About Dawson County news. (Dawsonville, Georgia) 2015-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 2022)
6A I DAWSON COUNTY NEWS I dawsonnews.com Wednesday, March 30,2022 Christian school begins construction for new building Julia Fechter Dawson County News Lighthouse Christian Academy, based in Dawson County, will be adding a campus building in order to offer more academic and extracurricular options for preK-12 students. By Julia Fechter jfechter@dawsonnews.com Oftentimes, change happens by taking concrete steps-or in the case of Lighthouse Christian Academy, by pouring concrete for a new school facil ity. The Dawson County-based private school, a ministry of Lighthouse Baptist Church, has broken ground on its forthcom ing two-story academic and extracurricular complex. The academy, which sprouted from the vision of church pas tor Charles Blackstock, offers a preK-12 education based on the nationally reputable Abeka cur riculum and Biblical principles, said academy Principal Dewey Moye. Moye joined the academy before the 2021-2022 school year, bringing with him 46 years of experience in public and private schools. The new facility will house both elementary and high- school classrooms in the front portion, closer to the academy’s existing premises, and a gym nasium in the back part. Moye explained that they’re “really going after a superior academic program,"’ with plans for more STEM offerings, such as chemistry and physical sci ence labs and a state-of-the-art computer lab. There are also plans to add more foreign lan guage classes and hire more support staff and more STEM- specific teachers. As for the academy’s athletic programs, Lighthouse plans to host basketball on their campus as well as expand to track and volleyball programs, Moye added. He said the academy’s expan sion is projected to be an “over- a-million-dollar” project. Ideally, construction on the facility will be finished before the next school year and with out debt. The academy has been run ning a fundraising campaign for about a month, already soliciting some donors. Others interested may donate to lcadawsonville.com/donate or send checks to Lighthouse Christian Academy, 329 Harmony Church Road, Dawsonville GA 30534. The principal said that there has been more interest in the school in recent months. Currently, 68 students are enrolled and class sizes are kept small at 6-7 students per teach er. Each instructor is fully certi fied, and some have advanced degrees. Moye elaborated that the increased parent appointments he’s been taking are a positive sign of school growth. In par ticular, the amount of elementa ry students has steadily been increasing. County wide, 76.7 percent of Dawson County’s school- enrolled population is enrolled in K-12 grades, an increase of about three percent, according to updated U.S. Census data. He expects enrollment to grow by a few hundred students in the coming years. “It’s exciting to see it grow,” Moye said of the school. “More people are interested in Christian education [now].” Conservation Coalition, Bowen to host Earth Day event By Erica Jones ejones@dawsonnews.com Next month, the North Georgia Conservation Coalition and the Bowen Center for the Arts will host the annual Earth Day event, complete with a poster contest and exhibition, silent auction, electric vehicle car show and informa tion about ways to save the planet. According to a release by the North Georgia Conservation Coalition, this year’s Earth Day event is themed “Invest in Our Planet” and will take place at the Bowen Center for the Arts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on April 23. The annual poster contest and exhibi tion will include Earth Day posters made by dozens of children in the Dawson County School system. The posters will be juried first by DCS art educators, and finalists will be selected by a panel of independent judges. Awards will be presented by grade dur ing the event. In addition to the poster contest, the event will feature children’s crafts, sing- along and face painting, a food tent, door prizes, a silent auction and an Electric Vehicle (EV) Car Show. The event will also feature several local, state and national organizations providing information to event attendees on how to help conserve the planet. According to the release, there will be opportunities to learn about tree canopy and reforestation, eliminating food wast er, cutting carbon exhaust, soil conser vancy, cutting energy costs, clean water sources, reducing and reusing plastic and organic agriculture and gardening. Parking for the event will be free in the Dawson County Junior High School parking lot. For more information, go to https://www.ngacc.org/earth-day-2022 or contact North Georgia Conservation Coalition Director Bette Holland at ngcc2035 @ gmail.com. Name: Manning Plumbing & Septic; Width: 10 in; Depth: 10.5 in; Color: Process color; Ad Number: 106082_1; External Reference: Was-iis03.morrismultimedia. com\northgeorgia\AccountScout\Retail Images\2022\Mar\106082_l
