Fulton County Schools Zone 4 Superintendent Alexandra Bates told the school board that more than 63 percent of students enrolled in Sandy Springs public schools are economically disadvantaged, but have made significant strides academically.

Bates made her presentation during the Fulton County Schools Board of Education’s work session on Dec. 9.

Bates said Zone 4 has shown clear, consistent improvement over the last three years. The number of beginning learners has decreased and the number of proficient and distinguished learners has increased. Almost half of the students in Sandy Springs meet or exceed standards, with the graduation rate a 95.6 percent in the two traditional high schools, Riverwood and North Springs.

The 8,774 students enrolled in Pre-K to 12 are served by 1,145 employees.

Related stories:
• North Springs and Riverwood boast high graduation rates in Georgia
• North Springs High launches Accelerated Career Diploma program
• Fulton County Schools shows student achievement increases

Bates’ report said that the Sandy Springs student population at these schools includes almost as many Hispanic students (2,718) as it does Black students (2,845). White students make up approximately 24 percent of the enrollment, or 2,160. Asian students are a smaller portion of the population, with 513 enrolled.

Almost 17 percent of the students are English learners, according to the Zone 4 report. Individuals with disabilities make up a little more than 12 percent of the student population. Approximately 18 percent of the students are classified as gifted.

Enrollment by grade level shows the stark reality of declining enrollment. According to the Zone 4 report, enrollment in grades nine through 12 totals 3,135. Only 2,335 students are enrolled in Sandy Springs schools in grades five through eight.

Bates said Zone 4 includes six elementary, three middle, and three high schools, plus six pre-K sites. Specialized learning is offered through one virtual school, one STEM campus, and one STEAM campus. Five schools provide the International Baccalaureate program, which Bates said offers rigorous opportunities for students.

“I want to highlight Woodland Elementary, which is one of the only two STEM schools in the district. Woodland has gone through a rigorous process to earn STEM certification and recently completed recertification,” Bates said. “It serves as a lab school hosting educators from across Georgia who visit to observe best practices and see students engaged in hands-on learning.”

Bates said Woodland’s commitment to hands-on, project-based learning in science, technology, engineering and math, STEM, and the design-thinking process is a way of life at the school. An example is the fifth grade’s work on its first semester question, which is how to lower the impact of power outages on lower-income families in the community. The solutions they create will be presented to community leaders.

“I’m proud to share that every elementary and middle school in zone four has surpassed this norm in English language arts. This is significant because strong growth scores are critical as we work to close achievement gaps for our students,” Bates said.

Other highlights include a 10.6 percent increase in reading indicators for Dunwoody Springs Elementary third graders. Ison Springs third graders had a 13.4 percent increase in reading, its fourth graders showed a 15.4 percent increase, and its fifth graders recorded a 13 percent increase.

Bates said these and other accomplishments couldn’t be done without community partnerships, including the Sandy Springs Education Force.

The post Economically disadvantaged Sandy Springs students show improved academic scores appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta.

The sheriff confirmed that five detainees and four sheriff’s office employees were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital with injuries related to smoke inhalation.

All of those people are stable, but a sheriff’s office lieutenant and a detainee have been intubated.

Labat said that a detainee out for free time gathered plastic trash bags and a plastic bag with Styrofoam food trays in the shower on the seventh floor of the jail’s north tower and set them on fire. He says that the detainee will be charged.

He was one of the detainees taken to the hospital.

All 118 detainees on that floor of the jail were moved to the south tower.

Read more at WSBTV.com.

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The lawsuit, filed in a federal district court in Atlanta, demanded that Fulton County turn over “all used and void ballots, stubs of all ballots, signature envelopes, and corresponding envelope digital files,” from the 2020 election. It also accuses Fulton County Clerk Ché Alexander of violating federal laws for refusing to relinquish the records.

In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon said the records were needed to protect U.S. citizens from “vote dilution.”

Trump has long claimed — without evidence — that the 2020 election was stolen in Georgia and other swing states, blaming his loss on unfounded accusations of rampant voting fraud, even though two recounts affirmed former President Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia. In an interview with POLITICO published earlier this week, Trump claimed that in the next few months, evidence would emerge to prove that 2020 was “a rigged election.”

Dhillon first requested Fulton County’s 2020 election records in October, following a subpoena over the same records issued by the State Election Board in 2024. In a letter to the Fulton County Board of Election, she argued that the records were needed to “ascertain Georgia’s compliance” with the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 and the 2002 Help America Vote Act.

However, Alexander denied Dhillon’s request, according to the lawsuit, stating that the records were under seal and could not be released without a court order. Alexander did not immediately reply to a request for comment Friday.

Max Flugrath, communications director at the voting rights organization Fair Fight, said the Justice Department is “recycling conspiracy theories that’ve been disproven in court, in audits, and by independent experts.”

