Cobb County Schools taps its deputy of operational support to be the new interim superintendent.

Eight-year veteran of the district Chris Ragsdale says whittling down class sizes, which went up because of budget cuts, is his first priority.  Ragsdale says developing a budget without massive cutbacks and furlough days is key to helping the teachers, whose work is directly tied to the district's success.

"It's something that's had to be done, but it's never a positive thing to have to increase class sizes," said Ragsdale at Thursday's press conference announcing his appointment.  "So obviously, moving forward, we want to take every opportunity we can to reduce those back to where we need them."

That sits well with the Cobb County Association of Educators President Connie Jackson.

"It's become so bad in a lot of classrooms that they've done away with all hands-on activities, they've done away with all group activities, and gone back to the lecturing--and that's never been effective for students," Jackson tells Channel 2 Action News.

The 45-year-old Ragsdale is likely to hold the interim superintendent slot until May of next year.  The school board is expected to formally vote on Ragsdale's appointment during its April 24 meeting.  He will hold the interim superintendent slot from May 2014-May 2015 while the district seeks a permanent superintendent.