See, Dyer did not take the helm of the 13,000-student Dougherty County School System to win any popularity contests. His goal as he starts his eighth year as superintendent of Dougherty County Schools is the same today as it's been every other day of his tenure, he states firmly, with steely-eyed resolve: "I want this school system to improve, to innovate, to make the broader community better by developing the next generation of leaders to take the mantle."
It's become a cliche for the people of Dougherty County — much as it is in most every other community of the nation, especially those steeped in poverty as the southwest Georgia region is — to point a finger at the local public school system and blame it for society's ills. Dyer and his fellow educators in the local system — at least those willing to be honest — will admit that theirs is not a perfect system. But for those who do nothing but point fingers of blame at Dougherty educators, Dyer offers a few choice accomplishments built around the five tenets that are the basis for his administrative policy:
Early Literacy:
- Created a new program focused on early literacy staffed with specialists in that area;
- Implemented LETRS Training (The science of Reading) for elementary teachers;
- Saw 100 percent of elementary schools increase their literacy rates.
Academic Rigor and Relevance:
- 100 percent of schools saw an increase in overall content mastery across all tested subjects
- 90 percent saw increases in math content mastery;
- 100 percent increase among middle and elementary schools in overall readiness;
- Continued to have a graduation rate above the state average;
Last year, 238 students earned more than $932,000 through the system's Work-Based Learning and Youth Apprenticeship Programs;
- Created or implemented new programs aimed at making curriculum relevant:
- DOCO Codes: Computer Coding and Computer Science programs;
- Construction Ready: Allows recent graduates to earn industry certifications and find work in construction;
- ConnectED2Careers: Provides technical training to students in high school;
- Created the Global Learning Program so that students can be exposed to learning opportunities in other countries.
Social-Emotional Learning and Support:
- Completed a mental health survey of students that showed 24 percent of middle school students were suffering with moderate to severe depression;
- Continue to grow non-academic programs like Helping Hands Ending Hunger;
- Provided basic health care needs through school-based Health Centers;
- Earned a $15 million grant to fund more social workers and mental health professionals for system schools;
- Received a $4 million grant through Project Prevent to help elementary age students.
Investment in Human Capital:
- Highest average teacher salaries in the region;
- Provide recruitment and retention supplements;
- Enhanced employee benefits;
- Increased minimum wage for all system employees to $15 per hour;
- Instructional Coaches Academy;
- Mentor Teachers Academy;
- Created the first Registered Teacher Apprenticeship program certified by the U.S. Department of Labor in Georgia;
- Leadership Development Academies.
Family and Community Engagement:
- Level Up Program: Funded through a $3 million grant from Georgia Power offers upskilling and reskilling in various career fields. To date, 110 families have come through that program with more than 60 percent earning credentials in one of three fields: CNA, Phlebotomy, Heavy Equipment Operator.
Other items of note:
- The Dougherty County Board of Education unanimously voted to adopt a millage rate of 17.993, marking the first time since 2002 that the property tax rate that Dougherty County citizens pay for school taxes has been below 18 mills;
- The board has rolled back the property tax rate six times over the last seven years;
- The board has not raised the millage rate for nearly two decades;
- Robert A. Cross Middle School was named a National Blue Ribbon School of Distinction.
And while those bullet-point items point to a lot of successes in the local system, Dyer insists he's not just cherry-picking a few items that paint a sunny picture of the local system. He's more concerned, he said, with looking to the future.
"Public education must continue to constantly evolve," the Dougherty superintendent said. "You can't do the things that worked 20 or 30 years ago. Look at some of the businesses and brands that were huge when we were young, businesses we thought would be there forever. The ones that failed to innovate are now out of business or close to it.
"We're looking ahead to the future in the Dougherty County School System. We want to prepare our students for the future."
One major factor that is only now scratching the surface but is expected to bring a sea-change to education is artificial intelligence. Since students are generally thousands of times more Internet savvy than their instructors, the question that's nagging at everyone's mind is how schools will utilize this tool that has the capacity to expand or corrupt the education process.
"People use the word 'game-changer' way too often, but AI is a game-changer," Dyer said. "If we don't harness the power of this tool, we're missing a great opportunity to prepare our students to use it in preparing for the work force of the future.
"I believe AI will allow our teachers to more efficiently teach our students. And, no, AI is never going to replace teachers. But it's going to allow teachers to literally prepare individual lesson plans for all of their students, helping better prepare each of them for their future."
Since AI is a somewhat frightening concept for teachers who may not be as computer-literate as other faculty members (or, most likely, their students), Dyer said the Dougherty system now has three specialists whose sole purpose is the "harness the power of AI."
"Our teachers will not have to spend time they need to spend working on content trying to master the uses of artificial intelligence," he said. "These experts will teach the teachers how they can use this valuable tool in working with their students in their specialty areas."
Dyer also lauds the system's apprenticeship program, the first such program in the state, that allows education majors to spend time in the classroom, working with experienced teachers, getting a feel for what the profession is really like.
"Retention is the big word in education ow," he said. "Rather than having new teachers who come straight out of college into the classroom with only a semester of student teaching, we'll have teachers who will start in the classroom with two, three, four years of experience. They're more likely to stay when they know what the profession is about, rather than being thrown directly into the fire of the classroom."
Dyer points to a litany of other pluses in the local system: The graduation rate that has topped the state average five of the last six years; improved scores on Milestones testing; the overwhelming success of the Commodore Conyers College and Career Academy — which will provide food for an expanded number of school lunchrooms this year and is preparing to open a "4C on Flint" business opportunity that will provide entrepreneurship opportunities — the FLEX program with Albany Area Chamber Foundation that empowers female students to focus on business careers.
But his enthusiasm for the school system stretches beyond the classroom successes.
"Our mission as educators is to prepare our students for the next phase of their lives," Dyer said. "We see it in all these academic and program successes, but it's also there when you see these introverted kids break out into big smiles and high-five their teammates when their robot performs as it was designed to do. It's there when you see these Pre-K kids run up and hug their teachers each morning. It's there when you see the fear in the eyes of these kids who've never really traveled as they get ready to get on an airplane and embrace an opportunity presented to them.
"This is a calling. This is what educators do."
Yes, Ken Dyer's heard the naysayers. He's faced down the people who question his every decision. But those people have done nothing to lessen his resolve.
"People say this is a thankless job, and I've certainly heard my share of complaints over these eight years," he said. "But I've also been stopped in the grocery store by parents who thank me for what we do. Those complaints do nothing to take away from the rewards. If I had a chance to do this all over again, would I do some things differently? Sure, in hindsight, who wouldn't?
"But I'll tell you this: Despite the negative comments and the personal attacks, if I had the chance to do this over again, you better believe I would."
©2024 The Albany Herald, Ga. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
