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Judge to rule on Cobb County iBook program

updated 10:25 am EDT, Mon July 11, 2005

Cobb iBook program

A judge today will be asked to halt Cobb County's new , because opponents think it is a waste of taxpayer money, reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "The truth is, I'm embarrassed I have to do something like this," said Butch Thompson, the former county commissioner who brought the lawsuit. He accuses school officials of planning to misspend taxpayers' money by using proceeds from a 1 percent sales tax to start the laptop program. "The 'little man' [needs] to know that government people are supposed to do what they say they'll do," he said. Cobb voters approved the tax in 2003. As they did, school officials said they would replace students' "obsolete workstations." They didn't say with what. The suit contends voters could not have known the system would provide computers for all students in grades six through twelve, putting Cobb on track to lead one of the nation's largest such efforts.

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l008com
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07/11, 10:43am | report spam | close Reply |
Sooo

What exactly are they complaining, that they are giving out all these computers, or are they claiming they are wasting money because they are macs?

TheDov
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07/11, 10:55am | report spam | close Reply |
The Law

Was any sort of law broken? If not, then what can a judge do about it?

rok
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07/11, 10:57am | report spam | close Reply |
and how was this wrong?

fromt he wording of it, i agree -- what exactly is mr. thompson's point? that the taxpayers didn't agree as to which make and model of laptop the students would get, or the overall program? if the latter, well, h***, what did they think "replace obsolete workstations" might mean? just a swap out of old desktops? and if he's got a problem with ibooks in general, does he suggest that every proposed plan go before the people for a vote? i mean, good god, at some point you have to let the people you APPOINTED or ELECTED actually make decisions for you because YOU PUT THEM THERE and YOU TRUSTED THEM. otherwise, what's the point of having them at all?

dav
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07/11, 11:41am | report spam | close Reply |
i don't get this either

computers for students is a waste of taxpayers money???

JEB
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07/11, 11:57am | report spam | close Reply |
Holier Than Thou

"I am embarrassed I HAVE TO do this . . ."

No you don't. We're embarrassed about your actions, too. To make something work in a school system requires huge, ongoing, community-based planning. You're asking people to take their hard work and re-work everything. Nothing wrong is going on . . . completely legit.

alandail
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07/11, 12:05pm | report spam | close Reply |
the value of education

it's disturbing to see former government officials trying to block programs to improve education. Let the educators decide the most effective ways to spend money on eduction, not judges and (former) politicians.

I think it's pretty reasonable to believe that in school systems where all students have compatible laptop computers, educators will be able to take advantage of the technology to actually better educate the students.

jmonty12
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07/11, 12:12pm | report spam | close Reply |
The Point

I think the point is that the "obsolete workstations" were not computers owned by each student, but instead represented a much, much smaller number of machines in computer labs or other such shared areas.

Personally, I have to agree that getting a computer for every student over such a large range of ages is stupid. How many kids can be trusted with such machines unless they are strictly kept control over? Are these kids going to take them home (since they are laptops it seems likely?) How many kids will lose them or break them or get them taken away from them? How many times do you replace such machines?

Computers are a great tool but do not replace the need for direct interaction with a teacher. Their real contribution to learning is highly dependent on the student's ability to learn by himself and therefore limited. They should spend so much money on teacher's salaries and see benefits for all students.

chas_m
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07/11, 12:21pm | report spam | close Reply |
Cobb County ...

... is one of those places where the creationists have a strong foothold.

Nuff said?

(I used to live there. I know what I'm talking about.)

Ganesha
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07/11, 12:38pm | report spam | close Reply |
I'm all for...

..getting rid of paper books. I think I will bring a lawsuit. Paper books are a waste of money and content in paper books cannot be easily updated without replacing the entire book.

factoid
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07/11, 12:41pm | report spam | close Reply |
Embarrassed Cobb resident

I live in Cobb County and am a Mac trainer. I am always embarrassed to tell my educated, rational, sentient friends that I live here because it IS such a bastion of what's wrong with the South.

