Tuesday, October 19th

Two weeks from today is Election Day. I hope that everyone will be able to get out and vote. There are plenty of opportunities to vote between now and then with early voting. Also, the voter registration office on Memorial Drive will be open this Saturday, October 23rd, 8 am
until 5 pm.

Remember, voting is a privilege not available in every country. If you want change and your voice to be heard, you must express yourselves by voting!

Here is the link to the early voting information page on the Dekalb Voter Registration website:

http://web.co.dekalb.ga.us/portals/news-room/a_release.asp?filePK=969

October 5, 2010

Thank you for visiting the Bobbe Gillis for Dekalb School Board blog.

I have been attending forums, meetings and researching non-stop for the past several weeks, and intend to continue to do so for the next several weeks. Remember, Election Day is Tuesday, November 2nd and everyone needs to get out and vote!!

On Tuesday, September 21st I attended a meeting about plans for the future of Dunwoody redevelopment. I have contacted the planners to let them know that when elected to the board I would like to be involved in this discussion. I would like some assurance that if there is to be any high density development, our already overcrowded schools will be compensated by additions or the building of a new school.

On Tuesday, September 28th I attended the EduKalb forum at Dunwoody City Hall. My opponent was there and several other prospective board members. The incumbent for District 1 was not in attendance that evening. I was pleased to see that everyone who was in attendance has the same goal - a better education for all our children.

My words and actions came across as "a nice lady." Thank you for that compliment and I just want to say that this nice lady is also smart and passionate about the DeKalb County School System. I realize that there is an incredible amount of work to be done, but I believe that it can be accomplished with a board of education that works together as a team.


Thank you Nancy Minnich for hosting some Chamblee parents on Friday morning. It was a pleasure to meet with all of you and learn of your concerns. I truly appreciate your commitment to our school system and your devotion to your students. I would gladly work beside you on all that needs to be done to make Chamblee High School a true reflection of its magnificent student body. Last night, many of you were at the Board of Education work session. Kudos to Karen Ruffin for submitting your concerns and goals for Chamblee High School so articulately.

Upcoming events:

Thursday, October 7th EduKalb Debate for all DCSB candidates
Dekalb Medical Center Theatre, 6:30-9 pm

Friday, October 8th ODE interview 3 pm

Monday, October 11th DCSB meeting 6 pm at Mountain Ind. Blvd. facility

Sunday, October 17th New Hope Church Community Day
10:30 am - 1 pm "A Day to Honor our public officials and servants"

Sunday, October 17th Meet and Greet at the home of Ted and Renee Walkup, 7 pm.

Thurday, October 21st DECA meeting at Dresden Elementary School 7 pm

Tuesday, October 26th DHA forum at Dunwoody United Methodist Church, 7 pm

Thursday, October 28th Lunch and Learn at Dunwoody Library, 12 noon

Monday, November 1, DCSB Work session 6 pm at Mountain Ind.

Tuesday, November 2nd , Election Day

September 21, 2010

Many of you have asked me if I responded to the questionnaire distibuted by EduKalb. I did, and my biography/highlight was published at the beginning of August. Last Thursday, September 16th I had the great priviledge of participating in an EduKalb interview at the Holiday Inn in downtown Decatur. I felt like the interview went well, and I had some good conversation about the DCSS with the interviewers. All the candidates were interviewed that day, and EduKalb will be posting their findings sometime soon on their site. Candidate questionnaires have been posted to the EduKalb site. Here is a link to my page: http://edukalb.org/?page_id=400

On Thursday, October 7th, EduKalb and the League of Women Voter's will be hosting at School Board candidate debate in the theatre at DeKalb Medical Center. The debate will include most all candidates, although I did see that our incumbent is unable to attend, and will be from 6:30 to 9 pm. It is open the public. The League of Women Voters have also compiled a voter guide ( I submitted answers to questions for this) and it will be published online at the Champion and in the AJC. Here is the link: http://ajc.com/voterguide

Many of you have asked for pins and signs and will have both in the next couple of weeks.