“They’re abusing federal power to manufacture a reason to restrict ballot access in 2026 and beyond,” he added.

The Justice Department also filed lawsuits against Colorado, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Nevada on Friday to compel the states to turn over their voter registration lists.

The Justice Department has requested voter data from 40 states and filed lawsuits against 18 states that refused to provide the records, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, which is tracking the requests. Officials told Stateline that the records will be shared with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in an effort to locate noncitizens on the voting rolls.

The post Trump’s Justice Department sues Fulton County to force release of 2020 ballot documents appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta.

In conjunction with their fourth quarterly briefing, The Atlanta Beltline held a World Cup-themed panel on Dec. 11 at The Chandelier Room at Monday Night Garage in West End.

Moderated by local photographer Cam Kirk, the panel featured Beltline President and CEO Clyde Higgins, Grammy award-winning songwriter and producer Dallas Austin, City of Atlanta Director of Initiative and External Relations and interim Director of Showcase Atlanta Lamar Stewart, and Soccer in the Streets founder Kaseem Ladipo. They discussed the Beltline’s role in bolstering small businesses, fostering relationships between locals and World Cup visitors, and maintaining an impact that lasts beyond the sporting event next summer. 

The World Cup is estimated to bring around 300,000 visitors to Atlanta in June and July 2026. As one of 16 host cities, Atlanta will host eight World Cup matches at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, including one semifinal. 

By the World Cup, the Beltline will feature 17 miles of continuous trail. Additionally, the Beltline has created 30,000 jobs to date, not including an estimated 40,000 temporary construction jobs. 

“We’ve got to think about what Atlanta’s going to look like in the future,” Higgins said. 

“The World Cup is an economic engine for Atlanta,” explained Kelvin Collins, Vice President of Economic Development for the Atlanta Beltline. The World Cup is one of Atlanta’s largest tourism pushes since the 1996 Olympics, and one that Collins said will “strengthen the city as a global beacon.”

The event at Monday Night Garage maintained an infectious energy that felt genuinely local. Songs by Atlanta-based artists like OutKast and T.I. soundtracked the evening. Attendees were encouraged to wear their favorite soccer team’s jersey, but many took the opportunity to wear sharp, colorful outfits in bold shades. A few younger children slept in their parents’ arms, while others kicked a soccer ball around an alcove adjacent to the bar. 

The event kicked off with a lengthy progress report from a series of Beltline leaders.

For example, the Beltline will launch its Commercial Affordability Consortium and the Beltline Business Facade pARTnership Grant next year. Beltline Vice President Lynette Reed said that affordable housing remains one of the team’s highest priorities as the Beltline approaches completion. Mayor Andre Dickens wants to extend the Beltline’s Tax Allocation Districts through 2030. 

Kim Wilson, Vice President of Design and Construction, announced that 85 percent of the trail is either complete or under construction, and that the Southside trail should be completed by the World Cup next summer. Additionally, two parks on Atlanta’s west side are currently in development. 

Collins unveiled the Beltline Information Hub, a “digital front door” that will help prepare residents and guests for the World Cup matches. Collins also announced the second cohort application of the Small Business Readiness Program, discussed the Beltline Marketplace, and unveiled the Beltline Fest, a free, weeks-long event providing a “connected circuit of celebration.” 

More FIFA 2026 World Cup coverage.

After the updates, Kirk segued into the panel portion of the night. He asked the panelists questions, including what success looks like after the World Cup, how they see Atlanta’s history, music, and culture shaping the city’s identity on a world stage in 2026, citywide prep and planning updates, and how World Cup activations will strengthen the Beltline’s broader mission. 

The brunt of the discussion focused on uplifting small businesses and local creators. Stewart emphasized that plenty of resources are available to small businesses that openly communicate with the city. FIFA Fan Fest, for example, is a state entity, so businesses interested in working the event need to be a supplier within the city, state, and county. Additionally, any business interested in hosting watch parties must obtain a viewing party license through the Mayor’s Office of Special Events. 

“There’s so much out there and we want to help,” Stewart said. 

Kirk and Ladipo also discussed how the Beltline can become a launchpad for youth soccer. Soccer drives economics for local communities, like playing soccer in neighborhood parks and pubs with amateur teams seeking places to regularly host matches.

“We need to show that we don’t need to find a field to play,” Ladipo said. 

Finally, the panel addressed the importance of promoting a variety of communities and actual neighborhoods in Atlanta. The Beltline is intentionally hosting Beltline Fest in the Pittsburgh neighborhood, located in the city’s southwest sector near Castleberry Hill, Adair Park, and Mechanicsville. 

