as the agenda has been developed.”

When Howard appealed to Suzanne Wilcox, the board attorney, she said such an item would could be added if the board determined it was “necessary” and in particular if it was a matter that was “not known about in advance.”

When Howard asked her why she didn’t recommend revising the agenda, she said that state law says an item has to be considered an emergency to be added.

“At this time, I’m not aware of anything that makes it necessary to address,” Wilcox said.

Howard then asked if a Cognia discussion could be added to the board’s December agenda, but Scamihorn said he couldn’t give an “absolute yes or no” since “none of us have seen the report yet. . . . But the chair appreciates your concern.”

This story will be updated.