In the meantime, my friend Margaret Pumper is hosting a coffee for me on Saturday, Sept. 25th.
I will be attending the North DeKalb Republican Women's luncheon following the coffee.

On Tuesday, September 28th there will be an EduKalb Candidate forum at Dunwoody City
Hall at 6:30 pm.

On October 1st I will be attending a coffee hosted by Chamblee parent, Nancy Minnich.

On Wednesday, Oct. 6th at 8:45 am at Chamblee High School there will be at DCPC meeting and EduKalb will come and talk about their purpose.

On Sunday, Oct. 17th my friend, Renee Walkup will host a coffee at her house.

On Thursday, Oct. 21st at 7 pm there will be at Candidate forum at Dresden Elementary School sponsored by the DECA.

In the last week of October there are 2 forums planned. The Dunwoody Homeowner's Association is hosting one of Tuesday, October 26th at 7 pm at Dunwoody United Methodist Church. The DeKalb Chamblee Parent's Council will host a lunch and learn at the Dunwoody Library on Thursday, October 28th, noon.

I hope to meet each of you at least one of these events. I am excited about the serving you as your Board of Education member. As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns.

School Board Meeting Monday, September 7th

I attended the Dekalb County School Board last night and was impressed by how well the meeting flowed and the progress that was made between the board members.



I strongly suggest that you read about it here: http://dekalbschoolwatch.blogspot.com/

Great blog and very informative!

It has been a long time....

I can't believe school has been is session almost a full month. The Gillis family slipped into it like we had never left.



Since I last wrote I have been very active meeting new people and listening to their ideas and concerns for our school system. I keep hearing the same thing, and I am glad. We have one common goal - the very best education for our children! Now, we all need to work together to replace those on our school board with other active and intelligent parents. I say "parents" because we all know that parents are the key factor in implementing positive change in our schools.



I am very fortunate to be running for the School Board in a district where so many parents are very involved and passionate about the schools. I'd like to share our vision and support those in other districts so that there schools can become better.



Here are a few of the things I have been doing to let the public know that I am running for this office and intend to win this seat!



On Thursday, Sept. 19th I stopped by to see Mayor Ray Jenkins of Doraville and while in that vicinity also visited with Ms. Pearch, the Principal of Cary Reynolds Elementary School. Ms Pearch is very passionate about her school and has done an outstanding job of creating an atmosphere of harmony amongst so many diverse cultural groups. Ms. Pearch shared with me some of her accomplishments as principal. The first year she was at Cary Reynolds the school did not meet AYP by merely 2 students. Since that time (9 years) the school has met AYP every year! Fantastic Ms. Pearch! Yes, it can be done and I would like to have more information from you to share with other schools which are experiencing difficulty.



Last Wednesday, I was able to share a cup of coffee with Mayor Ken Wright of Dunwoody. Through the course of our conversation I was able to learn that Mayor Wright and I share a passion for outstanding schools in our district, our county, our state and our country.

I believe this can be achieved. We just need to make it a priority in all our lives. Whether or not you have children in our public schools, it is in your best interest to make certain that our schools "keep kids first." We are educating our future leaders, business people, doctors, lawyers, every position imaginable and some we don't even know of yet! We are also falling short on the education of many, and these children are turning into non-productive adults. Imagine the financial burden that could be eliminated if our children were educated properly.



Each week I have been in my children's schools volunteering my time and getting to know the parents. You are all wonderful! Keep up the good work and don't forget the good news about the DCSS - you have a choice to elect a new board member on November 2nd that shares your passion.

First week of school

Hope everyone in District 1 had a good first week back to school. I heard of buses that were as much as 50 minutes late for pick up on the first day, 40 minutes the second day and 30 minutes the third. By the 4th day the drivers had decided that needed to tell the students they were coming at a later time and therefore were only 15 minutes late. I know that traffic around DHS, Vanderlyn and DES must have been an absolute mess, but I think by now all the kinks should be worked out and thing should be running smoother. Everything I heard and read indicated that this would be easier week transportation wise.

I also heard stories of school buildings where the heat was on! Imagine 95 degrees plus outside and just the same inside. Hope those schools are nice and cool on Monday morning when the students and teachers go back.

