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ALBANY, GA. --
Dougherty County school Superintendent Dr. Joshua Murfree held a forum Monday night to get parents and educators on board and in the know about the goals and possible changes coming to the system.

Murfree says educational achievement beyond all expectations is the vision for the Dougherty County School System (DCSS).

“We have a plan that has goals, objectives, strategic directions next steps and all that,” said DCSS superintendent Dr. Joshua Murfree:

Under the plan, the number one goal is to decrease the dropout rate in high schools to less than five percent and maintain the graduation rate at 90 percent.

Out of all the ideas discussed, the hot topic was virtual education. Some parents were for it and others needed more convincing.

“There's research that shows that students that attend virtual schools can acquire the same information and do as well or better than other kids,” said DCSS Publicist R.D. Harter.

Harter says it's an alternative that may keep students from dropping out or simply leaving public schools.

“On the state level, more and more virtual school opportunities are available and when that happens the local district loses state funding for that student,” said Harter.

Parents who attended the forum were asked to fill out a survey about how they feel about virtual classrooms. For those who weren’t able to attend the meeting but would like to take the survey, it will be posted on the Dougherty County schools website by the end of the week.