Cobb County lost the opportunity to host an Olympic event in 1996 because the county commission passed an ordinance saying that homosexuality is NOT a family value and wouldn't rescind it.

Cobb County is where THIS YEAR the Board of Education mandated that every high school biology textbook get a sticker indicating that evolution is just one of many unproven theories that explain man and suggesting that creationism is equally valid. Fortunately a lawsuit caused those stickers to be pulled off.

Cobb County is where if your car had a Kerry or Gore sticker you could come out and find your tires flattened or a nice scratch across the length of your car.

Cobb County gave the country Newt Gingrich (and his Newtzies) and Bob Barr.

Cobb County also has the best public schools in the state despite all this. But then when you're ranked 49th that's not saying much.

tonalsickness
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07/11, 12:54pm | report spam | close Reply |
hmmm

as a college student, most students want apples... they just cant all afford them.

what is the problem. this is fulfilling the 1% tax agreement for providing the students with new computers and if i recall correctly didn't apple win some sort of low bid on this deal.

I think this joker starting the lawsuit is just bill gates in disguise trying to sell overpriced versions of M$ software to the schools... or he's being paid by some Wintel Company...

volvounix
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07/11, 01:06pm | report spam | close Reply |
Cobb wasted 4 million $

Cobb wasted 4 million dollars buying macs. The county could have saved 4 million by purchasing Dells instead. I used to work for Cobb County and I am one of the people that will be affected by this. ie, might not have a job if the macs go into action. I am also a Cobb taxpayer, so I'm affected by this a second way also. I now work for the contractor that does computer support for Cobb County.

volvounix
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07/11, 01:14pm | report spam | close Reply |
Witness testified

http://mdjonline.com/268/10188740.txt

Monday, July 11, 2005 3:04 AM EDT E-mail this story to a friend | Printable version

By Aaron Baca

Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer

MARIETTA - Lawyers for the Cobb County school board will look into allegations that a school committee was forced by district officials to pick Apple Computer over Dell as the supplier for Cobb's controversial laptop computer program, the Cobb school board announced Saturday.

Cobb attorneys will investigate claims made by Mindy DiSalvo, who served on a committee that eval-uated bids by computer suppliers for Cobb's laptop program.

Ms. DiSalvo testified in Cobb Superior Court last week that her committee was pressured by a district curriculum official to pick Apple over other bidders.

"The scores for the vendors were changed," Ms. DiSalvo said in court.

Ms. DiSalvo said Dell scored the highest among four bidders to supply Cobb teachers and students with laptops.

Ms. DiSalvo said Donna Oliver, the district's director of curriculum, made hints to the laptop-scoring committee to pick Apple.

On Saturday, the Cobb school board issued a statement that said it will look into DiSalvo's testimony.

"In response to allegations made during court testimony Friday, the Cobb County Board of Education has asked the district's attorneys to look into the claims immediately and advise the board on a proper course of action. The board takes all such allegations seriously," the statement reads.

School district spokesman Jay Dillon said he could not comment further about the board's decision.

"The board wanted to make that statement and that's all we can say right now," Dillon said.

The board's statement does not say when its attorneys will begin investigating DiSalvo's claims.

The school district was hauled into court Friday after being sued by former Cobb Commissioner Joseph "Butch" Thompson, who is challenging the funding of the county school system's laptop computer program.

Proposed by Superintendent Joe Redden, Cobb has plans to supply all district teachers, middle and high school students with Apple laptop computers at a cost of more than $100 million.

So far, the district has voted to spend up to $25 million to pay for laptops for all 7,100 teachers and students at four high schools to serve as pilot sites.

Thompson is trying to block the laptop program because, he claims, voters never approved of the laptop program when they voted for a Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax on behalf of the schools in 2003.

Money collected from that tax is being used to pay for part of the laptop program.

Testimony in Thompson's lawsuit, which is being heard by Judge Lark Ingram, ended Friday.

