Newspaper Page Text
WEDNESDAY, MAY 13, 2009
THE JACKSON HERALD
PAGE 3A
Stimulus funds targeted for at-risk students
BY KERRI TESTEMENT
THE JACKSON County
School System plans to use
$2.2 million in federal stimulus
money to target at-risk students
with intervention efforts and
fund special education needs.
As part of the American
Reinvestment and Recovery Act
(ARRA), the district is slated to
receive federal stimulus funds
earmarked for special education
and Tide I, which targets disad
vantaged children.
Georgia Department of
Education officials in the Title I
and special education programs
recendy recommended how the
school system could use the
federal stimulus money.
For the Jackson County
School System, the officials’ top
recommendation was funding
graduation coaches at both high
schools and middle schools,
while providing professional
learning to ensure that they are
knowledgeable of the state stan
dards.
Their recommendations,
however, were not binding and
allowed the district to come
up with its own plan that still
requires state approval.
That tentative plan —
revealed on Thursday for the
board of education — largely
focuses on intervention efforts
for at-risk students, along with
system-wide commitments for
special education. If approved,
the plan could create 12.5 jobs
for the school system.
Gwen Hartman, director of
special programs, said the plan
was designed to stretch the fed
eral stimulus funds for the most
potential equally throughout the
district.
“It does look like a lot of
money, but there are a lot of
stipulations on how to spend it,”
she said.
At both Jackson County high
schools, the plan calls for an
instructional coach, an interven
tion specialist, a paraprofession-
al for “Project Success,” and
intervention programs, profes
sional learning and additional
student transportation.
Instructional coaches help
teachers with intervention
strategies for students; while
graduation coaches follow state
guidelines to ensure at-risk stu
dents complete high school,
said April Howard, assistant
superintendent.
Currendy, the district’s two
high schools each have a gradu
ation coach. Instructional coach
es are now funded on a part-time
basis with grant funds.
“We would continue with the
graduation coaches, who are
funded by the state, and we
would be expanding the instruc
tional coaches,” Howard said.
At the district’s three middle
schools, the funds will focus on
intervention programs.
At Jackson County’s elemen
tary schools, intervention spe
cialists will be expanded from
part-time status to full-time at
all elementary schools.
And for the entire district,
the proposal includes an autism/
behavior specialist, a pre-K
inclusion teacher, a pre-K
speech language pathologist
services and the purchase of
two special education buses,
along with funds for statewide
program that assists local school
systems with children whose
behavior severely impacts their
learning. The district would also
hire a paraprofessional as an
achievement series data man
ager.
School board chairperson
Kathy Wilbanks cautioned the
district about hiring employ
ees for the positions, when the
federal stimulus funds are only
available for two years.
“I don’t want to create jobs
that we can’t sustain, when
we’ve already let people go,”
she said.
Hartman said the interven
tion specialists may be funded
through other programs at the
end of the federal stimulus
money.
Superintendent Shannon
Adams said Monday that the
district send a letter to the
recently laid off paraprofession-
als telling them about the poten
tial new jobs created through
the federal stimulus plan.
Repairs needed at waste treatment plant
Authority to vote Thurs.
By Mark Beardsley
AFTER SPENDING $2 million to upgrade its
waste treatment plant, the Jackson County Water
and Sewerage Authority found out it’s still subject
to breaking down.
The authority will vote Thursday night on a rec
ommendation to spend up to another $150,000 to
replace 50-year-old equipment in its clarifier — a
large open concrete basin where solids are sepa
rated from liquids.
Most of the sedimentation basin — the concrete
- is structurally sound, but the metal parts have
rusted to the point of collapse, manager Eric Klerk
told the authority at its work session last Thursday.
“If it fails, we will be out of compliance (of the
state permit) in 24 hours,” Klerk explained. He later
termed such an event “a catastrophic failure.”
Klerk presented two bids on equipment and two
on labor. The total of the lowest bids expected to be
approved this Thursday comes to $113,300, and the
authority will have to rent temporary settling tanks
for another $5,100.
Chairman Randall Pugh asked if there “is much
left” at the plant that is liable to require attention in
the future, and Klerk noted that the sludge beds and
aerators could become issues in the future.
“It’s not like we’re throwing away money. The
tank is in good shape,” Klerk assured.
Pugh suggested that its repair could help the
authority meet another goal.
“This puts us in an excellent position to go to the
EPD and ask for (a permit for) 500,000 gallons per
day,” he advised.
Before it began the upgrade of the old Texfi treat
ment plant, the authority was told by the EPD that,
upon completion of the project, the EPD would look
favorably upon upgrading the permitted capacity to
500,000 gpd. One of the reasons it hasn’t, Klerk
said, was concern over the clarifier and the fact that
the authority had no backup should it fail.
‘This is critical,” said member Dave Erhardt.
“We don’t want a permit violation.”
The authority will pay for the project from its
capital reserve fund.
Also on Thursday night’s agenda is a vote on
a recommendation from Klerk that the authority
change its retirement system to ICMA-RC, a not-
for-profit financial management entity that handles
only public accounts. Jackson County recently
switched to the same firm, said Randy Briskin, a
retirement specialist who made a presentation to
the authority last week. The company is a spin
off of the International City/County Management
Association.
