WEST ATLANTA- (WXIA) About a dozen parents of Atlanta Public School students went to Frederick Douglass High School for a protest Saturday. They said they were still hoping to influence the approved plan to reshuffle Woodson Elementary.
"Being an African-American single father raising a child, that staff there is like family to me-they're an extension of my family," said protester and APS parent Edwin Cook. He said he didn't want his child to have to readjust to new teachers and a new school.
Meanwhile inside the school, dozens of APS teachers were reapplying for jobs they will lose in the re-districting process. The school system says they have to close seven schools because their populations are dwindling. Boosting the populations at other schools will help their budget.
APS teachers can always apply for openings online. The school system offered Saturday's event as a way for displaced teachers to meet multiple prospective employers at one time. 11Alive was not allowed inside the school, system officials cited the need to keep the media out of the stress of the interviewing process.
Teachers coming out of the school declined to speak on camera, but talked about the process. They said it was very crowded inside, with multiple stations set up for each school with an opening. 15 minutes were allowed for each interview.