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PAGE 2A
BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2016
BOE plans to keep same millage rate
By Alex Pace
News-Journal Reporter
The Barrow County Board of Edu
cation plans to keep the millage rate
steady this year. The BOE will likely
approve its tentative millage rate of
18.5 mills at its Sept. 6 meeting.
Current tax digest projections show
a slight decrease for FY2017, despite
early estimates that the digest would
increase 3 percent.
Despite the decrease, the district
still has a rollback rate based on reas
sessments of property on the digest
in 2015.
The district also had an increase in
exemptions this year, with 45 percent
of the increase coming from baby
boomers reaching the exemption age.
Keeping the current millage rate
of 18.5 mills, the district expects to
receive $558,000 less than it did with
the same millage rate last year.
The BOE will be required to set
three hearings after approving the
tentative rate.
School system enrollment increases for new year
By Alex Pace
News-Journal Reporter
Barrow nutrition program recognized
The Barrow County School Nutri
tion Program has been awarded “Best
Practice” awards in multiple catego
ries.
The district was recognized for lead
ership development and training to
achieve professional standards and use
of social marketing for school nutri
tion programs.
These awards will be given out on
Oct. 6 at the Georgia School Nutrition
Kick-Off Luncheon in Macon.
Enrollment increased
in the Barrow County
School System this year.
The Barrow County Board
of Education discussed its
enrollment at its Aug. 30
meeting.
The district had approxi
mately 96 more students on
the 20th day of school this
year than it did last year,
totaling 13,559. But not all
grade levels are seeing an
increase and school leaders
are trying to find out why.
Enrollment is up in
both the middle and high
schools, but the district’s
elementary school enroll
ment is down almost 2 per
cent.
The largest drops were
in Bethlehem (7.6 percent)
and Kennedy (5.9 percent).
Director of student and
data services Matt Thomp
son said the district's larg
est enrollment drop has
been in kindergarten and
first grade. But economi
cally, the decrease makes
sense according to Thomp
son.
Students enrolled in kin
dergarten and first grade
this year would have been
born during the height of
the recession. Birth rates
tend to decrease during
economic downturns,
according to a study pre
sented to the BOE by the
Pew Research Center.
Barrow County had its
lowest birth rates since the
1990s in 2009 and 2010,
according to Thompson.
But there was a slight
increase in 2011 and 2012,
which may be reflected in
next year’s enrollment.
Birth rate isn’t the only
influence on the district’s
enrollment. The change
may also be from move
ment in and out of the
county, but that data is not
available.
OTHER
BUSINESS
Also at its meeting, the
BOE:
•learned Auburn Ele
mentary School and Yargo
Elementary School are
piloting an Academic Par
ent Teacher Team program,
which administrators say
is boosting parent partici
pation.
•discussed an upcoming
outdoor elective course
offering at Apalachee High
School. Dustin Cannarella
and other AHS staff are
planning an summer out
door education course,
Appalachian Trail Experi
ence. Students would walk
the Georgia part of the trail
in an estimated 17-day trip,
learning about ecology,
geology, history and liter
ature. The course will be
offered as an elective. Stu
dents would have to pass a
physical, and other health/
safety training is being
addressed.
•compared its Advanced
Placement versus Move
on When Ready options.
AP courses are high school
courses that a student could
receive college credit for
if scoring high enough on
a test. MOWR courses
are college courses done
through dual enrollment.
The state pays for tuition
and books for MOWR.
•discussed an Instruc
tional Conversation Ped
agogy started at the dis
trict’s elementary schools.
Organizers say teachers are
used as “facilitators,” and
students are more hands-on
in leading discussion. Julie
Eldridge, the English learn
er support coordinator,
said it makes students feel
empowered as though the
classroom is their learning
community. She also said
it helps conversation skills.
•learned construction on
the new elementary school
is “coming along extreme
ly well,” according to assis
tant superintendent of sys
tem operations Joe Perno.
•learned the BOE may
vote on a contract price
for the county amphithe
ater at its September work
session.
•added several items to
its consent agenda, includ
ing a $102,600 purchase
of Dell Chrombeooks
using Title I funding: a
wellness program policy;
and a personnel sick leave
bank policy. Two policies
(assignment to school; and
transfers and withdrawals)
will be open for public
comment until the BOE’s
Oct. meeting.
BOE continued from 1A
“If you read this pream
ble and you know nothing
about what this is and what
this does, you would feel as
though you’re voting against
motherhood and apple pie,”
she said.
She said the amend
ment takes away the local
community's involvement,
despite the preamble's
wording. That “erosion of
local control” is one of
the reasons the GSBA is
making a push against the
amendment.
“What this legislation
does is it creates a super
intendent that is appoint
ed by the governor and
reports directly to the gov
ernor,” said Wilson. “...We
don’t believe that you see
the best in what happens
in schools by taking away
the local input into what’s
happening.”
The amendment would
allow the state to take over
the “supervision, manage
ment and operation” of
“failing” schools based on
accountability measures.
That includes control over
federal, state and local
money for those schools.
Wilson said many of
the schools on the list
for OSD are high-pov
erty and high-minority
schools. But she said the
state doesn’t recognize the
large improvements made
in those schools.
