NEWS BRIEF: Plan for new elementary school in Virginia Highland raising hackles

A proposal to open a new elementary school in the Virginia Highland neighborhood that would form part of a Midtown cluster is upsetting quite a few parents, dozens of whom protested at an Atlanta Public Schools board meeting this week. Parent Shannon Gaggero said the plan “displaces nearly 1,000 elementary students.”

The new school would open in the old Inman Park Middle School building and be attended by about 500 students from Springdale Park Elementary while students from Mary Lin Elementary would then move to Springdale Park. Kids attending Morningside Elementary would also be rezoned. Parents said that they oppose the idea because they believe the school district is rushing the plan, and there is concern about losing good teachers and a lack of equity among the student body. “I think we just feel ignored, quite frankly, and erased from the process,” Gaggero said. wsbtv.com