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2009-09-08T19:45:00.001-07:00

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Gov. Proclaims Georgia's Support of National Preparedness Month

2009-09-02T21:44:00.000-07:00

September is National Preparedness Month and Gov. Sonny Perdue is encouraging residents to get ready for the unexpected by creating an emergency plan and “Ready Kit” of emergency supplies – steps only about 20 percent of Georgians have taken.

National Preparedness Month, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Ready America campaign, is a nationwide effort to increase awareness and encourage action for emergency preparedness. Nearly 2,000 private, public and nonprofit organizations across the country participate as National Preparedness Month Coalition Members to remind citizens of the importance of emergency preparedness by hosting events and initiatives during September.

The Georgia Emergency Management Agency’s Ready Georgia campaign, an extension of Ready America, is Georgia’s local, comprehensive resource for emergency preparedness. The campaign’s Web site, www.ready.ga.gov – sponsored by the Georgia Department of Community Health, Division of Emergency Preparedness and Response – offers users an interactive tool that generates a tailored communications plan for the entire family and a list of specific supplies to include in household Ready kits, along with other valuable information for individuals, families and businesses on how to get ready.

To help spread the campaign’s message – prepare, plan and stay informed – The Ad Council in cooperation with DHS, launched a new public service announcement today that was localized for Georgia by the Metro Atlanta Urban Area Security Initiative on behalf of Ready Georgia. The new PSA will air on television stations throughout the state to educate and engage viewers in the preparedness process.

“Research has shown that most Georgians feel immune to the threats that are real and dangerous,” said Julia Janka, program administrator for Metro Atlanta UASI. “By creating awareness for the need to be prepared, we hope that more people will act as their own first responders should disaster strike.”

Citizens Corps, Community Emergency Response Teams, local emergency management agencies and organizations across Georgia are planning additional preparedness events in their communities. For a list of events taking place during September and for more information about the Ready Georgia campaign and National Preparedness Month, visit www.ready.ga.gov .

Gwinnett County Makes More Budget Adjustments

2009-09-02T21:33:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County's separately elected officials and Constitutional officers have agreed to $1.9 million in budget cuts to help commissioners balance the books for 2009.

The Board accepted their recommendations on Tuesday and cautioned that another $11 million in cuts will be needed for next year. These cuts are consistent with reductions in budgets throughout the County. While the Board of Commissioners appropriates funds for departments run by elected officials, they do not directly manage those departments.

The officials include the Clerk of Court, Clerk of Recorder’s Court, District Attorney, Judiciary, Juvenile Court, Probate Court, Recorder’s Court, Sheriff, Solicitor and Tax Commissioner. The County’s Department of Human Resources has offered to work with all these departments to arrange staff reductions through a retirement incentive program in those areas where personnel costs must be reduced.

In related action, commissioners approved a retirement incentive program for Probate Court, similar to the one offered to many eligible County employees last month. It is expected to save $59,295 in 2010.

Stone Mountain Man Arrested; Allegedly Hit Toddler

2009-09-02T21:27:00.000-07:00

According to police, a 61-year-old Stone Mountain man annoyed with a crying 2-year-old girl at a Wal-Mart slapped the child several times after warning the toddler's mother to keep her quiet.

A police report says after the stranger hit the girl at least four times, he said: "See, I told you I would shut her up."

Roger Stephens of Stone Mountain is charged with felony cruelty to children.

Authorities say the girl and her mother were shopping Monday when the toddler began crying.

The police report says Stephens approached the mother and said, "If you don't shut that baby up, I will shut her up for you."

Authorities say after Stephens slapped the girl, she began screaming.

The mother then called for security.

The girl suffered some redness in the face but was otherwise okay.

Stephens was being held without bond.

Cobb Paramedic Honored for Helping Fellow Firefighter's Widow

2009-09-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

Dennis Thayer, an engineer and paramedic for Cobb Fire and Emergency Services, was recently honored with the Special Presidential Award for Outstanding Service and Dedication by the Georgia Association of Fire Chiefs. The award is given at the discretion of the president when someone has met the high standards for the honor.

Thayer was chosen for this prestigious award for his efforts to help the widow of Joey Turner, a volunteer firefighter from Homerville-Clinch County who died of a heart attack while training at the Georgia Fire Academy. Thayer worked tirelessly to raise enough money to buy her a used car, new tires, insurance for a year and make six months worth of mortgage payments on her home.

Thayer also led a group effort to ensure the State Indemnification Commission paid the widow money due from her husband's line of duty death. The commission originally recommended not paying benefits because the firefighter was in training at the time of his death.
Photo by Jim Mykytyn

Grant Park Tour of Homes Set for Sept. 26-27

2009-09-01T22:04:00.000-07:00

The 36th Annual Grant Park Tour of Homes will be held Sept. 26-27

Join organizers for the 36th Grant Park Tour of Homes and enjoy "Atlanta's Backyard". Grant Park living has it all, from historic bungalows to new construction and modern city condos.

For ticket information, visit: https://neighborhood.org/net/commerce/signup.aspx?ez=1&s=0.0.0.20

UGA to Host Young Students at Scholar Weekend

2009-09-01T21:59:00.000-07:00

As many as 100 of the brightest middle and high school students in Georgia and nearby states will get their first taste of college courses during a Scholar Weekend Sept. 19-20 hosted by the University of Georgia College of Education’s Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development in partnership with Duke University and the Georgia Center for Continuing Education.

The UGA Scholar Weekend, directed by UGA’s Torrance Center for Creativity and Talent Development, is part of the Duke Talent Identification Program to identify academically talented children and provide resources to nurture and challenge each child’s abilities.

TIP scholars are identified through standardized test scores and invited to take the SAT or ACT in the 7th grade as part of the program. Those scoring exceptionally well are then invited to attend TIP’s Scholar Weekends where they are exposed to interesting and challenging topics not typically covered in middle or high school curricula.

This is the first of three Scholar Weekends planned this fall at UGA, which is one of only eight locations in the nation selected to be hosts. The second Scholar Weekend is scheduled for Oct. 17-18, and the third program will be held Dec. 5-6. Other sites include the University of South Carolina, Appalachian State University, New College in Sarasota, Fla., the University of Houston, the University of Kansas, Texas Christian University and Duke University’s main campus.

At TIP Scholar Weekends, students are introduced to the collegiate experience by participating in two days of intense study in one of the provided courses taught by UGA professors and Athens area school teachers. The overall goal is to enhance student skills, enrich the learning experience and foster an interest in college as well as specific collegiate majors.

The courses available for the Sept. 19 Scholar Weekend include “Introductory Robotics,” “Architecture: From Playhouses to Mansions,” “A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words: Creative Writing and Photography,” “To Climb the Great Wall: Fun with Mandarin Chinese,” “CSI: Plant Pathology,” “Biofuels: The Next Step?,” “Rube Goldberg Challenge,” “Psychology, Human Experience and the U.S. Military,” and “The Physics of the Nintendo Wii.”

Tuition for the Scholar Weekend on Sept. 19-20 is $395 for day students and $425 for overnight students. Some financial aid is available. Registration ends Sept. 1.

For more information on these programs and a printable registration sheet, see the Torrance Center’s Web site at www.coe.uga.edu/torrance/ or call (706) 542-5104.

Gwinnett Co. Fed Stimulus Money Totals $120M

2009-09-01T21:53:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County commissioners heard Tuesday that they have received almost $120 million so far from the $787 billion federal economic stimulus law, the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) that became law last February.

The funds are being distributed through various federal and state agencies. Gwinnett’s largest amount to date, totaling $81.3 million, is going to shovel-ready road improvements including the $24 million extension of McGinnis Ferry Road across I-85. Bids for that project were opened on July 17 and construction should begin soon.

Board Chairman Charles Bannister said, “County staff began looking for funding opportunities the day the law was passed, and we’ve obviously been very successful with our many applications. It’s clear that our success is a result of staff having solid plans in place and projects that were ready to go. We also appreciate the help of our Congressional delegations in Washington who are very aware and supportive of our needs.”

Gwinnett focused on four areas for stimulus funding: modernizing infrastructure, clean energy technology, crime control and prevention, and community stabilization in the wake of record foreclosures.

Of the funds received to date, $81.3 million came through Georgia DOT, $21.8 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), $16.7 million from the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority, $9 million from the Federal Transit Administration, $7.3 million from the U.S. Department of Energy, and $2.4 million through the U.S. Department of Justice. The latest award is $1.7 million from HUD to prevent homelessness and help homeless residents find new housing; four nonprofit organizations with experience in serving homeless individuals and families are recommended to receive the funds.

Gwinnett submitted successful applications for a wide variety of projects including road-building, weatherization, homelessness programs, a new Senior Services Center, mid-life overhauls of transit buses, a waste-to-energy power generator, recycling of fats, oils and grease, and new public safety systems including online citizen reporting, and improved forensic and crime scene investigation equipment.

Federal stimulus funds are subject to very thorough audit and reporting requirements and can be tracked at www.recovery.gov for federal projects and www.stimulusaccountability.ga.gov for state projects.

FedEx to Expand Cobb County Operations

2009-08-28T19:27:00.000-07:00

FedEx Ground plans to expand its Cobb County distribution center and add 270 well-paying jobs. This initiative will add 85,000 square feet to the state-of-the-art facility.

"This has been one of FedEx's most successful distribution centers," Michael Hughes, Cobb director of economic development, said in a statement. "FedEx enjoys access to a world-class workforce as well as great infrastructure."

The facility manager of the Cobb location credits support received from the county as a major help in making the center one of the most productive facilities. The expansion will provide additional capabilities to aid efficient handling of local, regional and country-wide service.

UGA Inducts 102 Incoming Vet Students

2009-08-28T19:23:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine welcomed the class of 2013 during its annual White Coat Ceremony held recently. Sponsored by the Georgia Veterinary Medical Association, this event officially recognized 102 members of the incoming class of 2013 by donning them in bright white lab coats to be worn during their veterinary education.

The hour-long ceremony was held in the Mahler Auditorium at the Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel. After the ceremony, Dr. Myron Downs, president of the GVMA and an Athens-area veterinary surgeon, led the two-block recessional of coated students to the College of Veterinary Medicine for a class photo and a reception with their families and veterinary faculty and staff.

This year’s incoming class includes 76 women and 26 men, with an average undergraduate GPA of 3.54 and an average GRE score of 1116.

The University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, founded in 1946, is dedicated to training future veterinarians, providing services to animal owners and veterinarians and conducting investigations to improve the health of animals and people. The college benefits companion animals and their owners, food-producing animals and wildlife by offering the highest-quality hospital and diagnostic laboratory services. The college enrolls 102 students each fall out of more than 570 who apply and employs more than 145 faculty members.

UPDATE: Hunt on for Gunman Who Killed 4 in Gwinnett County

2009-08-27T21:48:00.000-07:00

Police in Gwinnett County are looking for a gunman who shot 5 people and killed 4 of them.

It happened Thursday night on Clairidge Lane in Lawrenceville which is off Sugarloaf Parkway near the Gwinnett fairgrounds. Police say when they arrived at the home they found 3 people already dead. A fourth was taken to the hospital where they died. A 4 year old was also found with a gunshot wound but alive. She's been taken to a hospital.

A neighbor told CBS Atlanta she helped put the child in the ambulance and that the child told her her family is dead. She says the child was injured and hysterical.An all out manhunt is underway for the shooter.Police say the shooter is driving a black Dodge Intrepid with Georgia tag AZH-7311. According to police the car has a New Orleans Saints sticker on the gas cap cover and is flying a New Orleans Saints Flag.

Courtesy: CBS Atlanta

2009-08-25T21:31:00.000-07:00

The Peachtree City Council will hold the last of three public hearings on the millage rate on Thursday, Aug. 27, 6:30 p.m. The millage rate and FY 2010 budget will be adopted following the public hearing.

Staff has proposed increasing the millage rate by 0.237 mills to avoid using any cash reserves for the FY 2010 budget. Based on the proposed millage rate for the City and the other agencies in Fayette County, 16.5% of a Peachtree City resident’s property taxes would come to the City of Peachtree City, with 67.2% going to the Fayette County Board of Education,15.5% going to Fayette County, and 0.7% going to the State of Georgia.

UGA to Dedicate Expansion of Health Center

2009-08-25T21:27:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia will dedicate the addition and renovation of its University Health Center Sept. 1 at 3 p.m. at the facility.

The ceremony, which commemorates the $17 million project that added 30,000 square feet of new clinic and office space, will feature speakers: UGA President Michael Adams; Rodney Bennett, vice president for Student Affairs; Jean Chin, director of the center; and Jasmaine Williams, a fourth-year biology major and member of the Student Health Advisory Committee.

“The completion of the expansion project means the ‘one-stop shop’ health care experience for students is now a reality,” said Chin. “With the Vision Clinic addition, we are offering eye care services to round out our medical, dental, counseling, travel, health education and prevention, diagnostic, and pharmacy services. We have a new training kitchen for students to learn about healthy cooking and an optical shop that carries glasses, contacts, and accessories. This building brings all of these services under one roof. There are few reasons for students to leave campus for health care now.”

In addition, the project expanded the Women’s Clinic and the Dental Clinic, relocated the Allergy/Travel Medicine Clinic to the first floor to improve access, and augmented the pharmacy and waiting area. The Vision Clinic, which opened Aug. 10, serves students, faculty, staff and employee dependents by offering comprehensive eye exams and a vast selection of glasses and contact lenses. The second floor of the center is now dedicated solely to Counseling and Psychiatric Services in order to meet the rising demand for mental health services. The project added more clinician offices, group therapy rooms and testing spaces. The renovation, which was completed in two phases, began in April 2008. The University Health Center is a department within UGA’s Division of Student Affairs.

For more information on the University Health Center, see http://www.uhs.uga.edu/.

Emory Names Grad School After James Laney

2009-08-25T21:24:00.001-07:00

The Emory University Board of Trustees has approved naming the Graduate School in honor of President Emeritus James T. Laney, former U.S. ambassador to South Korea, who led the university from 1977 until 1994, a time when it emerged as a national research university.

"The naming of the James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies honors the vision and leadership of Jim Laney, whose ambitious plan for Emory revolved around graduate education," said Emory President James Wagner. "He understood clearly that the core of great research universities lies in the training of new generations of intellectual leaders for the academy and for the public good."

"Emory's decision to name the Graduate School for me is the greatest honor of my life," said Laney. "From the very first, Emory has been in my heart, and I am deeply touched and humbled to always be associated with the university in such a special way."

Lisa A. Tedesco, dean of the newly designated Laney Graduate School, said that "naming the graduate school is a fitting way to acknowledge President Laney because it recognizes his vision for the central role of doctoral education in establishing and sustaining a great research university at the forefront of discovery in the sciences and humanities."

UGA to Host Social Media Talk Sept. 19

2009-08-24T22:13:00.000-07:00

Public relations professionals and academics alike are continuing to talk about how social media are changing what they do. Leading that conversation, the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication will host its third annual Connect conference on public relations and social media on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the Miller Learning Center on campus.

The conference, sponsored by Porter Novelli and the Grady College, is designed to bring together public relations professionals and educators to explore how social media is being used in public relations.

“We’ll be talking about whether social media should be integrated with traditional PR and marketing programs. And, if it should, how that might be done,” said Karen Miller Russell, Grady College associate professor of public relations and conference organizer.

Paula Berg, manager of emerging media for Southwest Airlines, will provide the keynote speech on Saturday evening. According to Russell, Southwest is the nation’s leading low-fare air carrier and has been one of the most successful U.S. businesses of the past 30 years.