Closing arguments are schedule

vortexlift
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07/11, 01:23pm | report spam | close Reply |
Actually That's 3 Points

"The Point" you've pointed out are actually 3 separate points which have little to do with "the point" in this article. It's not about teachers salaries (they never get paid enough for all the stuff they have to deal with), implementation (whether it's microscopes, protractors or textbooks, proper instruction is always key and computers are no different), the merits of student ownership or whether it's "stupid" for kids to all have their own computers or not. The "real point" of the story is you have dissident former board members who wants to annul the deal because "they" didn't vote for it and "they" don't want it even though it will cost the school district millions for breaking the contract which they've already signed on to. Their real beef about this program is not clear since they are vague about it in the quotes.

vortexlift
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07/11, 01:42pm | report spam | close Reply |
Dell money is everything

Saving $4 million buying Dells. That's news. So are you saying the bidding was rigged? You should bring your evidence and file suit right away! Are you also saying that Dells running Microsoft Windows cost less to maintain and provide security for even though there are several hundred times more viruses than for Mac OS X and more security flaws (numbered in the tens of thousands)? How does this deal affect the salaries of anyone working for the school district or county if the money comes form a special 1% portion tax already reserved for this program only? Aren't worker contracts negotiated separately in your county? Does your new job include supporting these same Macs? If so, doesn't that mean you didn't loose, but gained employment because of it? Wouldn't you have gained employment irregardless then? Are there just too many inconsistencies and unanswered questions to this guys/gals' claims? If you agree, please raise your hands.

volvounix
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07/11, 04:20pm | report spam | close Reply |
Apple laptops

vortexlift,

It's like this. All Dell computer techs might not have a job in a few months. Cobb might use Apple employees to fix the laptops instead of us. Cobb is too cheap to train us so I may be out of luck. I really think this is political and that you know who is getting a kickback by getting Apple laptops instead of Dell laptops. You know who is the commander in chief at Cobb.

SavMan
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07/11, 05:14pm | report spam | close Reply |
So?

volvounix,

You ever thought that the idea of not HAVING to have an entire office full of well-paid Dell techs just to keep the damned computers running might be a BENEFIT? The amount of service required on a Dell laptop, especially one being leased by a middle-schooler, is ridiculous; meanwhile, the iBooks "just work." I'm sorry that you will lose your job, but it kinda sounds like you're trying to hold back the advent of the printing press because you think that it will be an undue stress on the scribe trade. Get real.

Find a new job, take some classes, diversify your talents. 99% of all PCs in this country are broken in some way anyways, just gotta find them, I guess. But either way, the redundancy of your job should not be a negative consideration on this plan.

volvounix
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07/11, 05:22pm | report spam | close Reply |
Another situation

Here's another scenario. If you want to talk about wasting money, guess how much it will cost for a student to get a laptop replaced, if he or she loses it? $50. I'm not against macs, I'm against the schoolboard using the money from pool when they knew it was wrong. That's my main complaint. I work hard for my money being a Cobb taxpayer and that's only fair. Maybe the students were you are from are more well behaved. The students where I work will do nothing but abuse these laptops. (I know from experience. I have seen that damage these students do to Dell desktops and laptops) Thus, wasting more money. I guess I might as well just give my hard earned money away to the students.

volvounix
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07/11, 05:27pm | report spam | close Reply |
Also

Just so that you understand better, there is a lot of money being passed under the table. Also, there is a lot of dirt going on in the school system. Of course, I'm sure that happens in a lot of places. It's sad, but true.

volvounix
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07/11, 05:28pm | report spam | close Reply |
Rok

The people that are on the board (personally), I don't like any of them except two people. It's the buddy buddy system. You pat my back and I'll pat yours.

factoid
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07/11, 06:18pm | report spam | close Reply |
Politics as usual

Politics/business as usual. Who says there's money being passed under the table? Where's your proof?

Sounds like sour grapes. I know of fellow who teaches full-time and then spends about 4 hours per week as the Mac IT department for the whole school district. The district also has 3 full-time people supporting fewer windows systems. No wonder Dell Tech support people are worried for their jobs.

eddd
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07/11, 08:07pm | report spam | close Reply |
insurance?

