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THIS ISSUE
Copyright ©IW Forsyth County News
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Young golfers benefit
from fundraiser.
Page IB
Read about the new
season’s teen shows
in our TV book.
INSIDE
LAKE LANIER LEVELS
Date Level
Sept. 26 1062.69 ft
Sept, 27 1062.61 ft
Sept. 28 1062.53 ft
Sept 29 106233 ft
Akmnal 1071.00
Programsand
special events
in area churches.
PageßA
INDEX
Abby. 10A
Business .6A
Church AA
Classifieds 3B
Deaths -2A
Entertainment 1C
Opinion 11A
Horoscope ._._lOA
Sports IB
COMING
SUNDAY
Football Action
Results of this week's
high school
football games.
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Forsyth County News
J Your "Hometown Paper" Since 1908 J Jpj*^* 3 * 12/31/99
Vol. 90, No. 145
Stars turn out
to help hospital
Golf, music, auctions generate $150,000
for Cumming ’s Baptist Medical Center
By The/ese Allen Vanattia
Staff Writer
The third annual Invitational
Golf Tournament and music
extravaganza to benefit the
Baptist Health Care Foundation
took place Monday and Tuesday
at The Golf Club of Georgia in
the Windward Community off of
McGinnis Ferry Road.
Hosted by race car driver
Buckshot Jones and country
music recording artist John Berry,
both Georgia natives, the
Invitational also was graced by
the presence of other recording
artists, including Jeff Carson,
Mark Wills, Shenandoah’s Mike
McGuire and Curtis Wright,
Dwayne O’Brien from Little
Texas and Restless Heart’s Larry
Stewart. Countless other profes
sional athletes and entertainers
were on hand to tee off and later
to entertain players and guests.
The Invitational began three
years ago under the inspiration of
School system
going online
with results of
annual tests
ByLauraLavezzoCarrico
Lifestyle Editor
As soon as next year, parents and school administrators
should be able to use the Internet to see how students do on
a major annual standardized test.
A new software system Test Trax, is used to monitor
results from the lowa Tests of Basic Skills. ITBS is a stan
dardized exam meant to evaluate students’ comprehension
of the subject matter they should be learning at their own
grade levels.
ITBS scores help teachers and administrators determine
curriculum strengths and weaknesses. Using Test Trax,
school personnel will be able to track ITBS scores at the dis
trict, school, classroom and individual levels over the course
of several years by visiting a Web site.
Director of Technology Bailey Mitchell demonstrated
Test Trax at the Forsyth County Board of Education meeting
on Sept. 9.
“At the present time, Forsyth County Schools is in need
of a good, easy-to-use tool for repotting test score data,”
Mitchell said. “We receive a great deal of information about
test results, mostly on paper, and all for one year at a time.
It’s cumbersome to use this data since it involves manipulat
ing huge quantities of information manually.”
The availability of this information online will allow
principals, teachers and parents to observe and interpret a
Child’s progress from kindergarten through 12th grade.
Doing so will allow special needs to be identified and
addressed more easily, said Sue Gandy of the system’s tech
nology department.
“Parents can sign on and see the scores of their own kid
and learn a lot about his learning habits,” Gandy said. If
things seem inconsistent or troublesome, she added, “Maybe
somebody isn’t working with him like they should to help
him succeed.”
For instance, Gandy explained, if a child is performing
well in every subject area but math, teachers know they need
to spend more time helping that child develop better math
skills. If inconsistencies in grade-level achievement can be
tracked to one particular classroom, Gandy said, school offi
cials will be made aware that the teacher might be better
qualified teaching another discipline or in another sys
tem.
Because this information will be accessible via the
Internet, Mitchell said the database will be established with
these access parameters:
• Central Office instructional staff will have systemwide
reporting capability.
• Each school’s administrators will be able to view infor
mation only for their building.
• Teachers will be able to see reports only on their own
classes.
• Parents will have access to scores for their children
only.
Implementation of Test Trax will begin immediately
with the purchase of the county’s ITBS scores for the past
eight years. Officials said they hope to be using the program
next year.
For a total of $79,000 in local funds, the school system
acquired the Test Trax software ($22,000); paid for the pro
cessing and database setup for eight years prior ($40,000);
and purchased actual ITBS data from Riverside Publishing
for the past eight years ($17,000).
For more information, visit the demonstration Web site
for Test Trax at www.testtrax.com/testtrax.asp.
GTE President H. David Fanning.
The story goes that Fanning
walked to Georgia Baptist Health
Care Foundation President Frank
Upchurch’s office with a big
check and a bigger idea. Thus
was the Invitational born.