Panel discussions on Saturday will match professionals and academics discussing important issues and practices within non-profits, business and industry, and government public relations. Speakers include Jeremy Pepper, Dan Greenfield, principal of Bernaise Source Media; Richard Waters, North Carolina State University; and Toby Bloomberg, Bloomberg Marketing/Diva Marketing.

Adding a global perspective will be two speakers joining the discussion via the Web—Melanie James of Newcastle University in Australia and Tom Watson of the United Kingdom’s Bournemouth University.

Saturday’s luncheon will feature Lauren Fernandez, marketing coordinator at American Mensa and popular public relations blogger. Fernandez recently tackled a controversial subject when she questioned whether PR agencies should be executing social media plans for their clients.

Past conferences received rave reviews from participants. “Connect really changed my approach to public relations,” said Melissa Libby of Atlanta’s Melissa Libby and Associates. “I learned it all at the conference. Facebook, YouTube, Yelp and Flickr are now all in a day’s work at our company.” Public relations measurement professional Katie Paine called Connect “a very fun and fascinating discussion of social media.”

“Social media isn’t new anymore,” said Russell. “It’s time for organizations of all types to figure out how to make it part of their overall communication programs.”

Conference registration is $150 with a deadline of Friday, Sept. 11. Space is limited. For more information and to register, see www.grady.uga.edu/connect.

Gwinnett Co. Checking Businesses on Immigration Status

2009-08-24T22:08:00.000-07:00

More than 26,000 Gwinnett-based businesses soon will get a letter from the County’s license and revenue office asking for compliance with a new state immigration law.

The County is required to check the immigration status of all applicants for a business/occupation tax certificate, commonly called a business license.

Board Chairman Charles Bannister said the law requires all applicants to be a U.S. citizen, legal permanent resident, qualified alien or a nonimmigrant as defined in the Federal Immigration and Nationality Act. Bannister explained, “We are making sure that Gwinnett County is in compliance with the law.”

All businesses, corporations, LLCs and partnerships registered in Gwinnett will receive the letter over the next few weeks. Applicants are required to return a signed, notarized affidavit before they can renew online or receive a 2010 business/occupation tax certificate. Those who are not U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents must also submit a copy of certain paperwork to establish their status, which the County will verify through the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) program operated by the federal Department of Homeland Security.

Since 2007, Gwinnett has been verifying the immigration status of applicants for jobs at the County and its primary contractors and subcontractors. The verification program also applies to other public benefits such as housing assistance, certain work permits and adult education.

Athens-Clarke County Police Battle ID Theft, Hold Sept. 2 Event

2009-08-20T21:52:00.001-07:00

The Athens-Clarke County Police Department said it has received reports that individuals are being called on their cell phones by people posing as bank representatives.

The victims are being told their debit cards have been compromised. The caller then requests personal information from the card holder. This is an attempt to gain identity information to be used to commit identity fraud.

If you receive such a call and have doubts about the caller, contact your local bank to confirm the activity on your account before giving out any identifying information.

Do not call the number that the caller attempts to give you for that number will ring back to the suspects. Find your bank’s customer service number independent of the caller. Your bank's customer service number should be located on the back of your bank card, on your monthly billing statement, the bank’s web site, or the paperwork received when you opened your account.

Upcoming community meetings to discuss crime problems:

Wed., Sept. 2
6:30 p.m.
Central Baptist Church
720 Danielsville Rd.

Residents will be able to:

Discuss crime problems in your community.
Relay ideas on how to have a better community.
Learn facts about neighborhood crime.
Have up-to-date information on Crime Prevention and Crime Prevention tools.
Address issues on physical condition of the neighborhood.

For information, contact Lt. Terrie Patterson at (706) 613-3358, ext 223, or Nick Aguilar, ext 237.

UGA Gains a Top Ranking in Magazine Report

2009-08-20T21:44:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia is ranked 21st among public universities and tied for 58th overall according to the U.S. News & World Report's 2010 edition of America’s Best Colleges.

UGA also was listed among 25 national universities for 2008 graduates with the least debt.

The undergraduate program at the Terry College of Business is ranked 25th overall—up from 30th last year—and 18th among public business schools. This year’s ranking marks the 11th consecutive year Terry has been ranked in the top 30. Terry’s risk management and insurance program maintained its second place ranking nationally, as did the real estate program, which is ranked third in the country.

“We see continual improvement in the quality of students and faculty in the Terry College of Business, and it is satisfying to have our undergraduate program consistently recognized as one of the very best in the country,” said Dean Robert Sumichrast. “We’re undertaking some curriculum changes this year that will challenge our students in the classroom and make their campus experience even better while they’re students in the Terry College.”

The 2010 rankings are available on-line at www.usnews.com and highlights of the college rankings will be published in the Sept.1 issue of U.S News & World Report, available for newsstand purchase Monday, Aug. 24. The U.S. News & World Report's 2010 edition of America’s Best Colleges guidebook will be available as of Tuesday, Aug. 25.

U.S. News considers several factors in producing the annual ranking. Among those are graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, alumni giving and peer assessment.

Golf Event Tees-Off Aug. 31

2009-08-19T22:06:00.000-07:00

The SafePath Children's Advocacy Center and Cobb Department of Public Safety's 12th annual charity golf classic, "Teeing Off for Kids," will take place Monday, Aug. 31, at the Indian Hills Country Club. Registration is at 9 a.m. with a shotgun start at 10 a.m.

The event is a four-person Ft. Lauderdale scramble golf tournament. The fees are $175 for individual players and $700 for a foursome. Sponsorships start at $300. All proceeds of the tournament benefit the SafePath Children's Advocacy Center, which provides assistance to child abuse victims and their non-offending caregivers. The club is located at 4001 Clubland Drive, Marietta.

Registration is available online at: teeingoffforkids.com.

UGA Math Dept. to Open New Study Area

2009-08-19T22:02:00.000-07:00

The department of mathematics at the University of Georgia will formally open a new Undergraduate Study Area in room 308 of the Boyd Graduate Studies Building on Wednesday, Aug. 26, at 3 p.m. The public is invited to the event.

“The department has provided the study area Undergraduate Study Area in order to meet our students’ need for a space to study and collaborate in groups while remaining close to their instructors and classrooms,” said Jason Cantarella, an associate professor of mathematics and co-director of the Vertical Integration of Research and Education program, which is funded by a five-year $3.8 million grant from the National Science Foundation.

The new facility will encourage casual mathematical interaction between students and faculty before and after their classes, Cantarella said. The USA will house personal lockers so students can store books and space where they can work together. It will also host math club meetings and drop-in tutoring hours for all mathematics students.

“The USA is a modern and comfortable space equipped with seating for 25 students to work alone or in small groups, with laptop power outlets, WiFi, a conference room, a reference library of mathematics texts and a coffeemaker,” said Cantarella.

The Undergraduate Study Area was completed with support from the Office of the Vice President for Research, the Office of the Vice President for Instruction, personal contributions from members of the mathematics department, including Jim and Nancy Cantrell, and the National Science Foundation, through the mathematics department’s VIGRE grant. The room was designed by Leslie DiSimone of the UGA Physical Plant. The department of mathematics is part of UGA’s Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

Stimulus, Other Grants Impact Gwinnett Co.

2009-08-19T21:55:00.000-07:00

Just over $4.5 million in federal stimulus and state funds is headed to Gwinnett County after commissioners voted to accept five different grants on Tuesday.

Almost $3.3 million is designated for energy audits, weatherization and appliance repairs to make an estimated 461 homes of elderly, low income and handicapped residents more efficient and affordable. The stimulus funds will come from the U.S. Department of Energy through the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority and the work will be done by the non-profit organization Partnership for Community Action. Another $1.1 million will help build a new Senior Services Center at 567 Swanson Drive in Lawrenceville.

A year of construction will begin this month on the new “green building” that will centralize various programs that serve Gwinnett seniors. Deputy Secretary Ron Sims of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development came to Gwinnett on July 22 to announce the Community Development Block Grant award. Neither of these grants requires matching funds.

Commissioners also accepted a $69,411 grant to provide home-delivered and congregate meals to frail and homebound seniors provided through the Atlanta Regional Commission. The grant requires a 15 percent local match that the County is unable to provide, but the non-profit Friends of Gwinnett County Seniors group has offered to supply the needed $12,248.

Friends President Pam Tokarz said, “We don’t want to lose any opportunity to feed needy seniors in our community, so we’re happy to provide these matching funds.” Gwinnett provides more than 135,000 such meals annually but still has a wait list of more than 200 eligible seniors.

Fire and Emergency Services will receive two state grants through the Georgia Emergency Management Agency. A grant of $61,430 will pay for new hazardous materials suits and reference books for the Lawrenceville-based HazMat team that handles incidents like natural gas line breaks, significant gasoline spills, victim retrieval, site decontamination and contaminated victim transport.

Another $25,000 state grant will pay to replace equipment on the department’s Buford-based Search and Rescue truck. Fire personnel use the equipment to extricate victims from traffic collisions, caved-in trenches, confined spaces, machinery entanglements, or collapsed structures using precision cutting, spreading, disassembly, rigging or heavy lifting techniques.

Peachtree City Police Remind Residents to Protect Cars

2009-08-18T19:59:00.000-07:00

The Peachtree City Police Department is reminding residents to protect their cars at all times.

On Aug. 14 and 15, between 10 p.m. and 9 a.m., numerous items were stolen from autos and garages in the Heritage Subdivision, located on Highway 74.

There was no forced entry to any of the cars and garages (residents had left their cars and garages unlocked or open). Stolen items included radios, money, a laptop, GPS units, an IPod, wallets, and alcohol.

Peachtree City Police wants to remind residents and visitors of the following tips:

* Keep vehicles and homes locked.
* Do not leave valuable items in vehicles.
* Call the police if you see any suspicious activity, or hear suspicious noises.Be aware of you surroundings.

Thieves will watch areas and will target cars, homes, and people who make themselves easy victims. Keep this in mind when placing packages, purses or valuables in the car – keep them out of sight, or better yet, remember that . . . The safest place for valuables is on your person or secured in your home.

IBBS Moves to Cartersville Facility

2009-08-18T19:54:00.000-07:00

Integrated Broadband Services (IBBS) has moved to a new, larger customer call facility in Cartersville, and added 30 employees.

According to a company spokesperson, having the call center in Cartersville allows the company greater access to graduates from several technical schools.

IBBS offers software and services for cable operators and broadband Internet service providers.

Finalists Named in UGA Provost Search

2009-08-18T19:48:00.000-07:00

A University of Georgia search committee has recommended four finalists to UGA President Michael Adams for the position of senior vice president for academic affairs and provost.

Each finalist will visit the university and will hold a University Council forum and open public session from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. in the Chapel on the day of their campus visit. The public sessions, which will be open to faculty, staff, and students, will be followed by a brief media availability.

The finalists were announced by search committee chair William Gray Potter, university librarian and associate provost. The 20-member committee began its work in March and is composed of faculty, staff, administrators, students and alumni. The committee was assisted by Shelly Weiss Storbeck, managing partner of executive search firm Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates.

Adams will choose a successor to Arnett Mace Jr., who is scheduled to retire on Jan. 1 after 18 years of service to UGA, with seven of those years as provost. (Mace will continue his leadership role in the MCG/UGA Medical Partnership under the title Special Assistant to the President.)

The finalists are: Mary Anne Fitzpatrick, founding dean of the University of South Carolina College of Arts and Sciences;Sallie Keller-McNulty, William and Stephanie Sick Dean of the Rice University George R. Brown School of Engineering;Jere W. Morehead, vice president for instruction at the University of Georgia; andRobert D. Newman, dean of humanities and associate vice president for interdisciplinary studies at the University of Utah.

Governor Creates Educational Abuse Study Group

2009-08-17T20:37:00.000-07:00

Gov. Sonny Perdue has accepted the recommendations of the Office of the Child Advocate and created a working group to examine policies and procedures that are followed when cases of abuse are alleged in an educational environment.

The Governor’s Working Group on Abuse in the Educational Setting will convene experienced school administrators and leaders along with law enforcement personnel to develop consistent statewide policies and protocols for addressing reports of child abuse by school employees.

The Governor has charged the working group with developing specific child abuse reporting and response procedures that can be adopted by every school system in the state. The group’s recommendations will include specific processes for parents and students to report abuse as well as protocols for school system management to use when taking personnel action involving accused employees and reporting the incident to law enforcement, system leadership and the Professional Standards Commission.

A specific task of the group will include developing protocols for addressing allegations abuse in special settings, such as those involving special educational programs operated by Regional Educational Services Agencies (RESAs).

Gov. Perdue’s formation of the working group comes in response to recommendations from the Office of the Child Advocate. In June, following a disturbing case alleging abuse of a child by school personnel, the Governor charged the State Child Advocate with determining whether Georgia’s laws and policies adequately address issues of abuse in the educational setting.

The first meeting of the working group has been tentatively scheduled for late August. The members of the working group are:

Matt Arthur, Superintendent, Rabun County Schools

Emily Lembeck, Superintendent, Marietta City Schools
Jeannie Edwards, Student Health Coordinator, Dawson County Schools
Stephanie (Taylor) Williams, Ed.S., Early Intervention Program (EIP), MontgomeryElementary School, DeKalb County Schools
Jay Fowler, Principal, Rocky Creek Elementary School, Henry County
Pete Skandalakis, Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney
Rachael Barron, Parent Representative, Atlanta

The Georgia Review Hosts Dove Oct. 8-9

2009-08-17T19:36:00.000-07:00

The Georgia Review, the University of Georgia’s quarterly journal of arts and letters, marks its long association with Pulitzer Prize winner and former U.S. poet laureate Rita Dove by hosting the renowned writer for two days of readings, talks, and informal gatherings in Athens on Oct. 8 and 9.

Scheduled events on Thursday, Oct. 8, include a 3:30 p.m. informal talk at the Tate Student Center Theater, and “How Does a Shadow Shine?” a reading at 7 p.m. at the Morton Theatre, 195 W. Washington St. On Friday, Oct. 9, at 7 p.m., the Athens-Clarke County Public Library auditorium will be the venue for “Cafe au Libris: An Evening with Rita Dove,” a conversation and book signing.

Dove also will meet with students and faculty at Clarke Central High School while in Athens.

Acworth Park and Ride Lot Takes Off

2009-08-17T19:31:00.000-07:00

Cobb County leaders recently cut the ribbon for the Cobb Community Transit's newly-expanded Acworth Park and Ride Lot.

About 80 percent of the $2.3 million construction cost was paid for through federal grants, according to the Cobb County Department of Transportation. Another 10 percent was paid for by state grants. The project, which expanded the lot from 274 parking spaces to 499 spaces, also included additional lighting and a covered passenger waiting area. CCT offers eight other park and ride lot locations for the convenience of patrons.

For more information, visit cobbcct.org.

Women's Empowerment Series Hits Atlanta Aug. 20

2009-08-17T15:06:00.000-07:00

The Women’s Empowerment Series scheduled for Aug. 20 in Atlanta has added some additional prominent speakers covering topics designed to help women succeed in their personal and professional lives and to support the growth of women in business.

Keynote presentations and break-out sessions during the Women’s Empowerment Series will provide mentoring, education and motivation from accomplished business leaders and female entrepreneurs and offer ideas and insight for succeeding in the changing business environment and economy.

The list of featured speakers and topics includes:

Joyce Bone of MillionaireMom.com will speak on “The Three Keys and the Power of the Millionaire Mom Mentality.”

