The sidewalk where 12-year-old Andrew Smola patiently waits for the bus was once covered in thick Georgia woods and marshy land where hunters would chase after deer and rabbits with their dogs. However, this neighborhood has now transformed into a suburbia with well-maintained green lawns and two-story houses, resembling many other areas in the United States. The old Peeples property by Starr’s Mill has been replaced with three new schools that resemble upscale shopping malls. The district hopes to pass a $65 million bond referendum to build four more schools and renovate existing ones.
Fayette County, Georgia has undergone significant changes since Andrew’s birth. The area now has shopping plazas, heavy traffic, and expanding pavement and vinyl siding. The population of Fayette County is approximately 90,900, with a public school enrollment of 19,500 students. The student population consists of 83 percent white, 12 percent black, 2 percent Hispanic, and 3 percent Asian/Pacific Islander students. Only 6.7 percent of students receive free or discounted meals. The median household income is $50,000. Enrollment in the district has dramatically increased from less than 3,500 students in 1970.
However, the passage of the bond referendum is not guaranteed. Voters have already rejected two sales tax increases for schools in the past two years. Fayette County’s growing pains reflect the challenges faced by other American communities as they struggle to keep up with rapid growth. Andrew’s town of Tyrone may eventually become as large as Peachtree City, the largest town in Fayette County. Peachtree City is known for its high personal income rates and famed for having more golf carts per person than any other community in America. By the time Andrew and his peers go to college, the suburb where they grew up will likely be unrecognizable.
For Janet Smola, Andrew’s mother, the main reason for choosing Fayette County was its excellent schools. The district’s reputation has contributed to its significant increase in enrollment over the years. Janet, a 48-year-old independent professional fund-raiser, was uncontested in her fall election to the school board and aims to help manage the growth that is transforming her new home county. She values the well-trained teachers, modern schools, reasonable class sizes, and well-stocked classrooms. The Smola family moved from Connecticut for Michael Smola’s job as a division comptroller for Delta Airlines, and they have not been disappointed with the school system in the South. Janet did not notice any significant differences compared to Northern schools.
Debbie Condon, the outgoing chairwoman of the Fayette County Board of Education, believes that planning for growth will be a major challenge for Janet Smola as a district policy-maker.
However, the demand for new schools may finally be catching up with the Fayette County tax base, which is still relatively small compared to the larger suburban counties in Atlanta. This year, taxpayers rejected a sales tax increase on purchases made in Fayette County, which would have been used to construct new schools and expand existing ones. Next month, voters will be asked to approve a $65 million bond referendum to address this pressing need. The demand is so high that even some of the district’s newest schools have resorted to using portable classrooms, with over 100 currently in use countywide.
Smola is hopeful that taxpayers will recognize the necessity of investing in the schools that have attracted people to Fayette County. According to her, the county’s growth has only just begun, and if voters refuse to invest in these respected schools, it may diminish the county’s appeal. She states, “we are going to tarnish the brilliant reputation that initially drew people here.”
When Andrew Smola, a seventh-grade student, enters the library at Flat Rock Middle School, he is greeted by over 20 computers. A parent volunteer works diligently shelving magazines, while an artist paints a mural on the wall. Andrew sits down at a computer and begins typing with the speed of an adult familiar with daily computer work. The schools in Fayette County have established an excellent academic reputation in Georgia, which is the kind of school that many children dream of attending, including Andrew and his brothers, Zach and Evan.
The influx of people from across the country has required long-time educators in the county to stay up-to-date and adaptive. Sandra Watson, the principal of Peeples Elementary School, acknowledges that families moving into the Starr’s Mill community have high expectations for their children’s education. She emphasizes the importance of competence in teaching, stating, “There’s no room for deception. You have to be knowledgeable in your field.”
Twenty years ago, Fayette County saw a gradual improvement in test scores, and today, its high schools boast the highest average SAT scores in the state. With a combined math and verbal average of 1046 out of 1600, compared to the national average of 1019, and Georgia’s average of 974, the schools have made significant progress. Pam Riddle, an administrator overseeing the county’s elementary schools, attributes this success to the changing student population and the county’s ability to adapt.
Janet Smola acknowledges that the academic achievements and scholarships earned by students cannot solely be attributed to the schools. She recognizes the crucial role played by stay-at-home mothers who possess advanced degrees, such as a pediatrician and a biologist, in reinforcing their children’s education. This parental support has resulted in nine out of ten Fayette students enrolling in college.
Al Gilbert, a county planning commissioner and sales manager for a building supply company, expresses concern about some of the changes occurring in Fayette County due to its growth. However, he praises the quality of education his children have received. Gilbert’s son, who is currently a freshman at West Georgia College, shared with him the positive experience he had in a math class.
With a population of 11 percent, the county already has a higher proportion of residents from minority backgrounds compared to other wealthy suburban counties in metropolitan Atlanta. A significant number of schoolchildren in the metropolitan area belong to non-Asian minority groups, and many of them live near the borders of Fayette County. On the county’s northern border, close to Atlanta, there is an elementary school where the majority of students are black. The new neighborhoods surrounding this school resemble the Smolas’ neighborhood, but they are populated by middle and upper-middle-class black families.
Fayette County is experiencing the third-fastest growth in its Hispanic population in the entire nation, although the total number is still relatively small at 3,500. Since 1990, the number of Hispanic residents has increased by an impressive 246 percent. Superintendent DeCotis acknowledges that the community as a whole is becoming more diverse as people from different countries choose to move here. Additionally, there are some international businesses in the area.
However, Fayette County still lacks some essential features that more developed regions possess. Local officials state that the community needs a community college to provide training for workers, affordable housing for those with modest incomes who are employed in local restaurants, shops, and homes, as well as improved road infrastructure and public transportation. The population is projected to double within the next 20 years. Consequently, it is inevitable that the neighborhood where Andrew waits for the bus each day will undergo significant changes.
According to Myron Orfield, an expert in urban planning from Minneapolis who has extensively studied the Atlanta region, “Fayette is going to experience an influx of people who are trying to find their place there. Everyone will want to be there.”