Former electoral opponents met Tuesday as FVCS held
its final meeting,
with Rusty Griffin, Vice-Chair of CUEE,
watching at the MLK Monument as
Sam Allen, President of Friends of
Valdosta Schools (FVCS) announced the dissolution of FVCS.
In addition to FVCS regulars such as JC Cunningham,
Chamber Chair Tom Gooding was there,
as were current Valdosta Mayor Sonny Vickers and
Mayor-Elect John Gayle, plus re-elected Valdosta City Council At-Large Ben Norton.
Valdosta School Superintendent Cason was there.
I didn’t see Lowndes Superintendent Smith,
although various members of
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The 1926 statute that needs to be removed is
OCGA 20-2-370. The
1983 constitutional law
had priority of law precedence over the older statute &
CUEE was advised before they asked for signatures it could be protested
on those grounds before or after the vote. Thankfully we did not have to
go that route. I remember in high school I did a project on outdated laws
still in the GA Constitution including mandatory hanging for horse theft
(which I liked). There was also a law if you hit & killed a cow or pig
on the road you were required to get out & slit the throat so the owner
could salvage the meat & many others that were outdated & no longer
enforced. I trust these have now been removed. The general assembly
should be thankful that we are addressing this 57 year overdue need for
house cleaning & remedy this in January. Rule of Law should never remain
questionable when it is the duty of our lawmakers to provide clarity.
2010 Georgia Code
TITLE 20 – EDUCATION
CHAPTER 2 – ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION
ARTICLE 8 – CONSOLIDATION OF INDEPENDENT AND COUNTY SCHOOL SYSTEMS
ยง 20-2-370 – Referendum on repeal of special school law and consolidation of systems
O.C.G.A. 20-2-370 (2010)
20-2-370. Referendum on repeal of special school law and consolidation of systems
Whenever the citizens of a municipality or independent school district
authorized by law to establish and maintain a system of schools by local
taxation in whole or in part are operating a system of public schools
independent of the county school system and wish to annul their special
school law and become a part of the county school system, they shall
present and file with the governing authority of the city a petition
signed by one-fourth of the qualified voters of their territory; and the
governing authority shall then submit the question at an election to
be held in accordance with Chapter 2 of Title 21. A majority of those
voting shall be necessary to carry the election. Only qualified voters
residing within the municipality or district for six months prior to
the election shall vote. An election shall not be held for the same
purpose more often than every 12 months.
Disclaimer: These codes may not be the most recent version. Georgia
may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties
or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the
information contained on this site or the information linked to on the
state site. Please check official sources.
While I live in the city as was able to vote on the consolidation issue,
I feel that only a vote where both city and county residents would
be democratic. Only a vote where both interested parties could take
part would reveal the will of the people and be admissible. Although
I opposed the effort to consolidate that was recently defeated, I feel
strongly that a true vote of both city and county residence is necessary
if consolidation should reach the ballot anytime in the future. For
this reason it is paramount that the old law that allowed the city only
vote be stricken to allow the georgia constitution to prevail. The GA
constitution allows for both city and county to vote and a majority in
both in order to pass.
Please contact your legislator to support repealing the 1928 law from
the GA law books.
From: JC Cunningham
Date: Tue, 15 Nov 2011 09:01:26 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Fw: The Repeal of Ga. Law on School Consolidation
To: [many people]
Friends,
Even though we the Citizens of Valdosta have spoken and defeated that
hostile takeover, this is not the time to let up. We all must stay a
vigilant as possible and never let anything like this happen again.
One way in which everyone in Valdosta and Lowndes can make a impact is
to write a letter to Amy Carter, Admin. Floor Leader to the Governor,
and ask for her to introduce a bill to repeal the old 1928 law that
Cuee was able to use.
Remind Amy that she has an obligation to bring this bill to the floor.
Remind her that the people
Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 7 November 2011.
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
Bicycles are going to be a big part of our future.
Gas prices, and a lot of folks getting
their licenses suspended, having to walk….
And if you don’t have a bicycle, that’s the only choice you have.
He mentioned Valdosta was lagging behind Portland.
I’m a bicyclist —Jim Jones @ VCC 10 November 2011
bicycle, path, health care, health, sidewalk, grant,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 10 November 2011.
Videos by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I., the bostongbr on YouTube.
Sam Allen offered his head as a
crystal ball.
Dr. Smith replied it wasn’t clear enough.
Everybody laughed at that as this video started, in which Allen, president of
Friends of Valdosta City Schools (FVCS), and former
superintendent of Valdosta City Schools, asked several
questions, most of which Dr. Smith would have had to have had
a crystal ball to answer.
The questions included what will happen to certain programs,
and what will happen to Valdosta School SPLOST funds.
Lowndes County School System Attorney Warren Turner did clarify a bit of what
would happen if consolidation passes:
If consolidation occurs, there is no such thing as the Valdosta
City School System, from the date the Georgia Secretary of State approves it.
Once they certify the election, there is no
central office of the Valdosta City School System.
There is a property located on William Street that is part of the
Lowndes County School System….
The real question is where would the funds desginated for those facilities go,
and can you even spend it?
Tax Commissioner doesn’t know; Attorney General doesn’t know; and we don’t know.
What will happen to programs and SPLOST? —Sam Allen @ LCBOE 4 October 2011
Why we oppose consolidation,
Community Forum, Lowndes County Board of Education (LCBOE),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 4 October 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
A local dentist asked the Lowndes County School Board and staff:
Two little girls, one is ten and in the county,
another is three and will be going to the county.
When me and my wife moved into this area,
we spent a lot of time
deciding where we wanted to live mainly based upon
based on schools, and the schools’ records; where we wanted our girls to go.
If consolidation goes through, who will be deciding where our little girls
go to school?
Supt. Smith said the Lowndes County Board of Education would make the
initial decision, but it would have to be approved by the Department of
Justice,
and we all know what that might be.
I’d rather control it locally.
[applause]
George Rhynes complimented Ashley Paulk for having provided
information about people in jail when Paulk was Sheriff,
and noted that unfortunately that had not been the case since.
He asked if someone could point him to where he could get such
information.
Chairman Paulk reminded him that the Sheriff is a constitutional
officer, and the Commission did not direct him.
George Rhynes responded:
Everywhere I go, I hear that.
I go to Brooks County, and they inform me of the same thing.
Chairman Paulk noted:
… by state law.
They agreed on that, and George said he thought nonetheless:
Seems like somebody in the state of Georgia would know how to get that information,
if it is open.
Two attorneys brought a point into the light that CUEE doesn’t like to talk about:
bussing is a natural consequence of consolidation.
That was stated by the attorney for the Lowndes County School System,
Warren Turner, 4 October 2011.
Roy Copeland brought up some names from the past: Mrs. Copeland
or Mrs. Adams, and the newscasters Huntley and Brinkley.
He then asked about the consent decree on desegregation from back in that era:
Has anyone given any thoughts to the issues relative to the consentdecreee,
desegregation, and the realignment of school districts relative to
the Voting Rights Act 1965 preclearance, and all those other issues.
Lowndes County Schools Attorney Warren Turner answered the question,
after Roy Copeland mentioned they were neighbors.
The answer was basically that there would be a hearing before November 8th.
Hm, I wonder what happened with that?
As far as what happens if consolidation is approved by the Valdosta voters,
he said, among other things:
So the concept of a neighborhood school, where everybody stays where they are,
is not going to happen in my opinion, because the federal government is
not going to allow that to happen.
and support of the two school systems,
financially and otherwise.