More bad press for Dekalb County Schools this week - I won't even go into it. By now I am certain that everyone knows of each unsavory tidbit. All I can say is that there is good news for the citizens of Dekalb County. Come November 2nd we have the opportunity to elect 4 new board members, who can hopefully steer our school board towards a brighter future and find a qualified superintendent who is interested in the needs of our children and community.

There was an article in the Dunwoody Crier this week about eduKalb. I mentioned in an earlier blog that I had responded to questions from them at the beginning of August. This week I was pleased to see that they featured me along with incumbent, Dr. Walker. The eduKalb website is very informative and I encourage all to read it. http://edukalb.org/

There is a great article on the site about Dunwoody's Mayor Ken Wright, who serves on the eduKalb board. Here is the link: http://edukalb.org/?p=275. This is a quote from the article which I feel strongly agree with, "Dunwoody focuses a lot of time on chickens, signs, and zoning, but NOTHING on schools. The schools are the backbone of every community. You can remove every chicken, every piece of signage, every multi-colored strand of Christmas lights, and every apartment building in Dunwoody – but without great schools Dunwoody will stumble."

We have the opportunity to make our schools great! Let's do it!

DHS meeting and Registration day

I attended the Dunwoody High School meeting on Wednesday night regarding construction updates at the school. The meeting turned into an update about the parking situation going into the new year.

The construction team has come up with a viable plan to park the entire faculty, the construction personel and 100 Seniors. The parking seems very tight and will hopefully be very carefully regimented. As a parent the current plan seems scary. The idea is to route traffic dropping students off through student and faculty parking and in between the school and learning cottages. There will be police direction the first day and as needed for the first week. My advice to any parent is to encourage their child to walk or ride their bike to the school - it simply seems like too much activity on too small a piece of property with too many inexperienced drivers and students wandering about to be safe.

The plan also calls for the removal of the trailers in the next couple of months - date unconfirmed. At that time there will be 60 additional parking spaces available, but still very tight in a school of 1500+ students.

Call it "green" but I still think walking or riding a bike if you are close enough to the school makes the most sense.

On Thursday I attended two District 1 school registrations, Austin and Peachtree Charter Middle School. Austin, which I have attended for the last 8 years was an absolute mob scene.
I can't pinpoint exactly why it was so much more crowded and difficult to navigate then in years past, but it did leave me thinking that something needs to changed for the future. Peachtree was alright and I heard from many that both Dunwoody Elementary and Dunwoody High School registrations were very chaotic.

Wouldn't it be smart to instigate a system where returning students only have to show up with current proof of residency and pick up their schedules? I feel strongly that all paperwork could be completed in the spring and over the summer the administrators come up with a plan for returning students and to accomodate for new students by looking at past enrollment.

School Board Meeting Monday, August 2nd

Last night I attended the School Board Meeting at the DCSS Administrative & Instructional Complex. Now I know where are tax dollars are going! Hah! The room where the meeting was held was newly completed. The board members themselves sat way up in front of what looked like 1000 chairs - very comfortable and expensive looking, on a large podium with engraved nameplates. The spot lights shined on all their heads and faces. Camera and technical equipment was everywhere! Just guessing I would say several million dollars were spent in this room alone. As a tax payer, I think my dollars might have been better spent saving a few teachers from lay offs or perhaps taking away a furlough day. Last month the meeting was held at the Bryant Center on Lawrenceville Highway - not as glamorous, but just as effective - possibly more so for me, because it felt like the board truly cared about excessive spending. After last night I am not quite so certain.

It seems that the school system is almost ready to be open for students on August 9th. That might depend on the area in which you live since there are still some construction projects that are not complete and a few principals to be hired.

Tomorrow I plan to attend an informational meeting about the changes at Dunwoody High School and meet the new principal. Will post my thoughts about that meeting and registration on Thursday in a couple of days.

Visits to Schools

Yesterday I spent some time visiting a few of the schools in District 1. First stop was Hawthorne Elementary where I meet the Assistant Principal, Gail Jones. Seems Mrs. Jones and I were meant to meet at some point - her mother and my elementary school principal are best friends! Mrs. Jones even had a picture of Lillian Cantrell in her office! Wow, what a small world.

I visited Hightower Elementary and met the Administrative Assistant and a couple gentlemen from the maintenance staff. Also,I met the Principal, Mr. Oliver Lewis and was happy to hear about his vision for the students and school.

Next, was Chestnut Charter Elementary School where I met, Mrs. Toni Clark, one of the Administrative Assistants. She has a daughter at Dunwoody High School, who has been in Dekalb schools since 3rd grade. Mrs. Clark has a great understanding of the problems and some fine ideas for solutions to the Dekalb School System.

My final stop yesterday was to visit Dunwoody Elementary School and say hello to Mr. Clark.
What a beautiful school and a wonderful example of all that a school should be - the school is clean, bright, well organized and from the minute you walk in you have the impression that the students' priorities come first!

I will be continuing my District 1 school tours in the next couple of weeks and will be posting my impressions of each school.

eduKalb questionnaire

I was mailed a contact form and questionnaire from eduKalb, http://www.edukalb.org.

"eduKalb is a non-partisan, independent and non-profit organization established by business, church, civic and community leaders in DeKalb County working to improve the performance of our DeKalb Schools, as well the effectiveness and professionalism of our DeKalb School Board."

Here are the questions and my answers:

eduKALB Dekalb School Board Candidate Survey

1. Please briefly describe the qualifications and abilities which you believe make you best suited to serve on the Dekalb County Board of Education.

I am a graduate of the Dekalb County School System and now have two children in Dekalb County schools. One child is in elementary and one child is in middle school. I spend a great deal of time volunteering at both schools and have been witness to many parents who dedicate their time at the schools to make certain that their child has the very best education possible.

I have owned a business for the last 13 years, and I am a creative thinker. I am capable of leading and working as part of a team, setting goals, creating and implementing policies, managing budgets and hiring new staff while always maintaining honesty and integrity.

2. What do you see as the top three most pressing challenges facing our Dekalb Schools?

1. Our children are not receiving the education that they need so that they may compete in a global economy upon graduation.

2. The furlough and lay offs of our teachers is demeaning and inappropriate. How do we expect to educate our children if we do not have the teaching staff and those teachers who are in the schools are unhappy and dissatisfied with their careers because they are not rewarded for their commitment?

3. The negative press that our school system has received as a result of the overstaffed and dishonest administration. This makes Dekalb a poor choice for businesses and anyone looking to relocate - further reducing our overall economy

3. What qualities and skill sets do you believe would be most important in seeking a new Superintendent for Dekalb Schools?

Dekalb needs someone who is a great communicator and impeccably honest. I would like to see someone from the business community who has a strong history of proven success. A Superintendent should be someone who is willing to work within the community he/she is representing, implement policies and follow these policies themselves.

4. The Dekalb School Board oversees and approves an annual budget approaching $1.2 billion. As a school board member, how would you approach making certain that those dollars are spent most effectively to support our educational mission?

I would look at the current expenditures and salaries of the school system to make certain that monies are being spent equitably. I feel that there are many administrative positions that may no longer be necessary, and I would like to see these positions eliminated so that the money can be used to support our educational mission.

5. What do you understand to be the three most important responsibilities of a school board member?

First and most importantly to remember at all times the school board's mission, which is "to form a collaborative effort between home and school that maximizes student's social and academic potential preparing them to compete in a global society."

Second, to abide by the goals of the school board. Goals one and two should be combined to say that the board will narrow the achievement gap to increase graduation rates by increasing rigor and academic achievement.

And lastly, to combine the 3rd and 4th goals to say the board should provide quality personnel in all positions and ensure fiscal responsibility.

6. In your previous experience how have you best been able to bridge conflict, or help to build consensus when part of a deeply divided group?

In my experience as an employer, business person and parent I have always tried to understand all the different aspects of every hostile situation. I want to hear from each party and research the wrongdoings and then present options which can be voted on to reach a mutually beneficial agreement.

7. Given Dekalb County's shrinking tax digest, and other financial difficulties… how might you approach the issue of potential closure of under-utilized schools and facilities?

Our county school system must be redistricted to accommodate for growth, shrinking and aging populations. This should be looked at yearly, recorded and then be mandated every 5-10 years.

Here are some questions from a concerned parent and my answers in blue.

Where do you stand on school choice and school vouchers? I personally, as well as many of my friends who will vote, are against them.
I wish that every school was teaching every student at the optimum level, and I will strive to make that a reality. If that were the case there would certainly be no reason for vouchers or school choice.

What do you plan to do to see that the teacher furlough days are eliminated? I have been very outspoken in this area as I firmly believe this is wrong. The teachers are the most important part of each day in our children's lives.
I couldn't agree with you more. I have many friends who are teachers and are being effected by this in such a big way.
I want to examine exactly where the money is being spent in our school system. I think that there are too many layers of administration and would like to see some of those positions eliminated so that we can free up some money for the teachers. Also, we are hiring specialty teachers from outside our state and country. While I think that this is necessary to promote a complete "world learning" environment, I would like to see some of our teachers take additional courses so that they can teach these classes and reduce their furlough days.

How do you feel about teaching to the test rather than teachers being allowed to teach the subject. I personally feel there are way too many tests. My take on this - have a weekly test in the subject and you can see what a student is learning and what they are not learning; have a test at the end of six weeks and you can see what they have learned and retained over that six week period; then a test at the end of the semester covering all that was taught that semester. The timing of these tests would be open to suggestions and input from the teachers but bottom line - let them teach.
I agree with you that there are too many government restricted tests and this takes away from teaching about the subjects at hand. I like your idea about testing weekly, every six weeks and at the end of the semester.

IEP's must continue and stay in place for those students who have them.
Yes, of course. I would like to see IEPs in place for all students.

Do you feel that you have an obligation to respond to emails and/or questions from those who have elected you, even if you strongly disagree with their opinion and/or questions?
Yes, absolutely.

Would like to have an understanding of why someone may disagree, so that I may see the situation from a different perspective and learn from it. Do you feel you represent all people in your district regardless of their economic status?
Yes, having lived in all the areas I will be representing I have come across people of all different economic standings. I respect all that an individual may be going through and understand that no matter what their child has the right to a great education.

Do you feel that the most important thing as far as our schools are concerned are the students and the teachers?
Yes, and by keeping that in my heart and my mind I hope to make the right decisions.

When the search for a new Superintendent is started, what are you going to be looking for in that person? I personally believe that we must find someone who has the qualifications to manage a large school district but also one totally removed from the DeKalb school system.
Last night I attended the School Board meeting and was very impressed by our interim superintendent. That being said I would like to look within the county and outside the county for this particular position. I do not want to limit our search and overlook a DeKalb resident who might be a fine superintendent.

The first two weeks of my campaign

Well, it has been a little over two weeks since I registered to run in the November General Election for Dekalb County District 1 School Board. It has been an exciting time and everyday I am actively meeting new people in my district and learning about their concerns for our schools.

The campaign started with a bang when I was able to participate in the Dunwoody 4th of July parade. While other candidates were seated on the back of very expensive convertibles I chose an alternative method of transportation - my bicycle! I hope my message was conveyed to the public that not only am I concerned about our environment, but I believe that in order to solve the problems of our school system one must be very selective in their own personal expenses. I will be running a campaign that is deliberately frugal.

On Thursday of that same week, I participated in a forum sponsored by the City of Doraville.
It was my first opportunity to speak to the public and meet my opponent and the imcumbent. Both are very intelligent, but they do not possess the one thing that makes me feel uniquely qualified for this position. I am a creative thinker, who is able to solve problems by looking at the facts and thinking outside the box.

Last week I answered questions galore about my beliefs and intentions. I will be posting those questions and answers on this blog so that you may get to know me better.

First Week on the Campaign

Well, it is the end of my first week campaigning for Dekalb County School Board District 1. It has been such an exciting week!

I registered at 10:30 am last Friday for this position because I felt compelled to make a change in the School System. After reviewing the