One of the complaints by those involved in the Henrico deal was that there was no plan (blamed on Apple) for insuring the laptops (or the insurance was excessive). I thought I read that they learned from this experience and were offering insurance to Cobb county for $50 per student. Is this the basis for your complaint, volvounix? If so, it seems like you're complaining about a good thing.

In fact, there are many good things about this deal that you seem to be complaining about. You claim that there's a lot of special interests and "buddy-buddy" deals, but aren't you a special interest yourself, being a Dell tech? It's hard to see things your way, given your perspective.

I sympathize about the potential for losing your job, but your job was gained under specific circumstances that may now change. Happens all the time (and recently happened to me). If possible, don't fret too much, but look for something better. Easier said, I know, but I just finished doing that exact thing, and found a much better position.

And you're right about the way students can beat up a laptop. I've seen Mac abuse that would bring tears to your eyes. Both physical and system abuse - screens broken from closing the top with a pen on the keyboard, hinges ripped right off, missing keys and cracked cases galore. Systems that are nearly unsalvageable (and slo-o-o-w) after being corrupted by misuse. It's astonishing. Anyone who says Macs don't need system administrators hasn't worked in a public school.

vortexlift
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07/12, 12:33am | report spam | close Reply |
Under The Table!

volvounix seems to know alot about illicit deals going on here. Have you brought this up to the authorities? If not, then all your statements is just that: unsubstantiated statements. I now how school boards work. Sometimes one wonders if they are from outerspace. But in this case, The only thing "wrong" seems to be complaints of possible improprieties by former board members (and you) and that money is being wasted because of philosophical differences with how it is being used/implemented. Seems like alot of the opponnents just don't like the idea that all the kids should have and own laptops on taxpayers money because they will abuse them or use them improperly or that computers is a waste of money on them lik a high cost toy. Yes the computers may be handled roughly by the students. But that's true of textbooks, test tubes and calculators. Does that mean they should all be of limits to students? But as been mentioned, there's insurance as part of the deal to take care fo that. The cost of the 3 proposals from Apple, Dell & IBM were all competitive from a price standpoint. So what separates one from the other has to do with service and cost of ownership. It's well known that it takes far fewer people to maintain and service Apple hardware/software than Wintel hardware/software. So that probably is one of the deciding factors. Apple is known to provide extensive service and support for their school purchase deals. Dell, on the other hand, is well known for virtually no after-sales service except for sending in replacement parts. I used to work as an IT tech for Wall Street firms and it takes far more tech people to support Wintel PCs than Macs. they used a mix of Dell, HP & IBM (laptops) and a few Macs(for graphics & publishing). In fact, Macs average less than a call a week while PCs average over a dozen a day. Dell hardware are built like a tanks, but if you run in problems, they are as good as dead because Dell hardware are also semi-proprietary. They use standard Mobo designs and add their own custom controller boards to them. You can only get parts from them as their PCs are not completely standard. Software problems also often need custom patches form Dell because of that. That often kills connectivity with new devices as just one problem. That on top of all the problems you'll run into with Windows. Just the patches alone is a nightmare to manage. So I really cannot see how Dells would've saved any money at all or relate to any job savings. Did you know that Dell just closed their customer forums because of bad PR from overwelhmingly bad support feedback and complaints? That alone should tell you about the quality and service of Dell harware and support. So unless there's political hanky panky going on, looks like there's nothing wrong but the detractors temselves.

JEB
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07/12, 01:05am | report spam | close Reply |
A solution for volvounix

You will simply spend a month or two with a new iBook of your own . . . use it daily for one hour (or more).

Then, you will have access to a) the PC world you're accustomed to, and b) the Mac world.

Many similarities. Enjoy the differences. Then show your district you're a Pro at both. Open-mind. Less fretting for a job. It'll be cool.

vortexlift
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07/12, 01:13am | report spam | close Reply |
Kids Abuse Things!