Bone is the founder and CEO of MIllionaireMoms.com, a Web site helping women master the art of raising a business and a family. She co-founded EarthCare, an environmental company that grew from a $10,000 investment to a $50 million company in 18 months. She is a columnist for eWomenNetwork’s “Glow Magazine” and “Inside Gwinnett” magazine. She has been featured on CNBC’s “The Squawk Box”.

Maritza Parra of MaritzaParra.com will present “Transformation from the Inside Out to Have It All as a Successful Woman”. Maritza Parra, also known as The Product Creation Queen, is an author, speaker, coach, syndicated columnist and Internet marketer. Parra trains and coaches entrepreneurs to use self-empowerment and the Internet to create financial freedom. After being featured on "Oprah & Friends: The Soul Series”, Parra became an expert at creating products quickly via teleseminars, e-books video and other product creation strategies.

Deborah Shane of TrainwithShane.com delivers her presentation, “The 21st Century Businesswoman – Five Keys to Success.” Deborah Shane is a motivational speaker and educator who founded Train With Shane to deliver education, training and professional development in relation to current market conditions and the shifting, competitive business environment. The model for Train With Shane comes from Shane’s collective experience in entertainment, teaching, sales and mentoring.

Lisa La Rochelle of ArdenPublishing.com will speak on “Savvy Marketing by Blending Traditional and New Media”. Lisa La Rochelle is the co-founder, chairman and CEO of Arden Custom Publishing Group which develops and launches multimedia publishing products such as print magazines, video magazines, and multimedia content and video products.

GlowMagazine.org and GirlMogul.com are two of Arden’s products. GirlMogul.com will make a presentation on “Mentorship and Developing Others”. GirlMogul.com provides positive, encouraging messages for Tween girls. YWTF.org/Younger Women’s Task Force, Atlanta Chapter will focus on organizing young women to take action on things that matter to them. This grassroots movement is a project of the National Council of Women’s Organizations. They work to define and develop the next generation of women leaders and create a local and national network for peer mentoring and networking.

The Women's Empowerment Series was created and launched in 2007 in Southwest Florida by Train with Shane Owner Deborah Shane. The series serves to inspire, educate, mentor and encourage women to develop a sense of confidence and self-esteem that will support the growth of women in business. The event will be held from 10:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at 103 West located at 103 West Paces Ferry Road in the Buckhead section of Atlanta. Registration is Buddy Up 2 for $99 and includes lunch, a Women’s Empowerment Series Gift Bag and more.

To register visit: www.womensempowermentseries.com. For more information, call Deborah Shane, Train with Shane at (239) 985-9844.

Dine Out, Help Kids Stay in School

2009-08-14T21:47:00.000-07:00

Residents can help the Marietta/Cobb chapter of Communities In Schools, a dropout prevention program, by participating in the Dining Out for Kids event Thursday, Aug. 20.

Participating restaurants will donate a percentage of sales that day to their local Community in Schools program.

For more information, visit: dineoutforkids.com/involved.php.

Outdoor Market in Hiram Runs Each Saturday

2009-08-14T21:40:00.000-07:00

COME SHOP WITH THE VENDORS of the OUTDOOR MARKET, Every Saturday! free to all

LOCATION: 3595 Hiram-Douglasville Hwy (Hwy 92) just at Ridge Rd in Hiram, Ga 30141

HOURS: Begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 5 p.m.

Shop the vendors: Yard Sale Booths (several every Saturday), Crafts, Handmade items, Handbags, Accessories, Pet Items, Jewelry, Jams/Jellies, Great Food and Cool Drinks (Italian Ice, snowcones, etc).

FOR INFO CALL: (678) 567-5198 (call if you would like a vendor space - always FREE)

UGA Tate Student Center Expansion Dedication Aug. 20

2009-08-14T21:35:00.000-07:00

The official dedication of the University of Georgia Tate Student Center expansion will be held Aug. 20 at 2 p.m. in the Grand Hall of the facility. The ceremony will feature remarks by UGA President Michael Adams and Vice President for Student Affairs Rodney Bennett.

After the ceremony, participants will move onto the west plaza facing Lumpkin Street for a ribbon-cutting ceremony led by Adams and UGA alumnus Holger Weis. As president of the University Union Student Programming Board in 1983, Weis participated in the dedication ceremony for the original Tate Student Center.

Students and other guests will be given commemorative scissors to help cut the ribbon. During the dedication, University Food Services will offer sample menu items from its four new restaurants: Taste of Home Café, Barberitos Southwestern Grill, Larry’s Giant Subs and Hotei’s Asian Grill. Campus Catering will serve dessert items. The UGA Pep Band will play on the plaza.

The Tate expansion opened on June 1 after more than four years of planning and construction. The 96,000 square-foot facility includes enhanced dining options for students, faculty and staff. Meeting and conference rooms for student organizations are available, including the 12,000 square-foot Grand Hall capable of accommodating up to 1,600 guests.

17 Clarke Co. Champion Trees Grow in SBG of Georgia

2009-08-14T21:32:00.000-07:00

Seventeen trees growing in the State Botanical Garden of Georgia (2450 South Milledge Avenue) have been named Clarke County Champion Trees by the Athens-Clarke County Community Tree Council.

A Champion Tree is the largest tree of its species recorded within the county. One of these trees, the Carolina Buckthorn, is recognized as the Georgia State Champion Tree for its species. To view information on Champion Trees, see a map and photo of each Champion Tree, or nominate a tree for recognition, see http://www.athenstrees.com/championtrees.php or call (706) 613-3565.

Clarke County Champion Trees at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia include:

Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum)
Red Hickory (Carya ovalis) Pignut Hickory (Carya ovata)
Mockernut Hickory (Carya tomentosa)
American Hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana)
Eastern Redbud (Cercis canadensis)
Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
Ogeechee Tupelo (Nyssa ogeche)
Hop Hornbeam (Ostrya virginiana)
Royal Paulownia (Paulownia tomintosa)
Chinese Pistache (Pistacia chinensis)
Winged Pistache (Pistacia spp.)
Nuttall Oak (Quercus nutallii)
Shumard Oak (Quercus shumardii)
Carolina Buckthorn (Rhamnus caroliniana)
Baldcypress (Taxodium distichum) Basswood (Tilia americana)

MARKETING ASSISTANCE NEEDED

2009-08-13T22:41:00.000-07:00

GoAtlanta is looking for someone with a marketing background and who lives or attends college in the greater Atlanta area to help market our news blog.

In return for finding advertisers for our site, we will split the profits from those ads with you 50-50.

The work can be done on your own schedule and all we need is someone who can help us in locating some advertisers for the site.

Please email Dave at: eastcoastdt@aol.com with any questions, and thank you for your time!

Peachtree City PD Hosting Fall Certification Class

2009-08-13T22:36:00.000-07:00

The Peachtree City Police Department will host a basic Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) class beginning Sept. 3.

The classes will be held each Thursday for 10 weeks from 6:30 - 9 p.m. The CERT Program offers valuable insight into the first few critical hours following an emergency or disaster and how people can better prepare to sustain themselves and their families. Applicants (18 and older Georgia Residents) must sign a Waiver of Liability form and undergo a criminal history background check. There is no charge to attend the program, but class size will be limited.

Visit www.peachtree-city.org/police for more information and applications. Applications are also available at the Library, City Hall, and the Police Department.

The deadline to apply is Aug. 27.

Donations Needed Saturday for Teachers

2009-08-13T22:29:00.001-07:00

Teacher Supply Storehouse will host an open house for public and private school teachers, as well as parents who home school their children, 8-10:30 a.m., Saturday, Aug. 15, at the storehouse, 440 Glover St., Marietta.

Teacher Suppy Storehouse is a 100 percent volunteer non-profit organization that reaches out to area businesses for materials that can be used by teachers and would otherwise be thrown away. During open houses, teachers can "shop" for materials and take as much as they need. Donations are requested at the back door to help cover the cost of transporting materials to the warehouse.

Last August, more than 500 teachers attended and more are anticipated this year.

Area businesses and manufacturers that have product that will otherwise be thrown away, such as paper of all types, fabric, carpet samples, art supplies, office supplies, instructional toys and books, wood scraps and gardening items, are encouraged to donate.

For more information on the organization and event, visit www.cobbk12.org/teacherssupplystore.

Gwinnett Co. Administrator Notes Retirement

2009-08-13T22:24:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County Administrator Jock Connell has announced he will retire at the end of the year.

First hired in 1986 to oversee the County’s risk management section, Connell briefly left the county to work in the private sector. Recruited back to Gwinnett County to become Assistant Finance Director in 1994, Connell was promoted in 1995 as Finance Director. In 2000, he was appointed as the county’s first Deputy County Administrator. In 2005, the Board of Commissioners named him County Administrator.

Commission Chairman Charles Bannister said, “Throughout his career here, Jock has been a part of the core management team that has guided the county through its most dynamic and challenging period of growth and to a solid triple AAA bond rating. We will miss him.” Glenn Stephens, current director of the County’s Planning and Development Department, has been selected as Connell’s replacement.

Already set to retire in 2010, Connell approached the Board of Commissioners with his new intentions earlier this summer. Connell said, “In a perfect world, the County would have already resolved its solid waste issues, service delivery negotiations with cities, and several other major issues that will play out over the next 18 months. For the good of the organization, I believe the next County Administrator needs to be involved in the resolution of these matters in order to effectively manage the results. I will work closely with Glenn in the coming months to ensure an orderly transition.”

Connell will not accept any of the retirement incentives being offered to other county employees as a part of the current effort to reduce the county’s workforce. His retirement will closely follow those of Deputy County Administrator Mike Comer and Assistant County Administrator Lisa Johnsa. However, most of the county’s senior management will remain intact.

Among the many accomplishments during Connell’s five years as County Administrator, Gwinnett County maintained its triple AAA bond rating, implemented a new stormwater utility, opened 12 new parks, renovated or expanded 17 parks, opened two new libraries, opened five new fire stations and relocated another five stations. The County also added 522 police officers and sheriff’s deputies, opened three police precincts, resurfaced 375 miles of roads, widened several major roads, began construction of the Sugarloaf Parkway extension, and partnered with the state to widen SR 20 and SR 120 and complete the new I-85/316 intersection in this period. Laying the groundwork for future generations during this period, Gwinnett County also adopted the Unified Plan and secured a permit from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to return 40 million gallons of highly-treated wastewater from the F. Wayne Hill Water Resources Center back to its source at Lake Lanier.

Connell said, “I have been truly blessed to be able to serve Gwinnett County in this capacity. It has been the opportunity of a lifetime. I will be forever grateful to the commissioners I’ve served, past and present, as well as former County Administrator Charlotte Nash. I’m humbled by their support and the trust they placed in me. “I’m thankful, too, for the support from our exceptional staff, our community leaders and the citizens of Gwinnett County. Gwinnett County will be in good hands. Glenn Stephens is knowledgeable and hard-working, and he has remarkable integrity. He also inherits a solid management team in our department directors and their senior staff. Glenn is certain to put his own touch on the management of the county and the county management team.”

Gov. Perdue Issues Writs of Election for State House Seats

2009-08-11T22:24:00.000-07:00

Gov. Sonny Perdue has issued writs of special election for State House Districts 58, 129 and 141.

The vacancies are due to the resignations of Rep. Robin Shipp, Rep. Vance Smith, Jr. and Rep. Bobby Parham.

The special elections to fill the vacancies will be held Tuesday, Nov. 3 in conjunction with municipal elections. Qualifying dates will be set by the Secretary of State’s office.

More than 6,300 new Undergrads to be Enrolled at UGA

2009-08-11T22:17:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia expects to enroll more than 6,300 new undergraduate students this fall, including just over 4,700 new freshmen and 1,600 new transfer students.

Approximately 680 of the new students began their studies during the summer and almost 5,700 will begin classes this August. This is a growth of about 75 new students over last fall. Another 1,000 new undergraduates (200 of them freshmen) are expected to enroll in January for the spring term, bringing the overall total to more than 7,300—an increase of about 300 over the new undergraduates enrolled during the 2008-09 academic year.

Although final statistics will not be available until mid-October, the admissions office has compiled data based on the students who enrolled over the summer or who attended or registered for orientation for fall semester as of the end of July.

The number of applications received for this year’s freshmen class—more than 17,900—is the highest recorded at UGA for a new class, following several years of record applications. Since 2003, applications for UGA’s freshmen class have increased by more than 50 percent. The rigor of students’ high school curriculum continues to be a key factor in admissions decisions, with some 95 percent enrolled in College Board Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate classes while in high school.

While many of the incoming students have not yet decided on a major, the most popular intended majors (listed alphabetically) are art, biology, business, chemistry, international affairs, pharmacy, political science and psychology, following a similar pattern to previous years.

Although legacy is not a factor in admissions decisions, some 30 percent of the students have parents or siblings who attended UGA. The new incoming transfer students have an earned college GPA of 3.4 on work completed prior to enrolling. They are almost evenly divided between males and females and 19 percent are non-Caucasian. About 92 percent are Georgia residents.

Gwinnett County Wins 6 National Awards

2009-08-11T22:12:00.000-07:00

Five departments of Gwinnett County government have won six achievement awards from the National Association of Counties and their accomplishments were honored at the Board of Commissioners meeting recently.

Financial Services’ entry, titled Funding Post Employment Benefits, was not only a winner but it was also named Best of Category. A five-person team developed a sustainable plan to pay for retiree healthcare while meeting new accounting requirements, minimizing cost increases and protecting the County’s triple-AAA credit ratings. Their work led to a new state law allowing the use of trust funds for this purpose.

Fire and Emergency Services had two winners, one for its Youth Firesetter Intervention Program that involves many outside professionals to help reduce juvenile arson cases and the other for its school-based program that certified more than 4,000 middle and high school students in CPR and first aid.

Water Resources won for Drought Relief with Reclaimed Water, which recognizes its innovative uses of highly treated wastewater and its plan to return highly-treated wastewater to its source in Lake Lanier.

Transportation won for its new Traffic Control Center that features 85 miles of fiber-optic links to 400 traffic signals and 50 video cameras to allow real-time remote control of traffic signal timing.

Human Resources won for its EXCEL leadership development class where County employees raised more than $12,000 and volunteered their time to make major improvements at the non-profit Dream House for medically fragile children in Lilburn. They designed and built a backyard pavilion, sidewalk, retaining wall, landscaping and sandboxes for children using wheelchairs.

“These national awards recognize the outstanding work our employees are doing across all County government operations and are a shining example of why Gwinnett is great,” said Commission Chairman Charles Bannister. “With all the budget cuts that have taken place recently, it is significant that our peers recognize we have an outstanding staff and are on the cutting edge in many areas.”

UGA Welcomes Students Back with Week of Fun

2009-08-10T22:02:00.000-07:00

The official dedication of the Tate Student Center expansion will headline a week of free events designed to welcome students back to the University of Georgia for the upcoming school year.

Other Welcome Week activities include concerts by comedy-musicians The Dan Band and country singer Kellie Pickler and the first Dawgs After Dark late-night event of the school year. The dedication ceremony will be held on Thursday, Aug. 20 at 2 p.m. in the Tate Grand Hall. All members of the campus community are invited.

Welcome Week kicks off with a performance by The Dan Band on Sunday, Aug. 16 at 8 p.m. on Legion Field. Known for its pop music parodies, the Los Angeles-based band has served as the house band on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. Lead singer Dan Finnerty has appeared in the films The Terminal, Starsky & Hutch and The Hangover. Non-student tickets for The Dan Band are $10 in advance and $20 at the gate.

