About Fayette County news. (Fayetteville, GA) 2009-current | View Entire Issue (March 6, 2024)
INSIDE INSIDE Patriots Roll into Title Game BOE Honors SROfor Service in School System, A3 INSIDE: FPD Unveils New Recruitment Cruiser, B5 with Final Four Rout, Bl THE TRUTH SINCE 1886 FAYETTE COUNTY (1) NEWS f ay ett e-news, net Vol. 152, No. 10 Wednesday, March 6, 2024 $1.00 Courtesy of Fayette County Schools MHS's Nate Miller and Dr. Nicholas Wansley FCHS's Veda Sinha and Jeff Belwood SMHS's Rush Maples and Christie Leanza WWHS's Owen Quick and Chad Reynolds SCHS's Morgan Bryant and Monica Dorner STAR Students, Teachers Honored Five exceptional Fayette County scholars have been announced as 2023- 24 STAR Students. As part of the Professional Associa tion of Georgia Educators’ Student Teacher Achievement Recognition pro gram, one representative from each high school with the highest SAT score, and in the top 10 percent of their class based on grade point average, is selected as the school’s annual STAR Student. Each STAR Student then chooses a STAR Teacher that has influenced their learning. Fayette County High’s STAR Stu dent is Veda Sinha, and the STAR Teacher is Jeff Belwood. McIntosh High’s STAR Student is Nate Miller, and the STAR Teacher is Dr. Nicholas Wansley. Sandy Creek High’s STAR Student is Morgan Bryant, and the STAR Teacher is Monica Dorner. Starr’s Mill High’s STAR Student is Rush Maples, and the STAR Teacher is Christie Leanza. Whitewater High’s STAR Student is Owen Quick, and the STAR Teacher is Chad Reynolds. One student will be selected as the countywide STAR Student and has the opportunity to compete for the title of Georgia PAGE STAR Student. BOE Discusses School Safety Protocol From left are Steve Cole and Oatha Mann. Leah Banks Senior Reporter leah@fayette-news.net Following weeks of safety threats made at var ious county schools, the Fayette County Board of Education discussed up dates to the school safety initiatives during the Feb. 26 meeting. The update included a three-pronged approach to school safety, including physical safety, safety plan ning, and safety awareness. Attendance, Safety, Dis cipline, and Athletics Direc tor Oatha Mann provided the update, explaining each aspect of the approach and emphasizing the impor tance of school safety imple mentation efforts. “Unfortunately, you will have to think about worst- case scenarios and how you’re going to prepare for all those worst-case scenar ios should something come about, and all that planning involves our staff, our stu dents, our community,” said Assistant Superintendent Steve Cole. Aspects of maintaining physical safety of those within schools includes locked exterior and interior doors, locked entry control, security systems and cam eras, visitor management systems, facility front office designs, and school re source officers. “I know it sounds very simple, but making sure our exterior doors and interior doors are locked is ex tremely important when talking about school safety,” Mann said. “When you look at situations where you’ve had events that have hap pened throughout our na tion with mass shootings or whatever, one of the first questions that they ask is ‘were the doors secure?’ That’s something that we really harp on in Fayette County.” Regarding safety plan ning, the board examined House Bill 147, also known as the “Safe Schools Act,” which went into effect in 2023. The bill requires school safety plans to be submitted to the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency and requires in truder alert drills in all pub lic schools in the state. “When we talk about our drills, we aren’t talking about drilling for the sake of drilling, but we are talking about having conversations on what worked well, what didn’t work well, and what can we change moving for ward,” Mann said. Safety planning also in cludes student and staff preparation, collaboration with local first responders, and establishing and main- See Safety, A3 Rep. Mandisha A. Thomas to Qualify for Georgia's Congressional 6th District SOUTH FULTON - State Rep. Mandisha A. Thomas (D-65) has an nounced her candidacy for Georgia’s Congressional 6th District. Rep. Thomas qualified on March 4 at the Georgia State Capitol. The following infor mation was provided by her office: “Georgia’s working families are feeling im mense pain from rising drug, healthcare, energy and housing costs,” said Rep. Thomas. “As a long time resident of the district who has their finger on the pulse of the issues of our communities, I’m com mitted to working at the federal level to bring relief to the families that need it the most.” As a state representa tive, Rep. Thomas has served on the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, Energy, Utilities