Wow! Kids will actually mistreat their laptops? Astonishing! It's shocking! Seriously, so what else is new. But again not all kids do, and in fact, most don't abuse their school equipment. So please don't paint all kids that way. Funny how that works. People always thinks kids are prone to doing all these terrible things, but never "my" kids. But I digress......... Put a suit and tie on them and they are no different than Wall Street road warriors. I used to work in IT tech support in Wall Street and the abuse they give out to laptops is just as bad. Both physical and nonphysical (as in untested and band software being installed and used). That's why Thinkpads are de rigueur in Wall Street. The are built like tanks. As standard procedure, we had to wipe all hardisks clean after every laptop is returned after use to make sure no sensitive data is left on the machines as well as to get rid of all offending software installed...........and Macs would be no different and definitely need "sys admins" (as do any large scale deployment of systems) to do the necessary support. Just not nearly as much as Wintel PCs. Not so much in administration but in tech support as Macs just don't crash and break down as much (all abuse being equal whether they are Thinkpads, Dells or ibooks) thaks to Mac OS X. Study after study has been done and shown that to be true and I have no doubts from personal experiences. Of course, we'll know for certain in a few years when the data comes in from all these school programs on the relative cost of ownership. But something tells me Apple will come out ahead.

volvounix
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07/28, 07:26am | report spam | close Reply |
Probes postpone teachers

http://www.mdjonline.com/articles/2005/07/27/268/10190090.prt

Probes postpone teachers laptops

By Jon Gillooly Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer

MARIETTA - Delivery of Cobb teachers' new Apple laptops has been delayed due to investigations into the laptop program, Superintendent Joe Redden announced Monday morning in an e-mail to all 7,100 teachers.

The e-mail - which the Journal obtained from a teacher and not from Redden's communications office - did not specify how long the delay would be.

This is the first time Redden has publicly mentioned the investigations, which are being conducted separately by Cobb District Attorney Pat Head and the New York auditing firm of Kessler International.

Although Head is conducting a criminal investigation, Redden referred to it as an "audit," in his e-mail.

"I am confident that all of these issues will be resolved favorably," he said.

Redden called the delay "disappointing," apparently blaming the school board for unanimously voting for the investigations during its July 14 board meeting.

The board voted to ask Head to investigate allegations made by a district official during a July 8 hearing in Cobb County Superior Court. The hearing was related to a lawsuit filed against Redden and the school board by former Cobb Commissioner Butch Thompson to stop the district from issuing laptops to students.

Thompson retained former Gov. Roy Barnes to represent him in the suit.

During the hearing, Dr. Mindy DiSalvo - a member of the district's Facilities and Technology Committee that helped select Apple as the district's laptop provider - testified that during phase two of the evaluation, Apple Computer scored dead last, while Dell Computer scored first in the selection process.

But when the decision passed to the third phase of the process - during which a final decision was made by Redden, Deputy Superintendent Don Beers and Redden's central office employees Donna Oliver, Alisa Morningstar and Kim Quinn - Apple's place changed from last to first.

Head was asked to investigate any criminal behavior, according to board member Laura Searcy, while the board hired the New York forensic auditing firm of Kessler International to investigate any ethical irregularities in the Request for Proposal process.

About 550 teachers at the four high school pilot sites of Harrison, Campbell, Lassiter and Pebblebrook already received their laptops shortly after the end of spring semester in late May.

The remaining 6,550 teachers in the district were to receive their laptops before the start of school on Aug. 10.

That now is unlikely, Redden said. He said since the results may take "several weeks," he said the date teachers receive their laptops to be delayed.

"Although this delay is disappointing, I know it will not adv

volvounix
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07/28, 07:28am | report spam | close Reply |
Probes postpone teachers

"Although this delay is disappointing, I know it will not adversely affect your enthusiasm as we open a new school year," Redden said.

In his e-mail, Redden tells teachers they deserve the best tools available to perform their jobs.