Pickler will take the stage in the Tate Grand Hall on Thursday, Aug. 20 at 7:30 p.m. A finalist on American Idol in 2006, Pickler has released two albums and has toured extensively, appearing in two USO tours in Iraq. Her debut album, Small Town Girl, has been certified Gold by Billboard magazine for sales of more than 500,000 units. Non-student tickets to see Pickler are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.

Welcome Week concludes on Friday, Aug. 21 with Dawgs After Dark: Backyard BBQ from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. in the Tate Student center. Activities will include inflatable games, an arcade, and free food. Non-student admission is $5.

All Welcome Week events are free for students with valid UGACards who pay activity fees on the Athens campus. The Dan Band and Kellie Pickler concerts are ticketed events. Students must present their valid UGACards to claim their free tickets at the cashier window in the Tate Student Center which is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information about the Tate Students Center dedication and other Welcome Week events, call (706) 542-6396 or see www.uga.edu/campuslife.

Free Podcasts of TV23 Shows Available on iTunes

2009-08-10T21:57:00.000-07:00

In an effort to continue improving its access to the public, Cobb County Government has placed video podcasts of several TV23 shows for free downloading through iTunes.

Users can go to the ITunes store site and simply look up "Cobb County." Shows such as Spotlight on Cobb, Senior Focus and Focal Point will be available for a mobile and convenient way to see what is going on in the county.

During the last several months, Cobb County Government has established a presence on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

Gwinnett County Seeks to Bill Taxes

2009-08-10T21:52:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County’s 2009 millage rate and tax billing have been tangled in the ongoing Service Delivery Strategy (SDS) dispute with Gwinnett cities and as a result, Gwinnett County filed a petition for a Temporary Collection Order (TCO) last month. The TCO hearing will be held on Aug. 11 at 1:30 p.m. in Gwinnett Superior Court.

The TCO is a remedy of law for local governments that allows the billing of property taxes to occur without an approved tax digest from the State Revenue Commissioner. The State Revenue Commissioner has not certified Gwinnett’s tax digest, due primarily to the fact that the government has not set a formal millage rate. The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners denied a proposed millage rate in June after holding three public hearings on a proposed tax increase.

“The delay in tax billing negatively impacts the County, the school system and the cities – primarily from the lack of available resources to pay the expense of operations,” said Commission Chairman Charles Bannister. “We (the Board of Commissioners) were prepared to move forward in July with a millage rate adoption that would have been revenue neutral to the County.”

This contemplated rate would have produced the same amount of tax revenue as the County received in 2008. In addition, the rate structure also would have been compliant with state law in regard to the Georgia insurance premium tax statute.

However, the cities stated they would file an injunction if the Board proceeded to adopt the millage rate. Therefore, the County felt the best alternative was to seek a TCO in order to move forward temporarily with 2009 tax collections.

The TCO only allows the billing of 2009 taxes based on a temporary millage rate. Ultimately, the Board of Commissioners must adopt the final millage rate publicly, and the tax digest must be approved by the State Revenue Commissioner. The millage rate contemplated in the TCO maintains the revenue neutral status previously contemplated by the Board of Commissioners, meaning taxes collected in 2009 will yield the same revenue as the County received in 2008.

Once a final millage rate is set by the Board, the 2009 property taxes will be reconciled and taxpayers will receive an adjustment. The 2009 temporary millage rate proposed in the TCO is 10.94 for taxpayers in unincorporated Gwinnett County and 12.00 for taxpayers in incorporated Gwinnett.

By comparison, the 2008 adopted county rate was 10.97. In accordance with state law, the unincorporated taxpayers are due a rollback for insurance premium taxes, which equates to 1.06 mills. More than 80 percent of county citizens live in unincorporated Gwinnett.

Comm. Lee Hosting Town Meeting Aug. 17

2009-08-05T21:41:00.000-07:00

The public is invited to attend the District 3 Town Hall meeting scheduled for 7 p.m., Monday, Aug. 17, at Merchant's Walk Library.

Commissioner Tim Lee will host the meeting, where he will update residents about projects in the district and answer any question participants might have. The library is located at 1315 Johnson Ferry Road, Marietta.

For more information, call (770) 528-3318 or visit cobbcounty.org/boc.

Gwinnett Police Get Grant Funds

2009-08-05T21:37:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett Police Chief Charles Walters announced that his agency will get more than $500,000 in grants, share in $1 million in stimulus funds with other public safety and court agencies, and apply for another $260,000 grant to help support its programs and operations.

Commissioners took action on one grant on Tuesday and four other grants last month.

The latest grant in the amount of $452,807 grant comes from the Georgia Department of Homeland Security and will be used to purchase explosive ordnance disposal equipment. No matching funds are required for this grant and the equipment carries no operating costs.

An Emergency Management Performance grant of $100,000 also coming from the Georgia DHS is part of a performance partnership agreement established earlier. Matching funds are required but can be met with current salaries paid for staffing in the police department’s homeland security section.

The largest grant is a $1,065,466 Justice Assistance grant from the U.S. Department of Justice that must be used to reduce crime, improve public safety, or buy law enforcement equipment or technology in support of law enforcement activities. These are economic stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Several departments will share in these funds: Police, Sheriff, District Attorney, Administrative Office of the Courts, Juvenile Court and Corrections. The Police Department is applying for another $260,000 Justice Assistance grant. No local matching funds are required for either grant. Another $19,000 to support the Citizens’ Corps program comes from the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.

Walters said, “We’re pleased to accept all these grants, especially in this time of extremely tight budgets countywide. We will do our best to meet the needs of a growing county even as our regular funding declines.”

Peachtree City Recycling Center Still in Operation

2009-08-04T20:31:00.000-07:00

Even though curbside recycling is expanding later this month, the Peachtree City Recycling Center remains open for its regular hours – Wednesdays from 1 to 4:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Center accepts a wide variety of recyclables, including cardboard, magazines, newspaper, aluminum cans (no steel or tin), plastics (#1 & #2), glass (separated clear, brown and green), tree trunks - 3" to 12" diameter and 4' maximum length, grass clippings & dried leaves, and electronics.

Visit http://www.peachtree-city.org/index.aspx?nid=165 for more details.

Workers Find Clues to UGA's Beginnings

2009-08-04T20:18:00.000-07:00

Remnants of a former building and artifacts dating back more than 200 years have been uncovered beneath the foundations of New College on the University of Georgia’s North Campus, allowing a glimpse into a long-lost chapter of UGA history.

“I felt privileged to climb into the lower basement and view what may actually be the most basic beginnings of this great university,” said UGA President Michael Adams. “This appears to be a truly significant find that causes me to anticipate what our archeologists, anthropologists, and others may report based on this finding.”

Workers unearthed the finds in the midst of a $3 million renovation to update the building and restore its look to an approximation of what it looked like when it was built in 1822.

“The find was pure serendipity. The crews must have had a magic touch,” said Erv Garrison, the UGA archaeologist overseeing the findings and recent head of the anthropology department. “What they’re finding is basically intact. And it’s from the very beginning of the university. We can’t trace it back to Josiah Meigs (the president who taught the first classes at UGA) exactly, but we do know it’s at the very dawn of the New College.”

The oldest university-related find is a brick floor discovered about 7 feet beneath New College’s present-day ground level. Sandwiched between two stone walls that still bear scars from an 1830 fire that destroyed the original building, the cross-laid floor may have been part of a kitchen or other room used by the first students or faculty at UGA, according to Danny Sniff, associate vice president for facilities planning.

“All these bricks were made from local clay, and you can see a definite difference between these pre-1830 bricks, which are more of a beige to terra cotta color, and the ones used in the later construction,” Sniff said. “The interesting part of this is that brick structure is under the foundations, which we know are from 1819, so this pre-dates that.”

The crew was moving earth to install an elevator for handicapped access and extend the building’s storage space when the discovery was made, Sniff said. Among the other artifacts found are a handmade spoon, wrought iron nails, blown-glass bottles, glazed cookware and an instrument that resembles a modern fire poker.

The crew also found a pottery bowl that dates from Georgia’s late prehistoric Lamar period (1350-1600 A.D.), suggesting that someone at the university found and kept the piece of Native American culture. But the finds don’t end there. Garrison and his students used ground-penetrating radar to pinpoint other relics beneath the building. While the images show more objects buried in the rubble, it may not be wise to uncover them just yet, he said.

“My students and I have just started to plow into what we’ve taken out of there, not only drawings, photographs and artifacts—we have a lot of radar data that we just went through. We’re perfectly willing to argue that there’s more down there,” Garrison said. As the crews continue to renovate New College, danger of disturbing the artifacts is low, according to Garrison. The radar has given workers a good idea of where artifacts are located, and if the workers find anything that may be of interest, they call Garrison, who makes it to the site most every day to study what’s been found.

“I’m on speed dial with the contractor right now. If they see anything, I’ll be over in 10 minutes with my hard hat talking with the job superintendent and Danny Sniff, and we’ll try to figure out what we’ve found now,” Garrison said. “It’s been an exciting few days.”

UGA Awards 2009 One UGA Scholarships

2009-08-03T21:25:00.000-07:00

Twenty-four University of Georgia first-year students have been awarded One UGA Scholarships for the 2009-2010 academic year.

Because the university recognizes the value of a broadly diverse educational environment for all students, these scholarships are provided to academically outstanding incoming students who will contribute to the diversity of the freshmen class. Preference was given to those who are first in their family to attend college.

This award provides $1,500 per year in addition to the HOPE scholarship to Georgia high school graduates.

Out-of-state recipients also receive a full or half Regents Waiver that either covers all or half of the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition. The scholarship is renewable for an additional three years as long as students maintain certain academic standards.

For general information on scholarships, see http://www.admissions.uga.edu.

The 2009 One UGA Scholars are:

Name / Hometown / High School / Parent(s)

From Georgia (listed alphabetically by county)

Baldwin County
Christina Azahar / Milledgeville / Baldwin High School / Mr. & Mrs. Ramon & Grace Anne Azahar

Cherokee County
Huma Ahmad / Canton / Creekview High School / Mr. & Mrs. Maqbool & Iffat Ahmad

Clarke County
Marissa Loterina / Athens / Cedar Shoals High School / Alejandro & Martha Casteleiro & Joseph Loterina

DeKalb County
Kayley Alden / Decatur / Druid Hills High School / Mr. & Mrs. Mark & Kris Moss

Fulton County
Haley Bossert / Roswell / Roswell High School / Mr. & Mrs. Peter & Susan Bossert

Gwinnett County
Lilibeth Campino / Duluth / Berkmar High School / Ms. Lorenza Narvaez-Williams
Michele Chan / Lawrenceville / Peachtree Ridge High School / Mr. & Mrs. Pen Chan
Chelsea Kearns / Lilburn / Shiloh High School / Mr. Paul Kearns & Mrs. Diane Brodalski
Eric Salgado / Sugar Hill / North Gwinnett High School / Ms. Gloria Henao

Richmond County
Vanessa Williams / Augusta / John S. Davidson Fine Arts Magnet School / Mr. & Mrs. Curtis & Rose Williams

Tift County
Malavika Rajeev / Tifton / Tift County High School / Dr. Rajeev Nair & Dr. Sreekumari Rajeev

From Out-of-State

Erin Adelmeyer / Fond du Lac, Wis. / St Mary’s Springs High School / Mr. & Mrs. Richard & Denise Adelmeyer

Hope Arnold / Baton Rouge, La. / St. Joseph’s Academy / Steven & Amy Arnold

Laura Braswell / Carmel, Ind. / Cathedral High School / Mr. & Mrs. Charles & Barbara Braswell

John Gaudet / Baton Rouge, La. / Episcopal High School / Michael Gaudet

Dominique Gill / Hyattsville, Md. / Suitland High School / Lystra Ready

Ann Graham / Jackson, Tenn. / University School of Jackson / Mr. & Mrs. Chris Graham

Jay Hogeboon / Fernandina Beach, Fla. / Fernandina Beach High School / Mr. & Mrs. Skip & Eileen Hogeboon

Steven Howell / Jacksonville Beach, Fla. / Duncan V. Fletcher High School / David & Cynthia Ward

Jiawei Liu / Philadelphia, Pa. / William W. Bodine High School for International Affairs / Mr. Zhihua Liu & Mrs. Huifang Liu

Kenneth MacMurray / Hilton Head, S.C. / Hilton Head Island High School / Mr. & Mrs. Christopher MacMurray

Michelle Phillips / Wellington, Fla. / Palm Beach Central High School / Jacqueline Phillips & Bruce Wiener

Mark Rolfsen / Baton Rouge, La. / Catholic High School / Dr. & Mrs. Mike Rolfsen

Theresa Stratmann / Irmo, S.C. / Dutch Fork High School / Mr. Johannes Stratmann & Mrs. Claudia Stratmann

MARKETING ASSISTANCE NEEDED

2009-08-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

Evans to Perform in Mableton Aug. 8

2009-08-03T21:16:00.000-07:00

Country singer-songwriter Sara Evans will perform at Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre 8 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 8. Evans is known for hits including "Suds in the Bucket," "Born to Fly" and "Low." She is also popular for her appearance on the hit TV show, Dancing with the Stars.

Tickets range from $20 to $46 and a table in front of the stage seating four is available for $300. Soap.net will host a free event before the concert from noon to 5 p.m.

The amphitheatre is located at 5239 Floyd Road in Mableton. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call 800-745-3000, visit the Jennie T. Anderson Theatre box office in the Cobb Civic Center, visit mablehouse.org or all Ticketmaster locations.

Peachtree City Police and Fire, Tyrone Police Take Part in Aug. 4 Event

2009-08-03T21:12:00.000-07:00

The Peachtree City Police and Fire Departments, along with the Tyrone Police Department, will be participating in the National Night Out program on Tuesday, Aug. 4.

Stop by Target at Kedron Shopping Center between 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. for information on traffic safety, personal safety, the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program, and other topics.

Georgia Museum of Art Receives NEA Stimulus Grant for a Curator

2009-08-03T21:07:00.000-07:00

The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded the Georgia Museum of Art a $50,000 stimulus grant to provide a year of salary and benefits to fill the vacant position of curator of decorative arts through the 2009 NEA Direct Grants: Museum-Recovery Act.

Recognizing the importance of the nonprofit arts industry on the economy, the Recovery Act provides stimulus funds, which the NEA uses in an effort to preserve jobs in the nonprofit arts sector that are threatened by the current economic downturn.

The curator of decorative arts directs the museum’s Henry D. Green Center for the Study of the Decorative Arts, which has as its primary focus the decorative arts and material culture of Georgia. Founded in 1998, the Green Center produces exhibitions, publications and educational programs that reach audiences in Georgia and well beyond the region, thus serving a critical role in the museum’s mission and its long-range and strategic goals.

“Happily, this very timely grant allows us to continue the work of the Henry D. Green Center without missing a beat,” said the museum’s director, William Eiland.

Among the first duties of the interim curator of decorative arts is to plan and present the fifth biennial Henry D. Green Symposium of the Decorative Arts, “Neighboring Voices: The Decorative Culture of Our Southern Cousins,” Jan. 29-30, 2010, and edit the presentations for publication following the event. The curator will design the display of the permanent collection of decorative arts in the museum’s new gallery wing and formalize the Henry D. Green Center with the new GMOA humanities study centers, opening in early 2011. The curator will resume development of a major survey exhibition and catalogue of the decorative arts in Georgia, circa 1750-2000, along with other original exhibitions, and will direct new acquisitions of decorative arts, with an emphasis on works made in Georgia, the South and the United States.