and Tele communications, and In dustry and Labor committees. She has championed legislation to create jobs, bolster Geor gia’s economy, make healthcare more afford able, and provide re sources for working parents, small business owners, and low-income families. During the cur rent legislative session, Thomas introduced legis lation to limit the use of AI in health insurers’ deci sions and to protect home- owners from squatters. A consistent advocate for sustainability and agri culture, Rep. Thomas has worked with farmers and Rep. Mandisha A. Thomas agriculture experts to de velop policies to support the growth of agriculture throughout the state. Her Georgia Environmental Justice Education and Awareness Symposium brings leaders from across the state to develop strategies and policies for innovation in sustainabil- See Thomas, A2 PTC and Crabapple Lane: Huelfer's Journey to Bridge the Gap Leah Banks Senior Reporter leah@fayette-news.net For more than one year, the Huelfer family has com municated with Peachtree City and Tyrone officials about the passage between the two cities through the Crabapple Lane golfcart path. While there was some understanding, the road to true clarity has been met with roadblocks. The initial conversation began between PTC Council members in November 2021 and has since been dis cussed among both PTC, Tyrone, and Fayette County officials. Debate ideas range from implementing an al ternate route for members of Tyrone to providing path access for select Tyrone res idents. A family that has been advocating for a simplified solution is the Huelfer family, who has been searching for compromise for their daughter Lily, who uses the path to drive her golf cart and maintain a safe transportation route to and from their home off Farr Road. Since 2022, the family has been met with sympa thetic words from both res idents of PTC and Tyrone, with many calling for coun cil members to find a man ageable solution so Lily can commute to and from work safely, given that she is on the autism spectrum and cannot drive a car. See PTC, A6 Presidential Preference Primary is March 12 Local Qualifying Ends March 8 Advanced (in-person) voting for the March 12 Presidential Preference Primary election remains open Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. until Fri day, March 8. The last Sat urday voting date was held March 2. On Tuesday, March 12, voting will take place at registered voters’ assigned voting precincts, listed below: •Fayette County Elec tions Office: 175 Johnson Avenue, Suite B, Fay etteville, Ga. 30214. •Fayette County Public Library: 1821 Heritage ParkWay, Fayetteville, Ga. 30214. •Peachtree City Li brary: 201 Willow Bend Road, Peachtree City, Ga. 30269. •Tyrone Recreation Of fice: 945 Senoia Road, Ty rone, Ga. 30290. Qualifying for 2024 county elections opened at 9 a.m. on Monday, March 4 and will close at noon on Friday, March 8. Below are offices up for election and related qualifying fees: Board of Education (Districts 1, 3, and 5): $306; Clerk of Superior Court: $2,591.45; County Commission (Districts 1,2, and 5): $672.16; Coroner: $108; Magistrate Judge: $2,643.28; Probate Court Judge: $2,591.45; Sheriff: $2,891.45; Solicitor Gen eral - State Court: $3,055.28; Tax Commis sioner: $2,591.45. The general primary election will be held on Tuesday, May 21, with a general election slated Tuesday, Nov. 5. For more information, contact officials by visiting the Fayette County Elec tions Office, emailing elec- tionsgroup@fayettecounty ga.gov, or calling 770-305- 5408. The next scheduled meeting of the Fayette County Board of Elections is March 15 at 5 p.m. at 140 Stonewall Avenue West, Suite 100, in Fay etteville. Spring Forward This Sunday It is once again time to “spring forward” as daylight savings time begins at 2 a.m. on Sun day, March 10, when folks throughout the coun try will “lose” one hour of sleep while sunrise comes 60 minutes earlier in the morning. DST was first introduced in Germany in 1916 but was not adopted in the United Stated until the Standard Time Act of March 19, 1918. Al though unpopular at the time, online sources say it ivas abolished nationally after WWI and was not nationally re-established until WWII, when President Franklin Roosevelt instituted year-round DST, called “War Time.” DST procedures changed multiple times throughout the 20th Century. It was not until 2007, through the Energy Policy Act of 2005, when it became recognized as it is known today (March-Nov ember). Time will “fall back” at 2 a.m. on Nov. 3. INSIDE: FAYETTE VIEWS SPORTS A4 LEGALS Bl CLASSIFIEDS B2 MEETINGS & EVENTS Bl A5 CONTACT US: support@fayette-news.net - (770) 461-6317 - fayette-news.net ‘0 4 8 7 9 1 2 6 3 3