"That is why the SPLOST II (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) program specifically provides for a computing device for all classroom teachers," Redden said. "Our plan, as you know, is to provide each of you with your own laptop computer. However, as you have probably read, the board has asked that the Power To Learn RFP (Request for Proposal) process be audited to quell questions and reassure the public that our process is sound. In addition, we still await a ruling in a lawsuit filed over expending SPLOST II funds for Power To Learn."

Redden's planned laptop program, which could cost more than $100 million if fully implemented, would distribute more than 63,000 laptop computers to students and teachers. About 8,500 students are planned to receive laptops between November and January at the four pilot high schools, according to Deputy Superintendent Don Beers.

n In other education news, instead of attending the Cobb School District Back-To-School Leadership Conference at Kennesaw High School on Friday, Redden was in Jacksonville, Fla., at a reunion with friends from his Vietnam War days, Beers said.

"He wanted to cancel and stay with us, and not go to the reunion," Beers said. "I told him 'No, that's ridiculous.'"

All school principals were in attendance, as were board Chairwoman Kathie Johnstone and board members Betty Gray and Laura Searcy.

Beers said Redden taped a 20-minute message of himself - during which he addressed issues like the Adequate Yearly Progress requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind education reforms - which was aired in his absence.

"He hasn't had a vacation all summer," Beers said. "He wanted very badly to be in both places. He's meeting with principals all the time. He can't be at every meeting. There are many other duties he's got to take care of, including his own mental health."

One veteran principal said it was the first time a superintendent had ever missed the meeting.

n In other news, the 54 principals and instructional lead teachers who attended technology lecturer Alan November's Boston convention last week, at a cost of at least $82,000, are not the only educators Redden has sent on trips this summer.

Seven administrators and educators attended a curriculum mapping conference in Snowbird, Utah, from July 20 to 23 for a cost of about $1,560 per person, district spokesman Doug Goodwin said.

Goodwin said the purpose was to learn about "instructional strategies and planning that encourages critical thinking."

From June 2 to July 5, 20 administrators and educators attended the Studies Abroad Brazi

volvounix
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Probes postpone teachers

From June 2 to July 5, 20 administrators and educators attended the Studies Abroad Brazil 2005 program for a cost of $1,977 per person, Goodwin said.

"This group conducted in-depth studies for the acquisition of Portuguese language and culture skills in light of the recent influx of Brazilian immigrant students in the district," Goodwin said. "These educators immersed themselves in the language, religion and history of Brazil in three of its largest cities: Rio de Janeiro, Salvador and Sao Paolo."

Goodwin said no local tax dollars were used for the trip, because it was paid for with federal grant funding.

jgillooly@mdjonline.com

volvounix
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Judge halts Redden s mass

Judge halts Redden s massive laptop plans

By Jon Gillooly Marietta Daily Journal Staff Writer

MARIETTA - Cobb Schools Superintendent Joe Redden and his majority school board member supporters were dealt a major setback Friday when a Cobb Superior Court judge ruled that his $100.8 million laptop program greatly differs from technology plans voters were promised in the 2003 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax referendum.

In a strongly worded 14- page opinion, Judge Lark Ingram ordered a mandamus absolute directing the Cobb Board of Education to use technology funds as specified in SPLOST II and ordered a permanent injunction to halt Redden's massive laptop program.

Judge Ingram's ruling follows a July 8 hearing on a lawsuit brought by former Cobb Commissioner Butch Thompson against Redden and five of the seven school board members who voted for the laptop program. The suit claimed SPLOST II never specified funds to provide laptops to all middle and high school students, but did not contest the issuance of laptops to teachers.

The ruling puts Redden's program largely in limbo.

The board voted 5-2 on April 28 to start the $25 million Phase I of Redden's program this year, which would give laptops to all 7,100 teachers and 8,500 laptops to students at four pilot high schools. About 550 teachers already have received their laptops, but plans for the other 6,550 teachers and the 8,500 students are uncertain.

