Talley Street Update

• Altruismo Spirit Week: November 17-21
• Green Team Guest Speaker (open to all): November 18, 2:30 pm, media center
• Thanksgiving Break (NO SCHOOL): November 24-28
• Talley Library Spirit/Fundraising Day: December 10 (all day at Little Shop of Stories)
• PTO Meeting: December 10, 6 pm
• Chorus Performance: December 11, 6 pm, City of Decatur Annual Bonfire Marshmallow Roast

Dear Talley Street Parents and Guardians,

We are experiencing an ongoing issue with families arriving before 7:20 am and parking in our lot while waiting for morning arrival to begin. Unfortunately, this is preventing staff members from finding available parking when they arrive, and several teachers have been unable to access a space as a result.

As a reminder, parents and guardians should line up along Talley Street before 7:20 am. At 7:20, once the crossing guard gives the signal and buses have exited, families may enter the parking lot and follow the regular morning arrival procedures.

The City has also notified us that some families are parking in their lot to wait, which creates additional challenges.

For the safety and smooth operation of both morning arrival and afternoon dismissal, we kindly request your cooperation in following these procedures. Your support helps ensure a safe and efficient start to each school day.

Thank you for your understanding and partnership.

Billy

The STAR testing administration window is from December 1st to December 12th.

In compliance with House Bill 307, the Georgia Early Literacy Dyslexia Act, all third-grade students will complete the Early Literacy, Encoding, and Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN) assessments. Additionally, all students in grades 3-5 will take both reading and mathematics assessments.

These diagnostic screenings will be administered three times during the academic year: Fall (August), Winter (December), and Spring (May). As a diagnostic tool, the STAR assessment adapts to your child's knowledge and progress.

Please refer to the school's Winter testing schedule below:

• Tuesday, December 2 - 3rd Early Literacy

• Wednesday, December 3 - 3rd-5th Reading

• Thursday, December 4 - 3rd-5th Math

• Tuesday and Wednesday, December 9th-10th - 3rd CBMs (Encoding and RAN)

• Week of December 5th-12th - Makeups for all assessments

If you have any questions, please contact the testing coordinator, Lateefah Mosley at lmosley@csdecatur.net

Calling all K-12 storytellers, writers, and authors! Every story deserves to be told — especially yours.

Submit your story and share your voice with the world!

Did you know that Talley opts out of traditional book fairs in order to host a more equitable, True Book Fair in May? We love this event, and in order to make up for the loss of fundraising, we host an annual spirit day at Little Shop of Stories. On December 10, shop in-store or online and say you are with Talley at checkout. 20% of those sales will come back to our library to support collection development and programming! Join us without kids during the school day to get some holiday shopping done, and come after school to visit with favorite teachers, participate in some exciting activities (more info coming soon), and shop teacher wishlists.

Please consider shopping small on December 10 to support Decatur's local businesses and our school library! Thank you in advance for your generosity. Please reach out to Mrs. Long (along@csdecatur.net) with any questions.

Girls on the Run is looking for parents/caregivers/community members to coach at Talley Street for the Spring 2026 Season! If you are interested in becoming a coach/mentor for our participants, please see this flyer and visit girlsontherunga.com/coach to learn more about the kind of commitment it takes to be a coach, and to register to coach. Practice is on M/W or T/Th from 2:30-4:00 pm from February 9-April 28. No practice when there is no school or on Early Release days. Your Talley student is guaranteed a spot on the team if you volunteer to coach. We must have at least three coaches per team in order to host teams at Talley. We need you! Email programs@girlsontherunga.org for questions about GOTR or coaching, and nbundschu@csdecatur.net for questions about coaching at Talley. For more information about GOTR as a program, go to https://www.girlsontherunga.org/3rd-5th-grade-program-details.

Important Dates:

• Participant lottery registration WILL OPEN SOON and will be open through 11:59 pm on January 28th.

• A computer-generated lottery will take place on January 29th for teams that are full. For any teams that don't fill through the lottery, registration reopens by 3 pm on January 29th and will remain open through February 19th on a first-come, first-served basis.

• Practices for all teams begin the week of February 9th.

• The last day to register for teams that have not yet filled and the last day for refunds is February 19th.

• The Girls on the Run 5K celebration is April 25th.

• The last week of practice will be the week of April 27th.