“There is no recognition
of the growth that took
place,” she said.
Wilson said she's also
concerned that the state
isn’t considering the exter
nal factors that contribute
to low performance for
high-poverty students.
Among those is the tran
siency of high-poverty
students and lack of good
healthcare, food, etc.
Wilson said she’s also
concerned about creating a
constitutional amendment
for a program that has not
been successful.
“Nowhere in the coun
try where they have tried
‘recovery school districts’
have they been success
ful,” she said.
Wilson noted the state
already has the power to
intervene in low-perform
ing school districts, but
said the amendment would
allow the state to control
the funding.
“This is truly about pri
vatizing our public edu
cation system.” she said.
“And it’s about the dol
lars.”
Brown still sought by BCSO
Tiffani Ann Brown
of Winder is still being
sought by law enforce
ment officials on multiple
felony warrants.
Brown is a white
female, 36-years-old. She
is described as having
brown eyes and brown
hair.
She was on the scene
during a narcotics bust
which resulted in the
arrest of Jason Paul Gor
don and Johnny Holliday.
BROWN
Deadlines moved up
News and ads deadlines for the Barrow News-Journal
and MainStreet Newspapers publications will be moved
to noon Friday due to the Labor Day holiday on Monday.
The Barrow> News-Journal will be closed on Monday
for the holiday.
Auburn chief wants officers to have use
of patrol cars while working extra jobs
Auburn police chief Carl
Moulder wants a change in
the city policy which cur
rently does not allow offi
cers to use their patrol cars
during off-duty work.
Moulder said during a
recent city council work
session that officers would
be responsible for putting
fuel in the patrol car.
Some officers with the
APD work off-duty security
jobs and said he believes
having their patrol car on
scene would help with safe
ty issues.
“Right now they are in
full uniform during these
off-duty jobs,” the chief
said. “The only thing they
don’t have is their vehicle.
The vehicle can serve as a
deterrent. We don't want
to eliminate extra jobs for
these officers. It is an incen
tive to keep people with us.”
The City of Auburn pro
vides insurance for patrol
cars.
“The insurance should
not go up,” Moulder said.
“They already take their
vehicles home with them
anyway.”
PUBLIX MYSTERY COUPON
See What 1$ Gets!
Bring this coupon to Publix on August 31, 2016, and find out what
one penny gets you! Good with your purchase of $10 or more.
Limit one coupon per household per day. Excluding all alcohol,
tobacco, lottery items, money services, postage stamps, gift cards,
and prescriptions. Customer is responsible for all applicable taxes.
Reproduction or transfer of this coupon is strictly prohibited.
Effective August 31, 2016 at participating stores in Ga., Ala., and Tenn.
Publix.
WHERE SHOPPING IS A PLEASURE* LU# 17204
FFA FUN
Apalachee High School FFA members Taylor
Faith Adcock and Kaije Rusnic enjoy the Slip-
N-Slide.
AHS FFA begins new year
On Tuesday, Aug. 18, the Apalachee High School
FFA Chapter held its first meeting of the new school
year.
More than 40 members, many of them new to the
chapter, gathered in the ag room to hear about many
of the events that the chapter has planned for the fall.
Following the conclusion of the business session,
members and guests were treated to pizza and were
entertained with an inflatable slip n slide, volleyball
and other games. Our next meeting will be held on
Sept. 22 which will be a cookout for all members,
parents and alumni.
Suspect continued from 1A
The Statham chief said he
requested assistance from the
BCSO due to that department
having more resources and due
to the high emotions involved.
“Anytime one of your offi
cers are hurt, especially to the
degree Lofton was, there are
emotions involved,” Johnston
said. “While I felt positive that
our guys were professional
enough to handle it, I did not
wish to put them through that.
We have a tight bond within
the thin blue line, but within
our department family it's even tighter. So why push the
issue to a breaking point.”
According to Capt. Ryan Sears of the BCSO, infor
mation was gathered that Fox was at an undisclosed
residence in Barrow County. She was taken into custody
without incident.
The incident has drawn heavy attention from area
news outlets, on Facebook and other social media.
Johnston said he was thankful for the community’s sup
port of Officer Lofton and the entire SPD.
“Thank you to all the citizens who support and have
supported so awesomely during this incident,” the chief
said. “We are thankful to serve such a community.”
Radio club celebrates centennial
The Tri-County Ama
teur Radio Club held a
special event this month
to commemorate the 100th
anniversary of the found
ing of the Town of Bra-
selton.
The club went on the air
with three stations oper
ating under the special,
temporary call sign W4B.
As stations called in from
across the country, the
group shared information
about the location and a
brief history of the town.
The group made almost
300 contacts in 19 states,
including Hawaii, and in
Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin
Islands and Canada.
The special event was
also posted on a world
wide Amateur Radio data
base and this site received
over 700 hits.
The result was that
potentially 1,000 peo
ple became aware of the
town’s 100 year celebra
tion.
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In Loving Memory
of my mother
HELEN
WILBANKS
Happy Birthday
Mother
Those we love don’t go away,
They walk beside us every day.
Unseen and unheard
but always near,
Still loved and missed
and very dear.
Love,
Joyce