In a Monday e-mail to all 7,100 teachers, Redden said he would delay ordering any more laptops until the suit is resolved.

School board members offered little comment Friday about their plans, and school board attorney Glenn Brock said they will discuss their alternatives at a special called meeting in executive session Monday night.

"I think what this case stands for is that candor is not an option when the government is dealing with citizens," said former Gov. Roy Barnes, who represented Thompson. "There can be no slight of hand, no wink and nod. A promise made is a promise kept."

Barnes said the school board has the option of appealing to the state Supreme Court, which would review the case. However, he said that court emphasizes the importance of promises.

"The system works," Barnes said. "As Winston Churchill said, for all the failings of democracy, it just happens to be the best conceived system that works, and this reinforces my belief in the system."

Redden and Deputy Superintendent Dr. Don Beers both refused to comment, except for releasing a terse two sentence statement from Redden that read: "The Cobb Board of Education is disappointed in today's court decision regarding the use of SPLOST funds for technology improvements in the school district. The board plans to meet soon and discuss the best course of action."

Thompson was elated to hear Friday afternoon when told

volvounix
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Judge halts Redden s mass

Thompson was elated to hear Friday afternoon when told of Judge Ingram's ruling.

"I guess most of all, it's not just a victory for me, it's a victory for the taxpayers of county," he said. "It gives them the opportunity to see they can feel comfortable voting for a program as good as the SPLOST program."

Thompson said he filed suit, because the school board was jeopardizing the potential for any future SPLOST to be passed in the county.

"We've enjoyed $2 billion in capital improvements without strapping ourselves to bond indebtedness. At the same time, elected officials have to use the money the way it was intended - it cannot be abused," he said.

Thompson said he thanked Judge Ingram for ruling in his favor, and noted he didn't have an ax to grind with anyone.

"I still don't know some of the people on the school board. But at the same time, you can't do what you want to do, you've got to be able to follow the law."

In her ruling, Judge Ingram said she agreed with Thompson and Barnes when they said that promised technology upgrades from the SPLOST II referendum had not been kept. She noted the program was primarily to:

n Refresh obsolete workstations,

n Refresh district printers,

n Refresh district servers,

n Refresh the existing district network,

n Refresh and enhance mobile computing access district wide,

n Refresh copiers,

n Provide a computing device for every teacher, and

n A data center equipment refresh.

In findings of fact, Judge Ingram held that in order to win public support - the school board had published and distributed promotional literature to all high schools and their feeder schools.

The district "promised each and every school in Cobb (high, middle, and elementary" obsolete workstations printers, servers, networks, copiers/duplicators would be refreshed."

Judge Ingram criticized the school board when she stated "they decided to essentially abandon" the original plan of SPLOST II. Instead, they re-budgeted and reevaluated SPLOST II to embark on a "one-to-one laptop" program for all high and middle schools.

"Fair notice" she said, was not given to voters for this program.

She said in her ruling that Power to Learn (PTL) "would divert funds" from SPLOST II to buy 56,000 laptops. PTL "is so expensive that no funding from SPLOST II would remain to refresh obsolete computers at elementary schools," she stated.

To fund laptops, the judge said the school board would have to "re-budget" almost all of the SPLOST II money to give the school district the largest laptop program in U.S. public education.

"This is not what the voters were told before the SPLOST vote" (on Sept. 16, 2003).

In findings of law, Judge Ingram held "Ga. law imposes on school

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In findings of law, Judge Ingram held "Ga. law imposes on school boards . . . a legal duty to use the SPLOST process exclusively for purposes specified."

She said law required that the board must give "fair notice" of how the money will be spent. She also found they are bound by their documents or literature promoting SPLOST II and cannot use SPLOST II money for an "entirely different" purpose.

"Ballot language" promised technology upgrades for all schools, she argued, whereas PTL "deprives" elementary schools of SPLOST II money because PTL is so expensive. In fact, PTL "breaches" the promises made to all schools for technology upgrades. Refreshing obsolete workstations district wide as promised is "as feasible today as when the public voted," she ruled.

