We as concerned parents and community members of Sky View Elementary School, sign this petition as statement of concern against the proposed closing of Sky View Elementary School by the Cobb County School District (CCSD).

We feel for the following reasons that the school should not be closed, and at the least, our concerns should be voiced and heard by CCSD board members:

1) The two proposed options are not an “option” with both of them closing Sky View Elementary. Schools are supposed to be a part of and supported by the community, and this is what happens at Sky View.

2) Sky View is a community school, and instead of closing the school, the CCSD should be using it as a model of how to run a school at the elementary level. The administration and staff go above and beyond just teaching, to ensure that all students receive the care and education that CCSD should be proud of.

3) Even as a Title I school, Sky View test results are competitive with other schools in the CCSD system, and year over year are trending in the right direction. This is a testament of how to run a school.

4) In an age where public education is suffering, and countless data has been collected showing that larger class sizes are NOT the answer, it behooves me to know that CCSD is closing a great school, and tripling the size of a current school (Mableton Elementary).

5) The CCSD has failed to follow some of its own criteria for redistricting (i.e. clean feeder patterns, transportation safety, and community concern).

6) The CCSD has failed to clearly show the impact (i.e. students vs. school capacity) of what this redistricting will do so that parents can easily quantify for themselves, and make an information based decision.

7) The CCSD has failed to objectively listen to the concerns of parents, their constituents, in the forums, and seemingly have “forced” a plan on us and asking for comments after the fact.

We ask that the CCSD board members, take these other concerns into consideration when making their final decision during this redistricting process.