Atlanta Public Schools | |
---|---|
130 Trinity Avenue Southwest Atlanta, GA 30303-3694 United States |
|
Coordinates | 33°44′54″N 84°23′29″W / 33.748401°N 84.391485°WCoordinates: 33°44′54″N 84°23′29″W / 33.748401°N 84.391485°W |
District information | |
Motto | "Making a Difference" |
Grades | Pre-school - 12 |
Established | 1882 |
Superintendent | Dr. Meria J. Carstarphen |
Students and staff | |
Students | 54,946 |
Staff | 3,860 |
Other information | |
Website | atlanta.k12.ga.us |
Atlanta Public Schools (APS) is a school district based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It is run by the Atlanta Board of Education with superintendent Dr. Meria J. Carstarphen. The system has an active enrollment of 54,956 students, attending a total of 103 school sites: 50 elementary schools (three of which operate on a year-round calendar), 15 middle schools, 21 high schools, four single-gender academies and 13 charter schools. The school system also supports two alternative schools for middle and/or high school students, two community schools, and an adult learning center.
The school system owns the license for, but does not operate, the radio station WABE-FM 90.1 (the National Public Radio affiliate) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) public television station WPBA 30.
The Atlanta Board of Education establishes and approves the policies that govern the Atlanta Public School system. The board consists of nine members, representing six geographical districts, and three "at-large" districts. One person is elected per district to represent the schools in a given district for a four-year term. Under the provisions of the new board charter, approved by the Georgia Legislature in 2003, board members elect a new chairman and vice chairman every two years. The day-to-day administration of the school district is the responsibility of the superintendent, who is appointed by the board.
2014-2015 school year
Established by ordinance of the Atlanta City Council, the Atlanta Public Schools opened three grammar schools and two high schools in 1872 to educate the youth of the city. This brought the total number of schools offering free education to the city's children to seven, as the Freedman's Bureau had established two schools for "Negro" children in 1866.
On August 30, 1961, nine students – Thomas Franklin Welch, Madelyn Patricia Nix, Willie Jean Black, Donita Gaines, Arthur Simmons, Lawrence Jefferson, Mary James McMullen, Martha Ann Holmes and Rosalyn Walton – became the first African American students to attend several of APS's all-white high schools.