She further ruled that the school board abused its discretion and departed "substantially and materially" from technology promised upgrades.

Judge Ingram said the school board gave "no indication of a one-to-one laptop initiative for middle and high schools like PTL."

"The comprehensive re-budgeting" of SPLOST II is "clearly prohibited by Georgia law."

Judge Ingram said she was not passing judgment on PTL as a "matter of educational policy." She said state law did not preclude the implementation of PTL program provided it was paid for from the district's general fund or a future SPLOST if specifically promised.

During the July 8 hearing, Barnes argued voters never intended for students to have their own take-home laptops when they voted for the sales tax.

"Respondents cannot use SPLOSTs to 'bait-and-switch' Cobb County voters into funding lavish, unadvertised policy objectives," Barnes stated in his closing brief.

"The court should not sit by until respondents have frayed the threads of public confidence in SPLOSTs beyond repair."

Barnes cited the case of Dickey v. Storey. The case involves the Floyd County Commission, which passed a SPLOST to build a civic center along the banks of a river near downtown Rome, Ga. However, when much of the downtown flooded, commissioners wanted to move the building to higher ground, a decision residents resisted. The state Supreme Court sided with the residents.

"Even though flood concerns might require the county to make expensive revisions to the civic center's architectural plans, the Supreme Court held that because it was still possible to construct on the original site, the county board must execute the plan it promised to Floyd County citizens," Barnes argued.

"Georgia law requires respondents to spend the technology funding from SPLOST II the same way respondents promised to spend those funds," Barnes argues.

Board attorney Tain Kell cited the case of Thornton v. Clarke County School District, noting the state Supreme Court ruled the language that controls expenditure

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Board attorney Tain Kell cited the case of Thornton v. Clarke County School District, noting the state Supreme Court ruled the language that controls expenditure of SPLOST dollars is the referendum and nothing more.

Since the Cobb school board's referendum only says the board will use the SPLOST dollars for the educational purpose of "technology systems," the board is not bound by the eight categories listed, Kell stated.

Only the language in the referendum is binding, he argued.

"Obviously, the court could not fashion any type of relief that would require ongoing supervision of the board throughout the remaining three and one-half years of SPLOST II collections," he said.

Kell said what the case is really about "is simply a disagreement as to the soundness of a policy decision made by a majority of the board of education . . " He maintains it is not a dispute "that rises to the level to be determined by the judiciary."

"Ultimately, it would be up to the voters to decide in future elections whether this policy decision, made at this critical juncture in our county, has been a wise and far sighted expenditure of taxpayers dollars or not; and that is the appropriate place for such a decision to be made in a republic such as ours," Kell writes.

Although Judge Ingram's ruling virtually grounds Redden's laptop program, this is not the end of the board's problems.

Toward the end of the July 8 hearing, testimony, described as a "bombshell" came from witness Dr. Mindy DiSalvo, a member of the district's Facilities and Technology Committee who also served as a member on the second phase of the computer selection committee.

Dr. DiSalvo testified that the phase two committee scored the vendors with Apple dead last and Dell first.

However, when the decision moved to the phase three selection committee, whose members included Redden, Beers, and Redden administrators Kim Quinn, Donna Oliver and Alisa Morningstar, Apple went from last to first and was chosen to carry out the program.

The testimony prompted Cobb District Attorney Pat Head to begin investigating Redden's program for any possible criminal activity. The board also hired the New York based auditing firm of Kessler International to conduct an audit of the RFP process. Kessler is expected to release its findings next week, sources say.

Judge Ingram set a hearing for Sept. 28 at 9 a.m. to hear a request, presumably from Barnes, for awarding of attorneys' fees. Thompson, who owns a large west Cobb construction company, says the law suit will cost him between $10,000 and $25,000.

jgillooly@mdjonline.com

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Judge to rule on Cobb County iBook program

updated 10:25 am EDT, Mon July 11, 2005

Cobb iBook program

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