In a somewhat symbolic move, Fulton Superintendent Mike Looney announced all district employees will receive a one-time payment of $90.30 to celebrate its high school graduation rate.
“We hope — at a minimum — it will buy you a cup of joe somewhere,” he joked during a meeting Tuesday.
The Georgia Department of Education released data this week showing Fulton County Schools had a 90.3% graduation rate for the 2022-23 school year. Fulton officials say it’s the highest recorded graduation rate for the district. The statewide graduation rate ticked up to 84.4%. Fulton’s graduation rate last school year was 89.3%.
The bonus will go to full- and part-time employees and substitute teachers, Looney said.
“(The graduation rate) is a direct result of the hard work of our teachers, our administrators, our parents, our students and all of the support staff members that make up the Fulton County Schools family,” he said.
District officials say Looney brought the idea of giving employees bonuses that match student performance to Fulton. In 2019, all employees received a one-time payment of $83.80 to reflect the district’s score on the state report card that year of 83.8.
More than 14,000 employees will receive the $90 bonus, which will come from the district’s general fund. Despite the congratulatory gift, Looney said the district won’t rest on its laurels.
“We’re not finished,” he said. “This is the tip of the iceberg. We still have some students (who) didn’t graduate on time. Our commitment is to make sure that students, when they enter ninth grade, can count on walking across the stage four years later, with full credentials of a high school graduate.”
Data shows in most Fulton schools, more than 80% of students graduated on time last year. Schools that had lower graduation rates include nontraditional high schools such as Independence and Skyview and the Fulton Academy of Virtual Excellence.
During his tenure as the superintendent of the Williamson County Schools near Nashville, Tennessee, Looney required students who were thinking about dropping out to meet with him personally. Fulton has more than twice the students of his former district, so now regional superintendents meet with students at risk of leaving. Looney, a former high school dropout himself who returned to school and has a doctorate degree, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a May interview that he occasionally still meets with those students.
“I will not be satisfied if there’s a single high school dropout in Fulton County Schools because I think there’s always, ‘What could we have done differently? How could we have intervened more?’” he said.
About the Author
