Clarke County School District Superintendent Philip Lanoue repeatedly refused last week to discuss assertions that he had earlier tried to head off a possibly unfavorable news story by going over the heads of reporters and his own public relations department, and directly phoning Athens Banner-Herald Publisher Scott Morrissey. "I'm not going to comment," he told Flagpole. "Move on, next question."

On any other subject, Lanoue was glad to talk: state budget cuts to schools are having "pretty big" effects locally, he said, though even so, performance has improved, especially among economically disadvantaged students.

"We set the bar higher," he said. "Our kids are meeting that bar." Lanoue has helmed the school system since 2009, and "I spend a lot of time in the classrooms," he said. "We have conversations: teachers with teachers, teachers with principals… We've had tremendous focus on instruction, on what we expect kids to know. Our teachers have been relentless, really finding out what keeps kids connected."