GMOA is one of only nine nonprofit arts organizations in Georgia to receive a stimulus grant to provide salary support for positions deemed critical to an organization’s artistic mission. Only organizations that were awarded NEA funding over the past four years were eligible.

Andrews Complains About Paparazzi in 911 Call

2009-07-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

ESPN reporter Erin Andrews, who much to her surprise was videotaped nude in a hotel room expressed frustration over reportedly being "treated like Britney Spears" when she called 911 to report paparazzi gathered outside her Atlanta area home.

In an audiotape released Wednesday, Andrews is heard speaking with a 911 operator in suburban DeKalb County on July 22 to complain about a pair of people sitting in a car outside her home in a gated community.

Andrews identifies herself and tells the operator, "I'm all over the news right now," and describes herself as "the girl that was videotaped in my hotel room in the nude." Andrews reportedly uses expletives to describe the two men whom she says also knocked on her door.

"I did nothing wrong, and I am being treated like (expletive) Britney Spears, and it sucks," Andrews told the operator. Dunwoody police officers responded to the Andrews call but no incident report was filed.

It is not clear when the video of Andrews in the hotel room first appeared on the Internet. The individual who initially posted the video didn't identify the nude woman, but Andrews' attorney has come forward to say the video was of the 31-year-old reporter.

The blurry, five-minute video shows the woman standing in front of a hotel room mirror, fixing her hair in the nude. Andrews' attorney said the video was shot without his client's knowledge and Andrews plans to pursue criminal charges and file civil lawsuits against whoever shot the video and anyone who publishes it.

Andrews has covered numerous sports for ESPN since 2004, often as a sideline reporter.

Atlanta Home Starts Continue to Drop

2009-07-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

According to a report from Metrostudy (www.metrostudy.com), Atlanta’s housing starts dropped 69.6 percent year-over-year in June 2009 as demand continued to decline.

Metrostudy believes starts will continue to drop in 2009, in part to many builders still reducing inventory to be in line with the slow demand for homes.

Annual starts in north Atlanta came in at 4,113 for the year ending in June, compared with 13,617 starts for the same period of 2008. Annual closings for north Atlanta totaled 11,146 in June 2009, in comparison to 18,694 the previous June.

For south Atlanta, annual starts totaled 1,992 in June, compared to 6,500 the previous year. Annual closings totaled 5,921 in the second quarter, a drop from 11,343 in the second quarter the prior year.

In a bit of good news, Metro Atlanta’s total housing inventory, which also encompasses finished vacant, under-construction and model homes, has seen a decline of 37.6 percent since the second quarter of 2008.

UGA Awards 2009 Charles and Arlene Woods Scholarship

2009-07-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia has awarded the Charles and Arlene Woods Scholarship to incoming first-year student Geoffrey Nolan, a Newton High School graduate from Oxford. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Todd Nolan.

This scholarship recognizes an incoming first-year student who has demonstrated outstanding achievement in academics from Newton County. The award provides $1,000 for one year. The Woods are UGA graduates and were members of the university’s Redcoat Marching Band.

For general information on scholarships, see http://www.admissions.uga.edu.

Cobb County Keeping Citizenry Informed

2009-07-29T21:54:00.000-07:00

Cobb County is using many social media outlets, such as Facebook and Twitter, to keep the community actively involved.

The county also made accessing vital information even easier by creating a page on YouTube. Many videos can be found on the site, including details on becoming a emergency-911 operator, pets available for adoption and how to stay safe while using a recreational trail. Videos from the Emergency Management Agency help you protect your family by providing a wealth of information on topics ranging from sheltering in place and first aid kits to reporting suspicious activity and how to join the Community Emergency Response Team program.

To view informative county videos, visit youtube.com/cobbcountytv23.

Cobb Fire and Emergency Services also has an official YouTube page to provide fire and life safety information to the public. Videos featured include episodes of 3rd Alarm, which takes a closer look at the fire department and explores the field of fire fighting. The show is written and produced by career firefighters.

Other videos include information on how to become a firefighter and how to check your smoke detector.

For more information, visit youtube.com/cobbfirevideos.

Construction Underway at State Botanical Garden's Horticulture Complex

2009-07-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

Construction began this week on the State Botanical Garden of Georgia’s new $2.5 million horticulture complex, a facility that will support the 313-acre public garden.

This facility will include outdoor growing areas, greenhouses, spaces for repair and storage of equipment and offices for the horticulture staff.

“This behind-the-scenes facility is essential to the collections and displays throughout the garden,” said Shirley Berry, interim director. “Moving these facilities to this new location is another step in enriching the visitor’s experience and safety in the garden. Although the initial impact will be visible, soon this area will be screened with plantings. Maintenance equipment and delivery trucks will no longer need to intrude into public areas to reach the horticulture complex.”

In the International Garden, bog garden restoration and lawn resodding are taking place this week. The outdoor Sunflower Concert Series moved from the International Garden to the new 5-acre, terraced Flower Garden this summer. The Alice Hand Callaway Visitor Center and Conservatory renovation is nearing completion. Updates include new classrooms and a redesigned café. Construction of the horticulture complex is scheduled to be completed in July 2010.

The State Botanical Garden of Georgia is a public educational facility operated under the auspices of the University of Georgia. It is a “living laboratory” for university students and faculty who utilize the collections and natural plant communities for studies in a variety of disciplines. The garden is also a public garden for enjoyment by the general public.

Some 1,315 Students Eligible for Degrees Aug. 1

2009-07-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

An estimated 1,315 students will be eligible to receive degrees at the University of Georgia’s summer commencement exercises Aug. 1 at 9:30 a.m. in Stegeman Coliseum.

The exercises are a combined ceremony for undergraduate and graduate students who complete degree requirements at the end of summer semester. About 730 candidates for bachelor’s degrees and 585 candidates for doctoral, master’s and specialist in education degrees are anticipated to be eligible to participate in the ceremony. Final numbers won’t be known until the conclusion of final exams on July 31.

Suzanne Yoculan, retiring head coach who has led the University of Georgia’s women’s gymnastics team to ten NCAA championships—the most in NCAA history—will be the speaker for the university’s summer commencement exercises.

In her 26 years at UGA, Yoculan’s team has also produced 16 Southeastern Conference titles, 21 NCAA Regional crowns, 37 individual NCAA champions, 306 All-America citations and 836 career victories. She guided her team to the nation’s top three in 20 of the last 21 years. In 19 of her 26 years, Yoculan led Georgia to an SEC title, an NCAA title or both. She was chosen as the National Coach of the Year five times and the SEC Coach of the Year eight times. Under Yoculan, only three gymnasts have left UGA without their degrees, and no gymnast has ever transferred from UGA’s program.

As part of the ceremony, two undergraduates will be recognized as First Honor Graduates for having maintained perfect 4.0 grade point averages on all undergraduate-level work. The students include Dustin Charles Elliott from Athens who is graduating with a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy. Additionally, George Frederick Akers from Atlanta is graduating with a bachelor of arts in journalism with a major in advertising. He was previously recognized as a First Honor Graduate when he received a bachelor of arts degree in theatre.

The ceremony will be broadcast live on University Cable Channel 15 and streamed live on the UGA Web site.

Fall semester classes at UGA begin Aug. 17 and a commencement will be held Dec. 18 for students who complete degree requirements in the fall.

Cobb County Opening Safety Training Facility

2009-07-28T20:02:00.000-07:00

On Friday, July 31 at 10 a.m., local dignitaries and sponsors will gather to cut the ribbon and officially open Cobb County's state-of-the-art safety training facility.

The 27,000-square-foot Cobb Safety Village was designed to offer hands-on education for all ages and is the first of its kind in the Southeast.

The public is invited to the community open house 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 1, at 1220 Al Bishop Dr, Marietta. The open house will feature food, fun learning opportunities, safety education programs and full tours of the village.

For more information on this event, call (770) 852-3270 or visit cobbcounty.org/safetyvillage.

Gwinnett Co. Requests Ability to Bill Taxes

2009-07-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister announced today the Board of Commissioners will seek a Temporary Collection Order (TCO) for collection of 2009 property taxes.

According to Bannister, this action, which is provided for in state law, will be filed in Gwinnett Superior Court and is most likely the speediest way to get bills to taxpayers so that local governments can begin to receive needed revenues. The decision to file a TCO petition was finalized today.

Bannister said, “Tax billing has been tangled in the ongoing SDS dispute. Other options run the very real risk of inviting actions that could take several more weeks or longer to resolve. We think this action strategy will get the billing process going for 2009. All of us – the County, the cities and especially the schools – need tax revenues to meet payrolls and other obligations.”

Administratively there are downsides to the TCO. “A TCO is, as the name implies, temporary. Ultimately there will be the need for some type of final accounting, which could happen in November or December, we just don’t know right now” said County Administrator Jock Connell. “This will present administrative concerns and questions for our finance staff and especially the tax commissioner.”

Bannister stated that whichever judge gets the case will decide the details, but that the county would recommend using the 2009 property values as the basis for the billing.

Details on the billing calendar will not be available until after the TCO hearing; meanwhile, County staff has begun consultations with the tax commissioner. The County intends to file a TCO petition as quickly as possible.

Fugitive Returned to Georgia Soil

2009-07-27T22:06:00.000-07:00

Special Agent in Charge (SAC) Gregory Jones, FBI Atlanta, and Chief Ricky Boren, Columbus, Georgia Police Department, announced the return of FBI Top Ten Fugitive Michael Jason Registe to Columbus.

Registe, wanted for the July, 2007 double murders of Columbus State University students Bryan Kilgore and Randy Newton Jr. at Columbus, Georgia, was arrested by St. Maarten police officials in conjunction with the Antilles Director of Public Prosecution and through coordination with the FBI’s Legal Attaché, Bridgetown, Barbados.

Registe, accompanied by FBI agents as well as a Columbus, Georgia police officer, landed at Columbus, via government jet last week and, upon landing on U.S. soil, was turned over to local authorities for processing.

Registe has been indicted by a grand jury and will now await arraignment on those state charges.

Gwinnett Co. Receives Stimulus Funds for Center Construction

2009-07-27T22:01:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County Senior Services has received $1.1 million in federal stimulus funds through the American Recovery and Investment Act of 2009 from HUD Deputy Secretary Ron Sims to construct Phase I of a new $1.4 million Senior Services Center in Lawrenceville. The remaining funds will be provided by the Community Development Block Grant Program.

“Currently, the staff is spread out over at four different locations. This new building will bring staff together and serve as a one-stop center for seniors and their caregivers,” Linda Bailey, senior services manager, said.

Staff at the Senior Services Center will be able to match seniors with available resources such as home meal delivery, counseling and respite care. There will also be two community rooms that will be used for educational programs and meetings for senior-related issues.

“With baby boomers now reaching retirement age, our senior population will grow dramatically over the next decades. We will not only provide services to more than 2,000 seniors annually, but also their family members and caregivers,” Bailey said.

The new facility is designed as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver building to maximize energy savings when compared to conventional construction. The facility will be built using recycled material from the building that currently sits on the 6.4 acre site. It will also feature energy-efficient windows, a reflective roof and low-flow plumbing fixtures.

“We are grateful for HUD’s support to help us get this center constructed in order to meet the needs of our growing senior population,” Chairman Charles Bannister said. “This project is a great example of one that was ready to go, one that will serve our community, and one that uses sustainable techniques in its deign and construction."

Braves Moving to New Station in 2010

2009-07-24T21:10:00.000-07:00

As they battle for a spot in the 2009 playoffs, the Atlanta Braves this week announced that they are moving to a new radio home in 2010.

Dickey Broadcasting Co. reported it will become the Braves radio rights holder in 2010 for five years and will broadcast all 162 of the team’s games on 680 The Fan (WCNN-AM) and Rock 100.5 (WNNX-FM). 680 The Fan also is the flagship station for the Atlanta Thrashers.

Currently Braves games air on 640 WGST-AM and Project 9-6-1 96.1 FM.

Dickey Broadcasting also will oversee the Braves radio network to include at least 150 radio stations across the Southeast.

Former pitching great Don Sutton and Jim Powell will call the Braves games. All-day programing will include pre- and post-game shows, a coaches' show and other shows.

High School Students Learn Through UGA Program

2009-07-24T21:03:00.000-07:00

For the past two weeks, about 45 Athens-area high school students have learned about advanced mathematics and science, and possible careers in those fields, during a Summer Academy hosted by the University of Georgia’s department of mathematics and science education.

The college-bound high school juniors and seniors from Athens, Watkinsville, Commerce, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and Franklin have engaged in topics not usually encountered in high school, such as electron microscopy, veterinary science and the mathematics of body mechanics. The free, three-week program held in UGA’s College of Education involved sessions each morning from July 6-24, allowed students access to tools, technologies and instructors usually reserved for university students.

The students have created museum-style exhibits on science and mathematics topics which they shared with 6-to-13-year-old children in the Athens community on July 22 at the Lyndon House Art Museum and the Boys and Girls Club of America on Fourth Street.

Exhibits included human evolution, educational simulated video games, an osmosis simulation and neuroscience. There was also origami and the mathematical reasoning behind it, Darwin's animals, marine biology and hydrology. All of the exhibits were hands-on and interactive so that the younger children can experience science, math and technology in various and inquisitive ways.

The STEM Summer Academy, funded by a state Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Initiative grant, was directed by Cory Buxton, an associate professor in elementary and social studies education, along with Joe Long, a faculty member in science education, and Doug Griffin, a doctoral student in mathematics education. Other faculty from the COE and the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences also worked with the students.

Gwinnett County Keeps Cutting Budget

2009-07-24T20:57:00.000-07:00

The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners continued making deep budget cuts on Tuesday, warning that the service reductions would “ripple through” the County budgets for many years to come.

After cutting $54 million and adding $7 million in new revenue earlier this year to balance the 2009 budget, commissioners voted Tuesday to cut $39.3 million in future spending as the County continues to find ways to bring rising expenses in line with decreasing revenue forecasts. Revenue gained from rapid residential and commercial growth in the ‘90s and early into this decade helped Gwinnett County fund increasing operational costs and even allowed the County to roll back property taxes by 3.98 mills, or 26 percent, over the past 12 years.

As forecasted, however, Gwinnett’s growth has slowed as it transitions from high growth to a more mature community. Revenue derived from new growth is no longer sufficient to meet the service needs in this still-growing county. While the current economic downturn is compounding the County’s funding challenges with a more than $1.5 billion decrease in the residential property tax digest and slow sales tax collections, it is not a primary cause.

The County will eliminate more than 250 jobs by the end of the year. Employees will not get any raises in 2010, and staff reductions will even hit the Fire and Emergency Services Department as well as Gwinnett Police, where approved positions will be reduced from 740 to 687, back to 2003 levels. Internal support departments have been directed to cut personnel by 15.4 percent and overall costs by 9.6 percent, on average. Parks and Recreation will cut staff costs by 9.1 percent. Transit operations will be cut by 21 percent and express service by six percent.

In addition, Constitutional and elected officials have been asked to reduce their 2010 budgets in light of the County’s financial challenges. The Department of Corrections is planned to be eliminated by July of 2011, meaning convicted prisoners will have to be moved to state-run facilities and the County could lose a valuable source of convict labor.

“We know these are severe reductions that will affect all Gwinnett residents in one way or another,” said Commission Chairman Charles Bannister. “We regret having to cut services so drastically but we’re trying to avoid increasing the property tax, which is our primary alternative.

“Decisions for next year and beyond are not binding yet, so there’s still plenty of time for citizen input,” added Banister.

The 2010 budget will be officially formulated later this year for commission action in January. Bannister announced earlier this week the establishment of a community engagement initiative in partnership with the Gwinnett Chamber. Participants of this initiative will spend the next six months examining Gwinnett’s five-year needs for critical services and proposing future funding strategies.

A complete list of the budget cuts approved on Tuesday is available online on the County’s Web site at www.gwinnettcounty.com.

Gwinnett County Road Upgrades Get Green Light

2009-07-22T22:43:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County Commissioners on Tuesday awarded three contracts for roadway safety and sidewalk improvements to be funded from 2005 SPLOST revenues.

Hope Hollow Road will get safety improvements including wider shoulders from Plantation Run Drive to Hope Hollow Lane and an intersection upgrade at Hope Hollow Lane. Gary’s Grading and Pipeline Inc. was the lowest of 11 bidders at $1.02 million for the nine-month project.

The Dickerson Group Inc., was the lowest responsive bidder out of 13 bids received for two other safety projects.

One will improve the intersection of Pate Road and Old Loganville Road by adding turn lanes at the i 072109_DOT_SPLOSTprojects.docntersection and at the entrances to nearby neighborhoods. The bid was just under $818,000 for the nine-month project.

Dickerson will also extend sidewalks on Bethany Church Road from SR-124 to the Centerville Library. The four-month, $310,000 project will provide a continuous pedestrian connection from Shiloh High School to State Route 124.

Leader of Atlanta-based Investment Scam Sentenced

2009-07-22T22:35:00.000-07:00

Carlin King, 43, of Decatur, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Marvin Shoob to serve three years in federal prison on a charge of wire fraud, in connection with his operation of the foreign exchange investment house “Hanover Stevens,” based in Atlanta.

King was sentenced to three years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $2.5 million. King pleaded guilty to the charge on Feb. 23, 2009.

According to the information presented in court: King was a professional securities broker, who traded equity stocks and commodities for clients at various financial firms, mostly in Atlanta, since the 1990s.

In approximately 2002, King founded and began operating “Hanover Stevens,” a retail foreign exchange brokerage firm. Beginning in approximately February 2006, however, King stopped actually investing client money in foreign exchange transactions. The evidence shows he began lying to clients about the returns their investments were supposedly making, and he began operating a fraudulent “Ponzi” scheme. Instead of investing client money in the foreign currency markets as he promised, King began using those funds to pay Hanover Stevens’s increasing operating expenses, investors who had requested distributions, and substantial personal expenses (including living expenses at luxury hotels).

To create the impression that their investments were profitable, King provided account statements to his investors containing fabricated numbers as to the balances in their accounts and supposed investment gains. Because there were no actual investment gains—and because the balances being reported to investors were fabricated—the only way that King could pay any requested distributions was to use newly-invested funds from new investors.

By December 2007—when the unsustainable scheme collapsed—the losses to the investors exceeded $2.5 million.

Gwinnett County Saves Money on Fuel Purchase

2009-07-22T22:31:00.000-07:00

The advantages of a new fuel purchasing co-op became apparent Tuesday when the Gwinnett Board of Commissioners approved a one-year, $14-million contract for gasoline and diesel fuel that is expected to save Gwinnett County about $65,000 per year.

The County announced in April that it was forming the co-op with 15 other local government agencies to use their combined purchasing power to get reduced rates. The primary supplier, based on competitive bids, is Mansfield Oil Company of Gainesville. Secondary and tertiary suppliers are D-Jay Petroleum Inc., and Indigo Energy Partners, respectively. The fuel will be used by cars, trucks, school buses and other government vehicles.

Last year, Gwinnett County bought two million gallons of gasoline and four million gallons of diesel fuel at a cost of $18 million, according to Fleet Management Director Michael Lindsay. The added benefit of improved communication among the 16 agencies is likely to lead to additional cooperation and cost savings, Lindsay said. Gwinnett Purchasing Director Scott Callan said the agencies combined will save around $450,000 annually.

Participants include seven counties, five cities and four of the largest county school systems in the metro Atlanta area.

UGA's Food Services Wins National Award

2009-07-20T21:34:00.000-07:00

The University of Georgia’s Food Services recently received the top prize for a residence hall theme dinner from the National Association of Colleges and University Food Services.

UGA Food Services won both a gold and a national Loyal E. Horton Dining Award for its Jan. 22 “Spotlight on Broadway” dinner. The dinner was judged on menu selection, merchandising and presentation, marketing and overall impression—including the dinner’s “wow factor.”

“It’s significant for us because it’s a benchmark program,” said J. Michael Floyd, executive director of food services. “We use this program to constantly upgrade our services and see what we can do better for our customers. The national recognition is great, but the event is really for our customers.”

Served in all four dining halls, the “Spotlight on Broadway” dinner featured foods inspired by renowned New York City restaurants, indoor and outdoor décor and live entertainment.

The dining halls were decorated with outdoor marquees announcing the dinner. Inside were ticket counters, show posters and floor-to-ceiling displays reminiscent of Phantom of the Opera.

The menu included Oysters Rockefeller from Garrick, spinach gratin from Savoy Restaurant, pistachio cannoli from Rocco’s Pastry Shop and cheesecake bars with minted blueberries from Blue Hill Restaurant.

Athens Creative Theatre provided live vignettes from Broadway musicals, including Grease, Hairspray, Oklahoma and Wicked, during the dinner.

Bryan Varin, cafeteria manager at Snelling Dining Commons, spearheaded the project along with Snelling Dining Commons’ management. The idea for the dinner was a group effort, Varin said.

He said a Broadway dinner sounded like it would be fun for the students. Broadway hadn’t been done before and sounded like a good option, especially since entertainment is a major factor.

“Not only do we want to provide delicious food that we don’t serve everyday, we want to go above and beyond to really provide something memorable for the students,” Varin said.

In the dining halls, theme dinners are held about every four weeks throughout the school year, with new concepts debuting in the spring.

Planning, from dessert ingredients to center pieces, is already under way for the next round of dinners, which will include a “Welcome to the Neighborhood” dinner on Aug. 27, a “Five Star” dinner on Oct. 8, “Bulldog Bite” Homecoming dinner on Nov. 4, “Café Cretaceous” dinner on Jan. 28 and “Keep on Truckin’” dinner on March 25.

In addition to the national grand prize and the gold award, food services also won a bronze award for its retail outlet, The Red Clay Café. The award judged the diner on menu, marketing, food preparation and café design.

For its standard residence hall menu, food services won an honorable mention in the Residence Hall Dining Multiple Outlets/Concepts category.

Gwinnett Chairman, Board Note Initiative

2009-07-20T21:22:00.000-07:00

Gwinnett County Chairman Charles Bannister and the Board of Commissioners on Monday announced the establishment of a community engagement initiative in partnership with the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce and other business and civic leaders.

Members of this initiative will spend the next six months examining Gwinnett’s five-year needs for critical services and proposing future funding strategies.

“Gwinnett is experiencing an unprecedented challenge to balance declining revenues with desired service levels. Although we are not unique to other counties around the nation in the challenges we face, we will successfully emerge from the current economic situation if we pull together uniquely as a community. We are asking concerned citizens, the Constitutional Officers, Gwinnett Municipal Association, State Legislative Delegation and others to join the County government and chamber in an initiative designed to intentionally and strategically involve Gwinnett stakeholders in making informed recommendations to the BOC about future service levels, funding needs and revenue resources in advance of adoption of the 2010 budget,”
Bannister said.

Gwinnett Chamber President and CEO Jim Maran said the economic health of Gwinnett County should be a major consideration in the County’s long-range planning, which is why the Gwinnett Chamber has agreed to support the initiative. “The business community has much at stake in ensuring Gwinnett County’s continued success, so it makes sense that we would step up to being a part of this planning process,” Maran said.

Both business and citizen input are critical in the success of the initiative.

“Gwinnett County has been very successful historically and continues to attract new businesses and residents because we’ve always planned well for our future needs and made this a great place to live,” Maran said. “But the current economic crisis has hit our local governments hard just as it has our families and businesses. Continued investment in our infrastructure and services like public safety are essential to maintaining a world-class quality of life in Gwinnett County, and we are seeking advice from our community leaders about the best way to accomplish this. Now is the time to pull together as a community and find common sense solutions.”

“Every citizen in this county has a stake in the quality of life we experience today, and the environment we’re creating for our future generations,” Bannister said. “The Board understands that citizens value their opportunity of living in a safe, productive, enjoyable community, and we are looking forward to developing a true countywide and community-wide plan to responsibly meet the demands of the future.”

General objectives to be accomplished by the initiative include citizen education and involvement in:

• Determining funding needs and gaps
• Preparing a draft report of recommended solutions to meet those gaps (including exploring funding strategies used or available to meet growth requirements in other fast-growing regions)
• Conducting a community forum to share the draft report and receive feedback
• Preparing a final report to be delivered to the Board of Commissioners

World Experts Gather for UGA Flu Conference

2009-07-17T23:07:00.000-07:00

The emergence of the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, in April has highlighted the influenza virus’s ability to constantly change. Natural and selective pressures allow the virus to evolve in ways that make it increasingly resistant to anti-viral drugs. The loss of immunity to the virus requires annual reformulation of vaccines to prevent against potentially pandemic strains.

In an effort to address the ongoing H1N1 pandemic and to prepare against future ones, leading influenza experts from around the world will gather at the University of Georgia for the third annual “Immunobiology of Influenza Virus Infection” conference at the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education Conference Center and Hotel on July 26-28.

The multi-disciplinary conference will provide a forum for virologists, immunologists and vaccine researchers from academia, government and industry to discuss advances in basic and applied influenza research.

It is organized by Andrew Park in the Odum School of Ecology, as well as Georgia Research Alliance Scholar Ralph Tripp and Professor S. Mark Tompkins in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s department of infectious diseases.

A particular aim of this year’s conference is to advance the use of mathematical modeling tools to predict the behavior of influenza virus and its interaction with hosts and the environment, according to Tompkins.

The conference features keynote speaker Dr. Jeffery Taubenberger from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health at the National Institute of Health, who will discuss the insights derived from his studies of the 1918 “Spanish” influenza on July 26.

Taubenberger hopes to shed light on the emergence, evolution, and severity of future influenza pandemics as well as seasonal influenza.

In 2007, the National Institutes of Health awarded the University of Georgia a $7.4 million contract to collaborate with Emory University through its Regional Center for Excellence for Influenza Research and Surveillance. Emory and UGA will receive a total of $32.8 million for over seven years for the Influenza Pathogenesis and Immunology Research Center, one of six national influenzas centers funded by the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

The UGA Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study is also an external partner in a second $22.5 million NIH CEIRS contract to the University of Minnesota established to support parts of their avian influenza surveillance program.

For more information about the conference or to register, see http://www.virus-eid.org.

Library Asks Residents for Input on New Sites

2009-07-16T23:15:00.000-07:00

Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System is seeking input from citizens on the location of five new libraries to be constructed as part of the library’s facility master plan.

A total eight total new libraries will be built. Of those, three will be located on existing or donated land parcels.

The Facility Master Plan, approved in the Nov. 4, 2008 general election, will significantly enhance Fulton County’s public libraries with 8 new libraries, 2 expanded libraries and 23 renovated libraries. Of the 8 new libraries, 5 have not yet been sited, and the library system requests input of site recommendations by July 30, 2009. Phase one of project will include the new and expanded libraries.

Site selection applies to the five of eight new library sites where a parcel of land has not yet been identified:

Milton
Alpharetta
Stewart-Lakewood
Southeast Atlanta
Northwest Atlanta

Sites have been identified for three other libraries:

Wolf Creek
Palmetto/Chattahoochee Hill Country
East Roswell

Residents may submit site recommendations by July 30 to the Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System via the following ways:

- Atlanta-Fulton Public Library System Website
- Email: librarycomments@fultoncountyga.gov
- Fax: 404-335-5291
- Via Mail: Branch Services, Central Library, One Margaret Mitchell Square, Atlanta, GA 30303

Teacher arrested; Allegedly dropped his pants with teen in vehicle

2009-07-16T22:59:00.000-07:00

Police say a Stone Mountain Middle School math teacher has some explaining to do.

Authorities arrested a 29-year-old man who allegedly had his pants down in his vehicle in the parking lot of an area restaurant, which also included a 15-year-old girl.

According to police, a Jonesboro officer pulled up behind a pickup truck around 2 a.m. Thursday outside El Tarasco Restaurant in Clayton County.

Officers reported they witnessed Charles Thomas McClendon, 29, of Decatur, exiting the back seat and pulling up his pants. Police also report that McClendon dropped an unwrapped condom on the floor.

Police reported the presence of a teen girl in the back seat, who later told authorities she was a student of McClendon, who was charged with child molestation and enticing a child.

Tucker Resident Sentenced in Law Firm Scam

2009-07-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

Pamela D. Jones , 36, of Tucker, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Orinda Evans to serve 18 months in federal prison on charges that she embezzled more than $139,000 from ServeHAITI, a charitable organization that receives federal funds.

Jones was sentenced to 18 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. She has repaid $10,000 of the embezzled amount and was ordered to pay the remaining $129,454.79 in restitution to ServeHAITI. Jonespleaded guilty to the charges on May 5.

According to information presented in court: While working as a records management assistant at an Atlanta law firm, Jones was assigned to work part time as Assistant Treasurer of ServeHAITI Inc., a non-profit organization that receives federal funding and provides assistance to certain parts of Haiti.

ServeHAITI’s initial projects included sponsoring a program for water purification and construction of a medical clinic. In 2006, ServeHAITI was the recipient of a three-year award of $1.17 million funded by USAID under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, to provide HIV-related education and prevention services in Haiti. ServeHAITI also receives private contributions.

While acting as Assistant Treasurer, from June 2007 through December 2008, Jones diverted a total of $139,454.79 from ServeHAITI’s bank accounts to her own personal accounts. She initially wrote checks to herself or “cash” and then, in July 2008, began using wire transfers to divert the money.

During the course of her embezzlement scheme, Jones changed the on-line password to ServeHAITI’s bank accounts, advised the bank that only her authorization was necessary to effect wire transfers, and instructed the bank to stop mailing wire confirmations to the Treasurer of ServeHAITI.

Once she had exclusive authority to effect wire transfers, she was able to transfer money on-line from ServeHAITI accounts to her own on dozens of occasions while concealing her actions from the Treasurer and without making any verbal request of the bank.

Jones used the embezzled money to purchase a car, clothes, and other personal items for herself, and to take a trip to Las Vegas.

Georgia Unemployment Sits at 10.1% for June

2009-07-15T21:28:00.000-07:00

A new report from the Georgia Department of Labor shows that the state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 10.1 percent in June. The unemployment rate for May was a revised 9.6 percent.

Looking at Atlanta specifically, Atlantans lost nearly 134,000 jobs in June. That number was down 5.5 percent from the same time a year ago.

For Georgia as a while, this year's June jobless rate increased 4 percentage points from the same time a year ago, while the state's unemployment rate was still above the national rate of 9.5 percent for the 20th straight month.

One positive figure is that health care and educational services saw a total increase of 12,000 jobs.

Gwinnett Chairman Pens Letter to Taxpayers

2009-07-14T23:30:00.000-07:00

The following letter from Gwinnett County Commission Chairman Charles Bannister to Gwinnett County taxpayers about proposed budget cuts has been posted on the County’s Web site, www.gwinnettcounty.com.

July 13, 2009

Dear Fellow Gwinnett County Taxpayer:

Earlier this year, your Board of Commissioners approved a 2009 budget and a five-year financial plan designed to fund the Unified Plan and sustain and bolster our dynamic community. Despite incorporating $40 million in cuts and fee increases, that budget recognized the need for a millage rate increase, and in May we conducted three public hearings on that proposed tax increase. The public input we received directed the Board to task county staff with determining how to cut expenditures to avoid a tax increase.

Now we come to the hard work of making the service cuts required by a decision to hold the line on taxes, and I think we have a responsibility to detail for you the service reductions necessitated by these decisions. If implemented, the cuts identified and recommended by county staff will ripple through our budgets and services for many years to come.

As citizens, you will see the result of these decisions in a variety of ways, ranging from noticeable cutbacks in park maintenance to longer fire and EMS response times, as departments attempt to service a still-growing population with a static or reduced workforce. The recommended cuts are detailed in the accompanying tables, and the county commission is scheduled to vote on them on July 21.

If approved, we will eliminate more than 250 full-time positions by the end of 2009 and entirely phase out the Department of Corrections by July 1, 2011. Those state prisoners will be moved to state correctional facilities. Planned growth in our police, fire, and EMS operations will be delayed. The police department’s authorized strength of 740 will be cut back to 687, which provides coverage equivalent to our services level in 2003. As our county continues to grow, the impact of these cuts in public safety will inevitably be slower response times.

There will be no staff salary increases in 2010. At the same time, the county’s internal support functions – County Administrator, Finance, IT, Human Resources, Support Services, and Law – will be tasked to cut personnel by 15.4 percent and all costs by 9.6 percent. Parks and Recreation will have to cut staffing by 9.1 percent. The hold-the-line budget also means that the county will not be able to fund any new judgeships or expansions in the operations of our constitutional officers through 2014. We would also cut local transit operations by 21 percent and express service by six percent. If these reductions are insufficient to balance the budget in the coming years, we will consider even deeper cuts.

Obviously, these are not trivial decisions, and they will impact the quality of life and economic vitality of Gwinnett County for decades to come. I have been in public service for more than 34 years, as a mayor, a state legislator and, for the past five years, chairman of the county commission. In all that time, I have voted for only one tax hike, an increase in the state’s tobacco tax.

I am well aware of the public response generated by the proposed tax increase. I continue to believe it is necessary to meet the public needs of our county. That having been said, the challenge now is to make deep cuts in county operations and service delivery to balance lost revenues.

Respectfully,

Charles E. Bannister, Chairman

Gwinnett County Board of Commissioner

GPS Unveils Final Fourth of July Numbers

2009-07-13T23:04:00.000-07:00

Officials with Georgia Public Safety recently reported the final numbers for the July Fourth holiday period.

According to officials, the final traffic count involved:

2,490 Crashes; 682 Injuries; 20 Fatalities; 17 Fatal Crashes.

Fatal crashes were reported by Athens-Clarke Co. Police, Chamblee Police, DeKalb Co. Police (2), Dougherty Co. Police, Floyd Co. Police, Henry Co. Police, and the Georgia State Patrol Posts in Calhoun, Conyers (2), Hinesville, LaGrange, Statesboro, Thomaston, Toccoa, Valdosta, and Villa Rica.

The holiday traffic count is a joint safety initiative of the Georgia State Patrol and the Crash Reporting Unit of the Georgia Department of Transportation. The holiday count is updated every six hours during the holiday periods for Memorial Day, July Fourth, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's.

Former Ga. Attorney Pleads Guilty in Ponzi Scheme

2009-07-13T22:56:00.000-07:00

Steven H. Ballard, 53, of McDonough, has pleaded guilty in federal district court to committing a real estate investment scam that lasted over five and a half years and defrauded over a dozen victims in Georgia, Florida and Tennessee.

According to the information presented in court: Ballard, a former real estate and business law attorney based in McDonough, operated a fraudulent real estate investment scam, commonly known as a “Ponzi” scheme.

From September 2002 through May 2006, he collected over $2 million dollars. In Georgia alone, he solicited funds from investors in Duluth, Dunwoody, Fayetteville, Jackson, Jonesboro, Newnan, Palmetto, Peachtree City, and Whitesburg. Ballard also solicited funds from victims in Florida and Tennessee.

Authorities say Ballard told the victims that he was making “lucrative” real estate and other investments which were not actually transacted. He often used bogus HUD-1 Settlement Statements, Warranty Deeds and Sales Contracts to reflect non-existent property purchases, while using a portion of the scheme proceeds to repay former victim investors. The repayments included their principal plus substantial “returns” often exceeding 50% of the initial investment, but those repayments were all funded with money from new victim investors. Ballard’s law license was suspended by the State Bar of Georgia in September 2005, and he was disbarred in May 2006.

Ballard was charged in a Criminal Information in June 2009 with one count of wire fraud, which encompasses the entirety of his five and a half year scheme.

He could receive a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, plus full restitution to all victims who have not been repaid to date. Sentencing is scheduled for Sept. 29.

DDS to Issue New Driver's Licenses, I.D. Cards

2009-07-10T22:10:00.000-07:00

Gov. Sonny Perdue has announced that Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) is preparing to issue new and improved driver’s licenses and identification cards by fall 2009. The new cards will combat document fraud and protect the identities of Georgia’s citizens by using the latest credentialing technology.

New card production will begin at Conyers, Covington and Locust Grove in September 2009. Statewide implementation of the new system is scheduled to take approximately two months with all customer service center locations producing the new cards by the end of November 2009. All previously issued Georgia licenses and IDs will remain valid until the expiration date when they will be exchanged for a newly-designed card.

The new documents are designed to be more difficult to counterfeit, alter or replicate. The license will remain roughly the size of a credit card. The new cards have several security features including ghost photos, a laser-engraved signature over the primary photo to minimize alterations and a tamper resistant coating placed over the card. The cards will feature machine-readable barcodes that can be used by banks, retailers and other businesses to verify the information printed on the front.

Fees will not increase, and customers will continue to choose between a five-year or ten-year license or ID.

“Under 21”

A major security feature of the new process is designed to combat underage drinking. Cards issued to those “Under 21” will be printed in a vertical format, aiding retailers and law enforcement in identifying minors.

Interim

Another new security practice will be the issuance of an interim driver’s license or ID. Interim documents will be printed on special security paper which is highly sensitive and will discolor after any attempt to alter it. It contains a photo and signature to allow its use for identification purposes. Interim cards will be valid for up to 45 days or until a permanent laminated license or ID is mailed from the central production print facility to the applicant’s mailing address on file with DDS.

Permanent License/ID

The permanent licenses and IDs will be mailed directly to the customer on a mailing carrier that is folded and enclosed in a generic envelope without exposing the actual cards. When the permanent card is received, the interim should be destroyed in accordance with Georgia law and to safeguard personal information. The carrier should be filed by the customer to access later should their license be lost or stolen.

Customer Service Improvements

The new licensing system includes a new data management system with electronic imaging to scan documents where they may be securely stored and easily accessed later. DDS has taken great care in safeguarding our customer’s private information. Each customer’s personal information becomes a part of the personal driver’s license record. It will remain confidential and is disclosed only as authorized or required by law.

When visiting DDS in person, a more efficient one-window-process provides customers with a “one-stop shopping” experience at most locations eliminating the need to visit multiple windows.

If a transaction can not be completed once begun, data can be filed and stored until the required information is presented to complete the service. A customer may visit another location where the stored information may be quickly accessed.

New state-of-the-art equipment will be installed including modern computer and photography equipment and printers that will be faster and more reliable.

For more information, visit www.dds.ga.gov.

Atlanta Drivers Stuck Behind the Wheel

2009-07-08T23:22:00.000-07:00

Drivers in Atlanta can take pride or not in knowing that they have the sixth-worst rated roads in the nation when it comes to traffic delays.

According to the "Urban Mobility Report" from the Texas Transportation Institute, a unit of the Texas A&M University chain, drivers in the Atlanta metro area spent nearly 136 million hours in traffic delays in 2007, the most recent year of available data.

Metro Atlanta drivers also were estimated to have used up nearly 96 million more gallons of fuel two years ago than they would have if it were not for traffic delays, according to the report. That figure is also the sixth-worst rate in the nation.

A staggering financial number, traffic congestion in the metro Atlanta area cost approximately $3 billion in 2007, the fourth-most in the nation, according to the study.

The worst traffic congestion was the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana, Calif. area, where motorists spent 485 million hours stuck behind the wheel in 2007, the study notes.

Emory Among '2009 Great Colleges to Work For'

2009-07-07T22:42:00.000-07:00

Emory University has been named to the honor roll in The Chronicle of Higher Education's 2009 Great Colleges to Work For program, its second annual nationwide survey of 41,000 administrators, faculty and staff of two- and four-year colleges and universities.

Emory was selected based on its responses to a questionnaire covering everything from salary, benefits and programs that support faculty and staff, to leadership development and governance structure.

"That Emory faculty and staff find the university a wonderful place to work is a testament to the entire community," says Emory President James Wagner. "Throughout our campus people are working hard every day to make a positive difference — and it shows."

The Chronicle's Great Colleges to Work For program recognizes groups of colleges (based on enrollment size) for specific best practices and policies. There are 26 recognition categories for four-year institutions. Of the 247 institutions that completed the entire survey process, 39 were named to an honor roll, which highlights the top 10 colleges in each size category based on the number of times they were recognized in the individual recognition categories.

Emory was recognized in 11 categories, including: compensation and benefits; physical workspace conditions; confidence in senior leadership; disability insurance; facilities and security; healthy faculty-administration relations; internal communications; policies, resources and efficiency; respect and appreciation; teaching environment; and tenure clarity and process.

"The survey participants value Emory for its teaching environment, its working conditions, leadership, relationships and collegiality," says Peter Barnes, Emory's vice president of human resources. "As one considers what it means to be a destination in which faculty and staff seek to be a part, we are clearly well on the way."

"Despite the down economy, colleges are still hiring," says Jeffrey Selingo, editor of The Chronicle. "Through this program, The Chronicle is able to provide more information to job seekers about the colleges that are the leading innovators when it comes to providing a rewarding work environment."

The Great Colleges survey included a two-part assessment process: a survey administered to faculty, administrators and professional-support staff, and an institutional audit that captured demographics and workplace policies and practices from each institution. The primary factor in deciding whether an institution received recognition was the employee feedback collected from faculty and staff.

Georgia to Receive $4M from USDA for SNAP Management

2009-07-07T22:34:00.000-07:00

Gov. Sonny Perdue announced Tuesday that the state of Georgia will receive a High Performance Bonus of $4 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for its management of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly the Food Stamp Program.

The average national payment error rate for FY 2008 was 5.01 percent. Georgia’s average, 2.5 percent, was less than half of the national average. Georgia was also the most improved in the country. In FY 2007, Georgia’s payment error rate was 8.13 percent.

In addition, Georgia also outperformed the nation in the negative error rate which measures whether a state correctly determines eligibility. Georgia’s negative error rate was 4.13 percent, while the national average was 10.88 percent.

In her letter announcing the High Performance Bonus, USDA Food and Nutrition Service Administrator Julia Paradis wrote to Gov. Perdue, “I personally want to commend you for your achievement and encourage you to continue your efforts to improve program integrity and the overall administration of SNAP. Proper administration of this important nutrition assistance program results in public confidence as we work together to provide services to needy Americans.”

New Miss Georgia Officially Takes Crown

2009-07-06T22:31:00.000-07:00

Emily Cook, the new Miss Georgia, was crowned Sunday, replacing the woman who relinquished the title the day after the June pageant.

Cook, of Marietta, was formally crowned at the Cunningham Center in Columbus. She was the first runner-up to the winner, Miss Capital City Kristina Higgins, who indicated she could not fulfill the time commitment to be Miss Georgia on June 27, the day following the pageant.

Higgins said she relinquished the title because her responsibilities as a school teacher would not leave her the necessary time to serve as Miss Georgia.

Gardening Programs Set for Cobb County

2009-07-06T22:14:00.000-07:00

The Cobb County Master Gardeners will host a new series of programs in the coming months where residents can bring lunch and enjoy an hour presentation on a plant-related subject.

The lunch-and-learns will be held on the second Friday of each month at the Central Library, 266 Roswell Road, Marietta. The first one will be this Friday, July 10. Sue Burgess will teach how herbs from the historic Root House were used in the 19th century and which ones are still important today.

Other dates are Aug. 14, Sept. 11, Oct. 8 and Nov. 13. The presentations are free and participants should bring their own lunches.

For more information on Cobb Master Gardeners, visit cobbmastergardeners.com.

Six Flags Adds to Partnership with Nintendo

2009-07-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

Six Flags Inc. is increasing its partnership with Nintendo in order to prominently feature the new Wii Sports Resort video game.

The game, which features a dozen different sports activities including archery, basketball and table tennis, will be highlighted at nine participating theme parks including Six Flags over Georgia in Atlanta.

Wii Sports Resort will be available as part of the Wii Experience at the participating parks, along with being featured in an in-park media program.

The game will be open to park patrons during the July 4th weekend before the game’s retail launch date of July 26.

Meyer Named to Chair IAAO Tax Collection Council

2009-07-02T22:35:00.000-07:00

President Josephine Lim of the International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO) has appointed Gwinnett Tax Commissioner Katherine Meyer chair of the newly created Tax Collection Council of IAAO, an international source for innovation, education, and research in property appraisal, assessment administration and property tax policy.

Meyer has recruited members from various states to serve on a steering committee for the new council which is designed to provide information and education for professionals in the field of tax collection.

“The Council plans to send out a survey to state tax collection associations to help us further develop the council. We need to learn more about the educational needs of those who collect revenues for government entities and how to share this information on an international level,” Meyer explained.

Report: Georgia 14th Heaviest State in the Nation

2009-07-01T22:51:00.001-07:00

According to a new report from the Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Georgia residents definitely like their food.

Georgia ranked 14th in a nationwide report of adult obesity. Not to be outdone, eight of the Top 10 were in the South.

In the study, “F as in Fat: How Obesity Policies Are Failing in America 2009”, nearly 28 percent of Georgia's adult population resided in the obese range.

Even more alarming, Georgia ranked worse in the rate of obese children ages 10-17, placing third with 37.3 percent.

According to the study, factors, including economic conditions that may result in higher food prices and added levels of depression and stress, contributed to the problems when it came to obesity.

Gwinnett County Offices Closed July 3

2009-07-01T22:43:00.000-07:00

All Gwinnett County government offices, with the exception of those operations required for the comfort and safety of the citizens of the county, will be closed July 3 for the Independence Day holiday. All offices will resume regular working hours on July 6.

A Magistrate Court judge will be available at the Gwinnett County Detention Center.

Marietta Freedom Parade set for July 4

2009-06-30T21:39:00.000-07:00

The 2009 Marietta Freedom Parade will begin 10 a.m. Saturday, July 4, at Roswell Street Baptist Church, travel through Marietta Square and end at Cobb County Police Headquarters.

The parade, which will be broadcast live on Cobb government channel TV23, will kick off a day-long festival at the Square.

The event will include arts and crafts booths, food vendors, inflatable bounce houses, games for children and musical performers. The fireworks display will start at dark, around 9:30 p.m., organizers said. The live broadcast of the parade will start at 10:30 a.m. and will be rebroadcast at 6 p.m. the same day.

TV23 will replay the parade at 8 a.m., noon and 6 p.m. July 5-6, 7 p.m. on July 7 and 8 a.m. and noon July 9-10.

Risse Named Ga. Power Professor of Water Resources Policy

2009-06-30T21:33:00.000-07:00

Mark Risse has been named Georgia Power Company Professor of Water Resources Policy at the University of Georgia, according to Steve Wrigley, director of the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, where the position is based.

