The Georgia Constitution declares that “the provision of an adequate public education for the citizens shall be a primary obligation of the State of Georgia.”¹  Providing an adequate public education involves a partnership between the state government and local units of government, the 180 local school districts of the state. In addition, Georgia law provides that both the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Department of Corrections are to be considered a “special school district” for the purpose of providing an education to school-age youths incarcerated within facilities under their jurisdiction and for the purpose of applying for federal funds. The Board of Juvenile Justice and the Board of Corrections serve as governing boards of education for these school districts.²  Georgia’s school districts are governed by local boards of education elected by the citizens and administered by school superintendents and other leadership personnel employed by these boards. While local boards of education are charged with the “management and control” of the public schools, they must respond to and follow federal and state laws, regulations and rules enacted by the Congress, the United States Department of Education, Georgia’s General Assembly, the State Board of Education, the State Department of Education and many other state and federal administrative agencies and the subsequent interpretations placed on those enactments by the state and federal courts.

Georgia is divided into 159 counties, each of which constitutes a school district. In addition, 21 cities have maintained independent school districts, for a total of 180 separate school districts operated and managed by a local board of education. To understand how each of these school districts and schools is governed requires some knowledge of the complex governance structure which is contained in state law. This chapter will summarize the provisions of Georgia’s Constitution and several state statutes which create and define the basic structure of public school governance.