The panel closed with a Q&A. Discussions with audience members ranged from bringing international soccer culture to Atlanta to concrete steps entrepreneurs can take to legally participate in World Cup activations. The panel also addressed how the Beltline’s ongoing projects and World Cup plans are being designed to include the neurodivergent population, particularly those on the autism spectrum.

“The games may happen at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, but the real magic will happen on the Beltline,” Collins said of the World Cup in Atlanta. 

The post Atlanta Beltline officials discuss preparing the pedestrian trail for the World Cup appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta.

The podcast, produced by Will Packer Productions and Complex, features eight episodes that spotlight the stories behind Atlanta’s music scene, politics, film, religion, and more. To help decide what those stories should be, the production team brought in a trio of experts. 

Jewel Wicker, Maurice Garland, and Christina Lee serve as hosts of the podcast,  tasked with figuring out just how those eight episodes should be divided up. With seven of the eight episodes already out (the final one drops Dec. 17), the trio has covered everything from the influence of Atlanta’s Black churches on the rest of the world to the city’s status as a Mecca for Black businesses. 

“Those first few months were us sitting down and saying, you guys have this very general, broad concept,” Wicker said. “Within the reporting that the three of us have done over the span of our careers, what are some stories that we’re interested in telling?”

The three hosts bring very different backgrounds to the podcast. Wicker’s family has been in Atlanta since the 1920s. Lee moved to the city from the Washington D.C. metropolitan area in 2009. Garland wasn’t born in Atlanta, but he might as well have been — he and his family moved to the city when he was four years old. 

The hosts’ different perspectives help “Atlanta Is…” offer a robust take on the city, telling stories that are personal to them and that they’re passionate about. 

“A lot of these stories are about places that we have actually set foot and spent time in. A lot of these stories are about people that we run into all the time or actually know,” Garland said. “I interviewed the dude that owns the barber shop that I go to!”

That personal touch is what makes “Atlanta Is…” such a fun listen, but the hosts faced a singular challenge — making the podcast interesting to locals while still making it accessible to those outside of the city. The stories on the podcast are specific to Atlanta and emphasize its reputation as an epicenter of Black culture. But even with that specificity, the stories are still universal, Garland said. When the episode about the 559 — the popular 1990s nightclub that helped fuel the rise of crunk music  — was released, Garland said friends from all over the country were reaching out to tell him about similar clubs in their cities. 

“We’re still telling very American stories at the same time. I think that’s what makes it palatable to a lot of audiences,” Garland said. “But we are doing ourselves a favor by trying to be as specific as possible and not leaving a lot of room for vagueness or misunderstanding.”

The podcast features interviews with plenty of nationally known names, like Ludacris and Sen. Raphael Warnock. But Lee said that whenever they talked to a celebrity, they tried to present them within contexts that they’d rarely been seen in before. One episode features Ludacris talking about his roots in Atlanta rap radio. Another features Pastor Troy discussing Atlanta’s role as a nexus for Black businesses. 

“We had to be conscious of the names that would draw everybody else to the show, but we wanted to be able to talk to them in ways that still seemed novel and exciting for us,” Lee said. 

When figuring out how to shape each episode, it was necessary to kill some darlings — after all, some of these episode topics could have stretched on into series-long podcasts themselves. Lee said she was conscious of making sure that the stories they told not only explained Atlanta then, but helped explain the city today. 

“First it has to be a compelling story … but then also when you get to the end, is it the story that can really help substantially explain some aspect of how Atlanta’s cultural influence shows up today?” Lee said. 

For Wicker, working on the show added more context to events that she experienced first as just a person, not a reporter. One of the episodes tells the story of Morris Brown College losing its accreditation in conjunction with the 2002 movie “Drumline,” which was filmed on Morris Brown’s campus. Morris Brown lost its accreditation around the same time due to financial mismanagement issues. The school’s accreditation was restored in 2022. 

“I knew Morris Brown and had a reverence for it, and I obviously knew that they lost their accreditation, and I also knew ‘Drumline,’ obviously – it’s a cult classic,” Wicker said. “But I don’t think I had really put the timeline together … that those two things were happening literally at the same time.” 

Garland said that one of his favorite episodes was Episode Six, which considers Atlanta’s reputation as a Mecca for Black businesses. His aforementioned barber shop resides on Peters Street. According to Garland, the owner, Karl Booker, had been hounding him for years about doing a story about the businesses of Peters Street. 

“I finally had an opportunity to do that after him telling me that for 20 years,” Garland said. 

That’s been one of the real rewards of this podcast, said Wicker — telling stories about slices of Atlanta history that don’t get the shine they deserve. 

“We finally get to tell some of the stories that have been untold and give some of those folks a platform to tell their stories in a way that for decades they’ve been wanting to, and no one has given them the chance,” Wicker said. 

The post ‘Atlanta Is …’ podcast dives into what makes the city unique appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta.