Gov. Deal Talks Education, Tours DeKalb High School

Gov. Nathan Deal Wednesday toured Chamblee Charter High School, which moved into a new building in December. The campus houses cutting edge technology, spacious athletic facilities, and a building for the arts.

Deal credited DeKalb Superintendent and former labor commissioner Michael Thurmond for helping the district shed its accredited probation status.

“It just goes to show that politicians can do some other things besides be politicians,” Deal said. “He’s proven to be a great administrator of this system and he’s certainly to be commended for that.”

Deal said his decision to replace two-thirds of the school board also helped the district get back on track. 

The governor is in the midst of a re-election campaign. He said if he wins a second term, he’ll propose new education initiatives, such as offering ungraded classes.

“If [students are] in an ungraded situation and they can move along and progress appropriately, then they can at some point rejoin their peers and never have the stigma of having failed a grade,” Deal said.

The governor said he’d also like to re-examine education funding and financially reward the state’s best teachers.