Petition Started on Jackson High School Renovations

A Grant Park parent has started a petition that seeks to impress upon the Atlanta Public Schools officials the importance of thinking proactively regarding the roughly $40 million renovation currently underway at Jackson High School.

"Word on the street is that the decision will be made soon about whether to expand the scope of work or not," Leslie Grant, who started the petition on Change.org, told East Atlanta Patch.

"I want to make sure that the importance of this decision goes beyond dollars and cents."

Grant also is a member of the Southeast Atlanta Communities for Schools and co-chair of the Architectural Renovation Committee of the Jackson High School Local School Council.

The petition seeks to persuade district officials to expand the project to include the addition of a gymnasium, which would make room for new program additions.

"This year an Orchestra Program was added to the school with no space allocated in the renovated facility," the petition reads. "A Theatre/Drama Program has also been requested to round out the arts program and to add career-ready skills that could feed the booming film production industry in Atlanta."

Adding the gym would leave enough space at the school to accommodate the new programs.

"To apply big picture thinking at this stage — that allows for current and future programming expansion — is critical," the petition reads.

"We ask that all considerations be in favor of this addition, so that the Maynard H. Jackson High School facility can best support the learning potential for all of the students in the Jackson Cluster."

A spokesman for APS did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment Tuesday.