Since its inception in 1997,
the event has raised more than
$200,000 for Georgia Baptist
Healthcare Foundation. Funding
from past Invitationals was dis
persed to various foundation pro
jects, one of which is the con
struction of Baptist Medical
Center in Cumming.
Funding from this year’s
event, which raised more than
$150,000, exclusively benefits the
new hospital. In gratitude, the
hospital announced Tuesday night
that Baptist Medical Center’s
state-of-the-art emergency suite
will be named “The H. David
Fanning Emergency Medical
Suite” in honor of Fanning’s last
ing commitment to the work of
FRIDAY OCTOBER 1,1999
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The funds were raised through
entry fees and auctions. This
year’s sum was enhanced by the
generosity of John Berry, who
agreed to auction himself off for a
private concert. The high bidder
was Pat Domenicone, owner of
Classic Cadillac, who paid
$25,100 for the special perfor
mance.
The list of players for this
year’s Invitational included for
mer Falcons coach Leeman
Bennett; Steve Cropper, who
wrote Otis Redding's “Siltin’ On
the Dock of the Bay;” All-Star
pitcher Jay Howell; Baseball
See HOSPITAL, Page 2A
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Photo/Scott Rogers
Flyin' high
Jacob Butler, 7, seems to defy gravity as he reaches for the sky while soaring
off a ramp during a rollerblading practice session.
Seat on Civil Service Board draws questions
Elected by employees, Sheriff’s Office volunteer refused position after being told it was a conflict
By Jim Riley
Staff Writer (
l
A former volunteer in the Sheriff’s
Office allegedly was told that helping the
department and being a member of the
county’s Civil Service Board would be a
conflict of interest, so he gave up a posi
tion on the Civil Service Board to which
he was elected by county employees.
Michael Wewers is again interested in
serving on the board. He no longer is
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Photo/Scott Rogers
Can man
Dennis Lortie works to make a metal can sparkle in preparation for last weekend’s annual bazaar at Midway
United Methodist Church. The gleaming line of cans' in the background show the end result of Lortie’s efforts.
The well-cleaned cans were used to hold barbecue for the annual fund-raising effort.
Photos/Therese Vanattia
Top, dancers enjoy the fund
raising festivities. Above, John
Berry was the host and star
performer for the benefit gala.
involved with the Sheriff’s Office and
says has learned that the conflict which
kept him from serving originally may
never have existed after all.
Until recently, Wewers held an unpaid
position as the lieutenant in charge of the
reserve officers unit for the Sheriff’s
Office. The reserve officers are volunteers
who provide additional manpower when
needed.
The issue came to the light at Monday
night’s Forsyth County Board of
JU
Planners
approve
subdivision
expansion
Laurel Springs would
grow by 45 acres if
commission OKs request
By Jim Riley
Staff Writer
One of the county’s most popu
lar wants to expand its
borders to offer more housing to
families that want to call Forsyth
County home.
Peachtree Development Group
Inc. has filed an application to
rezone 45 acres adjacent to the
Laurel Springs neighborhood from
Al (agricultural) to CRI (single
family community residential).
Local attorney Emory
Lipscomb spoke on behalf of the
developers at Tuesday night’s
Planning Commission hearing.
He said the project would be an
extension of Laurel Springs, with
the new development slated for
land off Old Atlanta Road near the
intersection of James Burgess
Road.
Lipscomb said the property
would be served by the existing
sewer system, and homes would
range in price from $450,000-
$475,000.
No public opposition was pre
sented at the public hearing.
Planning Commissioner Pam
Livesay made the motion to recom
mend approval to the Forsyth
County Board of Commissioners,
which has the final say.
Mary Helen McGruder second
ed the motion, which passed unani
mously.
In other matters, the Planning
Commission voted unanimously to
deny a home business use permit
for Deborah L. Crowl, in explain
ing the vote to recommend denial,
Chairman Dennis Martin said the
applicant didn’t have a business
license.
The board postponed until its
Oct. 26 meeting an application by
Russell Pruitt for a home business
use permit.
The board approved home busi
ness permits for Tony M. Kelley,
Major Woodcraft and Ronald
Fagan.
Commissioners meeting when District 4
Commissioner Andy Anderson raised
questions about Wewers’ recent decision
to turn down a seat on the Civil Service
Board after being elected by county
employees.
“He subsequently turned down his
appointment, apparently as a result of
being told that he legally could not serve
on both the Sheriff’s Office Reserve
See BOARD, Page 2A