As Georgia Power Professor, Risse will work with the institute’s Environmental Policy Program, which has a strong record of providing research support and technical assistance to those charged with managing Georgia’s water resources at both the state and local levels. He also may be involved in environmental management training conducted by the institute, identifying water experts, and serving as liaison between the institute and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, where he is a faculty member.

The Georgia Power Company Professorship of Water Resources Policy was established to enable the university to focus its wide-ranging water-related expertise on the specific water challenges confronting the state. The inaugural position was held by James Kundell, director of the institute’s Environmental Policy Program prior to his retirement in 2007.

Merchant's Walk Library to be Relocated

2009-06-29T22:46:00.000-07:00

Merchant's Walk Library, the third-busiest library in Cobb, will be relocated to a facility almost double its current size.

The Board of Commissioners recently approved a long-term lease of more than 16,800 square feet in the Parkaire Landing Shopping Center at the corner of Lower Roswell Road and Johnson Ferry Road. The new library will include a 2,324-square-foot children's area, 1,530-square-foot multi-purpose room and a teen area. Another feature visitors will enjoy is self checkout stations.

The current library is being sold to developers for $1.6 million and money from the sale will help fund the new library, which is scheduled to open in early 2010.

For more information on Cobb libraries, visit cobbcounty.org/library.

Emory Hosts Youth Theological Summer Academy

2009-06-29T22:42:00.000-07:00

Forty-five rising high school seniors are gathering at Emory University's Candler School of Theology for the 2009 Youth Theological Initiative (YTI) Summer Academy, an intensive, residential program of justice-seeking theology education for young people.

The academy, which is taking place June 27-July 18, is held on the Emory campus and at various sites around Atlanta.

"Since YTI’s Summer Academy began in 1993 through a grant from the Lilly Endowment, more than 850 rising high school seniors have participated," says Elizabeth Corrie, director of YTI. Students are recruited through church congregations, schools, academy alumni and Emory's admissions office. The program strives for gender balance, racial and ethnic diversity, and denominational variety, says Corrie.

"It's a formative and transformative experience for participants, who live in dormitories, study theology and faith in a way most never have before, and meet peers who have backgrounds vastly different from their own," says Corrie. The 2009 class includes about 16 United Methodists, 12-14 Baptists, five Roman Catholics, and two youths from the Methodist Church of the Bahamas.

In addition to taking classes, students engage in ecumenical worship, attend workshops with Candler faculty, work with agencies in the Atlanta community, and build intentional community with one another.

The 2009 academy will feature a special program exploring ethical issues, including ecology and environmental justice; racial justice and civil rights; and migration, immigration and labor. The program will include visits to historic sites in Atlanta that place the issues in a broader context and volunteering with local organizations and Christian communities that are responding meaningfully to these challenges today.

Participants also will engage in interfaith dialogue and participate in a “Day of Interfaith Youth Service” with an additional 20-40 youth from the Muslim and Jewish communities on July 13.

UGA Students Part of CURO Summer Program

2009-06-26T23:01:00.000-07:00

Twenty-six undergraduates at the University of Georgia are spending eight weeks this summer immersed in research projects in their fields of interests through the Honors Program’s Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities.

The students, who have earned 2009 CURO summer fellowships, will be investigating various topics in disciplines such as physics, literature, psychology and veterinary medicine under the guidance of faculty in those fields. CURO has provided UGA students with these unique summer opportunities since 2001.

For more information on the Honors Program’s Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities, see http://www.uga.edu/honors/curo.

The 2009 CURO summer fellows are: Name, Hometown, Major(s) Christine Akoh, Athens, food science Sambita Basu, Griffin, chemistry Charles Blackburn, Roswell, English Corbin Busby, Woodstock, art history, English Kelly Cummings, Marietta, biological sciences Charles Ginn, Ellerslie, history, theater Erin Hansen, Lilburn, biology, psychology Dillon Horne, Loganville, comparative literature Tiffany Hu, Suwanee, microbiology Whitney Ingram, Stone Mountain, physics Daniel Jordan, Birmingham, Ala., comparative literature, anthropology Fahad Khan, Powder Springs, biology Max Klein, Marietta, biochemistry and molecular biology Susan Klodnicki, Marietta, biology, mathematics Bridget Mailley, Athens, international affairs Francisco Marrero, Columbus, chemistry Amar Mirza, Hiram, biochemistry and molecular biology Cody Nichol, Lilburn, German, psychology Emily Pierce, Lawrenceville, applied biotechnology (combined bachelor’s/master’s degrees) Akanksha Rajeurs, Roswell, biochemistry and molecular biology Al Ray III, Lithonia, cellular biology Joe Reynolds, Duluth, philosophy, psychology Matthew Sellers, Perry, chemistry, English Michael Slade, Ringgold, philosophy Alexandra Walker, Warner Robins, chemistry Shuyan Wei, Athens, biology.

Former Investment Manager Sentenced

2009-06-25T20:58:00.000-07:00

Frederick Barton, 48, of Atlanta, has been sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas Thrash to serve over six years in federal prison on a charge of wire fraud, for having fraudulently diverted approximately $2 million from several clients and investors.

Barton was sentenced to 6 years, 6 months in prison to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $878,100 in restitution.

Barton was convicted of these charges upon his plea of guilty on March 25. He was previously sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which obtained a judgment against Barton and his former investment firms for over $4 million in penalties and disgorgement of profits, as well as various injunctive and other relief.

According to the information presented in court: Barton, a registered broker and investment manager, defrauded several clients and investors of approximately $2 million dollars, including almost the entire life savings of a single, retired elderly woman in her 90's who was suffering from Alzheimer's disease. From at least 1995 through 2002, Barton was a manager at an Atlanta branch of a national brokerage firm. After he was terminated in 2002, he began his own investment advisory firms, "Barton Asset Management LLC" and "Twinspan Capital LLC," both based in Atlanta. On numerous occasions from at least 2001 through 2007, Barton fraudulently diverted to himself client funds that he was entrusted with investing.

In his victimization of the Alzheimer's patient, identified in Court by her initials, "RF," Barton first learned of her diagnosis in 2001. He had begun his fraud two years earlier in 1999, and it continued unabated through 2003. In all, Barton fraudulently diverted nearly $1 million of RF's assets to his own checking account, which he spent on personal lifestyle expenses and to fund the development of Twinspan Capital. Mainly as a result of these frauds, the balance in RF's investment and bank accounts fell from approximately $1.3 million in 1999 to less than $100 in 2004. Prior to the criminal prosecution, RF's estate sued Barton and his former employer, which repaid all but $200,000 of the improperly diverted funds.

In addition to diverting client money from RF and at least one other client, Barton committed securities fraud by selling shares in his new company, Twinspan, based on false pretenses. Specifically, he raised over $1 million in investments in Twinspan by claiming that he would use the proceeds to operate and grow the business. However, he instead diverted at least half of these supposed investments to himself, which he used to satisfy personal debts and pay personal lifestyle expenses.

UGA Employee Gets Term for Non-Profit

2009-06-25T20:53:00.000-07:00

Pamela Kleiber, associate director of the University of Georgia’s Honors Program, has recently been elected to serve a one-year term as a Councilor in the At-Large Division for the Council on Undergraduate Research, a national non-profit organization that emphasizes the importance of student-faculty engagement and collaboration in scholarship and research.

Through workshops, publications and networking opportunities, the council supports and promotes student-faculty research mentoring relationships that are the foundation of successful undergraduate research programs in higher education. Established in 1978, the organization’s individual and institution membership base represents more than 900 colleges and universities.

In her role with the Honors Program’s Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities, Kleiber says she focuses on creating a culture of inquiry and a community of scholars at the undergraduate level. The CURO programs include opportunities that give UGA students a chance to learn outside of the classroom about topics ranging from the bench sciences to advanced studies in the arts through faculty-guided research experiences. CURO also sponsors an undergraduate research symposium every spring for UGA students to share their projects in a public forum.

Kleiber, who has been at UGA since 1994, also is a fellow in UGA’s Institute of Higher Education and a member of UGA’s Teaching Academy. She was recognized last year with the Phi Kappa Phi Love of Learning Award.

Before joining the Honors Program in 2000, she served as coordinator for curriculum development and department head for the University System of Georgia Independent and Distance Learning.

Book Takes a Look at Making Roots

2009-06-24T22:46:00.000-07:00

Moving every three or four years for a job is a way of life for a class of American professionals whose numbers have surged into millions with the growth of the global economy. Such periodic relocation is a track to the top of the company hierarchy, and the jobs come with high wages and generous perks.

But according to a book by a journalist affiliated with Emory University, the moves can take a toll on families, who struggle with loneliness, rootlessness and lives on a merry-go-round of homes, schools, doctors and friendships.

“Next Stop, Reloville: Life Inside America’s New Rootless Professional Class” describes the lives of affluent, corporate gypsies – bright men and women recruited straight out of college for 20- and 30-year careers, bounding from town to town and routinely uprooting their families for the sake of professional success, only to end up shedding community and family ties. Author Peter Kilborn was affiliated with the Emory Center for Myth and Ritual in American Life (MARIAL) while he did his research.

Journalist Kilborn expands on his 2005 New York Times profile of the "Relos," rootless, mid-level executives, "an affluent, hard-striving class," mostly of men, who have “put the American dream on wheels.” They follow the money as they migrate through the suburbs of Atlanta, Dallas and Denver and onto the expatriate villages of Beijing and Bombay.

Largely immune to the economy’s cyclical booms and busts, with incomes of $100,000 to $200,000 and more per year, they roost in cloistered subdivisions segmented and stratified by income, price point and age of home, and amenities like private swim and tennis clubs. The fathers often travel for work, leaving their wives and children alone to fend for themselves.

Kilborn first heard the term Relo in the Atlanta suburb of Alpharetta, one of the communities he profiled in his Times article and in the book. Alpharetta has one of America’s highest concentration of Relos, with 52 percent of the population having come from somewhere else, according to the 2000 Census.

Kilborn was a reporter for The New York Times for 30 years, having covered business, economics, social issues and the workplace. He was also one of the contributors to the Times’s award-winning series and book, "Class Matters."

Cobb County Hosting Arts Camps

2009-06-23T22:13:00.000-07:00

The Jennie T. Anderson Theatre will host several performing arts camp opportunities this summer, giving youth a chance to hone stage skills. The ETC, or Exciting, Entertaining, Educational Theatre Company, will hold its camps 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., July 6-10, July 13-17 and July 20-24. The camp is for rising grades 3-9. The cost is $80.

The PROMPT Camps will be held during the same dates as the ETC Camps, from 1 to 3:30 p.m. at a cost of $40. PROMPT Camp is a musical theatre camp for rising grades 5-9, not a performance opportunity.

For more information, call (770) 528-8490 or visit cobbcounty.org/prca. Registration forms can be sent to: Jennie T. Anderson Theatre, 548 S. Marietta Parkway, Marietta, GA 30060.

Gov. Perdue Notes Infrastructure Projects for Areas

2009-06-23T22:09:00.000-07:00

Gov. Sonny Perdue recently announced the approval of 11 state and federally funded environmental infrastructure projects totaling $91.5 million. Five of the projects were either fully or partially financed by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) at a total of $40.5 million.

The Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA) board of directors approved the commitments to help finance water and sewer infrastructure projects in Cobb County, ColquittCounty and Gwinnett County, and the cities of Camilla, Hiawassee, Port Wentworth, Portal, Sparta, Stillmore, Valdosta and West Point.

GEFA helps communities prepare for economic growth and development through the provision of low interest loans. The Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) is a federal loan program administered by GEFA for wastewater infrastructure and water pollution abatement projects. Eligible projects include a wide variety of storm water and wastewater collection and treatment projects. The Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) is a federal loan program administered by GEFA for water infrastructure projects. Eligible projects include public health-related water supply construction. The Georgia Fund is a state funded program administered by GEFA for water, wastewater and solid waste infrastructure projects. The Georgia Fund provides loans and grants to local governments for projects such as water and sewer lines, treatment plants, pumping stations, wells, water storage tanks and water meters. Low interest loans from this program are available up to $10 million.

Under the ARRA financing terms adopted by the GEFA board of directors, cities or counties that are OneGeorgia-eligible qualify for a 70 percent subsidy. Cities or counties that are not OneGeorgia-eligible qualify for a 40 percent subsidy. Green projects receive a 60 percent subsidy. For example, if a OneGeorgia-eligible community applies for a $1 million loan, then 70 percent of the loan will be forgiven and the community will close on a 20-year loan of $300,000 at a three percent interest rate. OneGeorgia-eligible communities are located outside the state’s metropolitan areas and have a population of 50,000 or less with a poverty rate of 10 percent or greater. The unprecedented amounts of subsidy in the ARRA financing terms will help Georgia meet the ARRA’s short-term goals of job creation and economic stimulus.

Georgia local governments expressed a tremendous amount of interest in the ARRA funds. Cities and counties submitted more than 1,600 clean water, drinking water and green projects with a total cost that exceeded $6 billion. Total available funding for projects through the ARRA is $144 million. Funding is obligated to projects on a first-come-first-served basis.

Henry County Elementary School Principal Sent to Jail

2009-06-22T22:40:00.000-07:00

Most students hate going to the principal's office. In this case, however, it was the principal who got sent somewhere he would have preferred not going.

According to authorities, Jason Douglas was arrested Monday at Walnut Creek Elementary on a probation violation as a result of a pending drunk driving case. Douglas was promoted to principal at Walnut Creek on June 3.

According to arrest records from 2007, Henry County police arrested Douglas for alleged drunk driving after he was reportedly nearly two times over the legal limit.

The officer in the report also noted discovering a small bag of marijuana in Douglas’ car.

Police say that the arrest two years ago was a violation of Douglas’ probation, resulting from a 2004 domestic dispute incident.

UGA's Grady College Launches Poverty Web Site for Journalists

2009-06-22T22:34:00.000-07:00

A Web site for journalists who want to improve coverage of poverty on any beat is now live. Developed by a team at the University of Georgia Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, the site, “Covering Poverty: A Tool Kit for Journalists,” is at www.grady.uga.edu/poverty.

The site was developed by a four-person team of Grady College faculty and students. Advice was drawn from journalists and journalism educators across the United States, according to John Greenman, Carter Professor of Journalism at Grady and the driving force behind the new resource.

Content on the site includes eight tutorials on covering poverty, 15 “tip sheets,” an annotated bibliography and links to the best poverty-related Web sites. The tutorials were written by UGA faculty whose research focuses on such poverty-related subjects as health, education, financial services, families, housing, politics and race. In addition, journalism faculty from 11 universities offered advice about coverage tips, published sources and Web sites, based on courses they teach about covering poverty.

The Grady team included Greenman; Diane Murray, director of public service and outreach; Grey Pentacost, a graduate student in journalism; and Carolyn Crist, an undergraduate student in journalism. The research was underwritten by a grant from the University of Georgia Research Foundation, administered by the Office of the Vice President of Public Service and Outreach Grant.

Greenman and Murray invite journalists to use the site and provide feedback to them at jgreenma@uga.edu or murrayd@uga.edu.

Cobb County Hosts Juneteenth Event June 20

2009-06-19T22:39:00.000-07:00

The Cobb County branch of the NAACP is hosting the sixth annual Juneteenth Celebration 11 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday, June 20, on the Marietta Square.

Juneteenth is the oldest nationally-celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States and emphasizes education and achievement.

The cultural fest will include moonwalks, ethnic food, entertainment, vendors, music, history, giveaways and fun activities for the whole family. Vendors are welcome and volunteers and entertainment are needed.

For more information, visit cobbnaacp.org or call (770) 425-5757.