Join the Green Team on Tuesday, November 18 from 2:30 pm to 3:30 pm in the Media Center as we welcome composer and percussionist Chris Childs, who makes musical shakers that incorporate recycled plastic bottle caps. Chris will talk to us about how he makes his instruments and how they are used in musical performances. This event is open to all Talley students, family members and staff. Entry fee: As many plastic bottle caps you can collect between now and our event date!

Read the November 13, 2025, issue of CSD Weekly, the district-wide newsletter.

This year's CCRPI results reveal that every tested grade 3-12 in CSD achieved a perfect score of 100 in the Closing Gaps category, marking the highest attainable score for student progress toward performance targets. This accomplishment signifies an improvement of nearly 30 points compared to the past two years.

In 2023, DHS recorded a score of 48.2% in the Closing Gaps category, which increased to 93.2% in 2024 before reaching a perfect 100% this year. The middle school improved its score by almost five points from 2024 to 2025, while upper elementary schools maintained their score of 100 from the previous year.

Additionally, CSD's Content Mastery score has consistently increased over the last two years for all grades, demonstrating steady progress across all grade levels, with a nearly five-point rise at the high school level. Learn more here.

During the Board of Education meeting held on November 11, 2025, the board decided to reassess and revise the K-2 School Consolidation and Redistricting Process. The process has been renamed the K-2 Utilization Process, and the timeline will be modified to allow for more public feedback.

BOE consultant Education Planners will host a public forum on Thursday, November 13, 2025, from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Beacon Hill Middle School. The community is invited to provide input and offer considerations to Education Planners regarding the K-2 School Utilization Process. The meeting will replace the previously advertised second public hearing on the K-2 School Consolidation and Redistricting Process.

The meeting format will be as follows:

• General Information Session: Information Presented

• Committee Work Sessions: Public Input

Education Planners recommended the creation of four committees to guide the next phase of planning. The proposed committees are:

• Facilities & Finance Committee: enrollment, costs, and capital planning

• Student Experience Committee: instructional programs, transitions, and early-learning access

• Safety & Operations Committee: traffic, walkability, and daily operations

• Culture & Communication Committee: transparency and ongoing engagement

Community members are invited to sign up for one of the committees here. More information about the K-2 School Utilization Process is available on the CSD website.

• Thank you to this year’s PTO Sponsors!

Royal Bengal: Quest Ortho

Titan: Decatur Community Players & Root Wealth Management

Siberian: The Little Gym

Know of or own a business that would like to sponsor the PTO? Find out more here.

• Tomorrow is the last day of Crossing Guard Appreciation Week! There’s still time to give a homemade thank you card to our amazing crossing guards! Thank you for helping us celebrate the people who keep our students safe every day!
• Save the date for our next Walk & Roll on Friday, December 5th, after we return from Thanksgiving Break!
• Did you know Talley has an extensive Lost and Found collection? Please label all student items that could be left behind! Labeled items will be returned to students’ homeroom classes. Unlabeled items are stored in the Lost and Found at the hallway cafeteria door (racks will be rolled outside every Thursday at dismissal!) Unclaimed items will be donated on the last Tuesday of every month. Please encourage students to check the Lost and Found as soon as an item is identified as missing!
• Talley ‘25-’26 yearbooks are on pre-sale! They are $23 through 12/31/25 (when they will increase to $28). Order at bit.ly/talleyyearbook25. Please consider donating a yearbook. If you need financial assistance, a discount code is available; contact Ms. Weaver (kiweaver@csdecatur.net), Talley school counselor. For other questions, contact yearbook@talleypto.org.

The DHS Boys' soccer team is hosting a fundraising camp! It will be from November 24-26. Register and get more information using the link below!

A Season of Giving/Christmas Decatur ensures that our community’s children and seniors in need experience the joy of the holidays with gifts matched to their wishes. This program is made possible through the generous spirit of neighbors helping neighbors. Applications for children are due by October 31. And here you can find information on how to sponsor a child, teen, or senior citizen, as well as how to volunteer.

Talley Street Website

You can find more information on the following Facebook pages:

Talley Street Principal

Talley Street Upper Elementary School Parents

Talley Street Artists

And these Instagram pages:

@talleytigergram

@talleystemstagram

@talleystreetgarden

@TalleyPTO

For more about the Talley Street PTO, visit their website here: https://talleypto.org/.