Fayette

County School Board members discovered that their

goals and opinions about the school district were

fairly well-aligned Saturday, during a one-day

retreat held at the Sheraton Gateway Hotel near

Hartsfield Airport.

Preparing

all Fayette County students for post-secondary

education and the workplace emerged as their

collective vision. Providing the means to reach

that goal took up the better part of the

afternoon.

"We've

never gotten together like this before,"

Debbie Condon, board chairman said. "This

was very valuable."

The

retreat was guided by Dr. John McGavin of the

Regional Educational Services Agency (RESA).

"This is an opportunity to reflect and be

creative," he told the board. "Take

stock, think about the future and how to get

there."

The

consensus of the board was that the school system

was doing a good job. "We put out a good

product and provide tremendous opportunities for

students, but it's up to the students and their

parents to take advantage of them; I don't

believe that they always do that," Condon

said.

Board

member Connie Hale added, "For the most

part, I'm pleased with the academics." She

advocated keeping the teacher-to-pupil ratio low.

"If it is increased, we could run into a few

problems."

More

courses and greater opportunities for vocational

and technical education students are two things

board member Greg Powers would like to see.

Better

discipline in the classroom would provide

students with more learning time, according to

board member Mickey Littlefield, who believes

about 20-30 minutes of a 55-minute class can be

wasted while teachers deal with discipline

problems.

Better

communication is a goal the board and key staff,

including Superintendent, Dr. John DeCotis, agree

is important.

"The

majority of problems arise from a lack of

communication," Hale said.

One

communication issue facing the board now is

conveying the specifics of the Special Local

Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) referendum coming up

for a vote on Sept.21.

"Every

dollar we spend on trailers is money we can't put

in the classrooms... Are people willing to pay

for a good school system? What brings people here

also causes problems," Condon said.

"We

covered a lot of things that we feel are

important," DeCotis said during the wrap-up

"I think you hit the nail on the head -

work and post-secondary school are the main

issues."

Assistant

Superintendent Fred Oliver added, "A

strategic plan should drive the system. It should

pull everybody together."

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