County receives grant for health promotion
JCSO recognized
for ‘going green ’
THE PROPANE industry
recognized the Jackson County
Sheriff’s Office as one of four
winners of the 2009 Propane
Exceptional Energy Fleet
Award at a ceremony during the
Alternative Fuels and Vehicles
National Conference + Expo in
Orlando, Fla.
The award sponsored by
the Propane Education and
Research Council (PERC), rec
ognizes the achievements of on
road and off-road fleets that use
propane for their vehicles and
promotes awareness of propane
as a cost-effective, safe and
clean-burning engine fuel.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s
Office has 70 vehicles in its
fleet and 30 are Ford Crown
Victorias fueled by propane. It
plans to have 55 propane-fueled
vehicles by the end of 2009.
The sheriff’s office was drawn
to propane engine fuel for eco
nomic reasons, but has since
come to view it as a win-win
alternative - a cleaner-burning
fuel that is better for the envi
ronment.
Fleet decision makers nation
wide recognize the advantages
offered by the most widely used
alternative to gasoline and diesel
-propane. City vehicles, school
buses, delivery trucks, law
enforcement vehicles - these
and other propane-fueled vehi
cles are meeting the demands of
commercial fleet managers.
JACKSON COUNTY has
been selected by the Association
County Commissioners of
Georgia (ACCG) to receive one of
39 Employee Health Promotion
and Wellness Incentive Grants
awarded statewide to promote
worksite programs designed to
enhance the health and wellness
of county employees and family
members.
Awards are made to members
of the ACCG - Group Health
Benefits Program (GHBP),
underwritten by Blue Cross
Blue Shield of Georgia, based
on a county’s commitment to
employee health and demonstrat
ed collaboration with other com
munity groups and organizations
engaged in health promotion.
As part of the grant process,
the county designated a health
promotion leader to develop a
workplace health promotion
action plan and to attend Local
Government Risk Management
Services’ (LGRMS) High Impact
Health and Wellness training ses
sion.
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Highway 106 to Jot-em Down Rd. to Young Harris Road to Serenity Lane
Joel A. Harbin, CIC
(706) 387-5030
38 Sycamore Street
Jefferson
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Jefferson council to vote
on noise ordinance Mon.
BYANGELA GARY
THE JEFFERSON City
Council will take action Monday
to address noise concerns from
neighbors of a downtown bar.
Updating the noise ordinance
has been discussed for sever
al months. At a work session
Monday, the council reviewed
the final draft of the update. The
council is expected to take action
on the noise ordinance when it
meets at 6 p.m. Monday at the
civic center.
The proposed changes call for
any sound-amplified music to
stop at 11 p.m. Sundays through
Thursdays and 12:30 a.m. on
Fridays and Saturdays. There
would be a special exclusion for
holidays, such as New Year’s
Eve and those requests would be
handled by the city manager.
There would also be no change
in the allowed decibel level. If
the sound can be heard or audi
bly perceived within 50 feet of
the sound-producing property
line, the volume will have to be
lowered.
Jefferson’s noise ordinance
debate has centered on a down
town bar — Mike’s Down
Under — but it would also affect
special events at the city’s civic
center and clubhouse and other
businesses. Residential neigh
bors on Sycamore Street around
Mike’s Grill have complained
about noise coming from the
store’s bar since it opened several
years ago.
Nearby resident Len Sturkie
said he wants to ensure that the
ordinance is enforced.
“For it to have any teeth in it,
once that time comes, we can
count on being able to rest after
that time,” he said. “I would like
to see this thing moved on.”
Welcome to Mayfield
DAIRY RECALLS ICE CREAM
Mayfield Dairy Farms has recalled its 1.5-quart con
tainers of Homemade Vanilla Select Ice Cream due to
potential ammonia contamination.
Mayfield recalls ice cream
MAYFIELD Dairy Farms
is voluntarily recalling 1.5-
quart containers of Mayfield
Homemade Vanilla Select Ice
Cream because the product may
have been contaminated with
ammonia.
Ammonia may cause head
aches, nausea, vomiting and
irritation of the throat.
The recall affects Mayfield
Homemade Vanilla Select
Ice Cream with a code date
of 03/17/10 and a Universal
Product Code (UPC) number
of 75243 20148. No other code
dates or Mayfield Dairy Farms
products are involved in the
recall.
The recall includes 14,084
units of the ice cream. The
affected product was distrib
uted through numerous retail
outlets in Alabama, Tennessee,
Mississippi, Georgia, Kentucky,
North Carolina, South Carolina
and Florida. Mayfield’s route
sales personnel and distributors
are working with retail stores to
recover the remaining product.
Mayfield has ceased distri
bution of the affected product.
Consumers who have this prod
uct should not consume it. They
should discard the product and
return the package to the place
of purchase for a full refund or
exchange.
The company apologizes for
any inconvenience to its cus
tomers. Consumers with ques
tions can contact the company
at 1-800-MAYFIELD (1-800-
629-3435).
Mayfield Dairy Farm has
plants in Braselton, Birmingham
and Athens, Tenn. The Braselton
facility produces milk products,
while the Birmingham facility
makes ice cream products and
the Athens, Tenn. facility makes
milk and ice cream products.
FISH DAY!
NEW LOCATION!
Tuesday, May 19 • 4-5 p.m.
Shirley Feed & Seed
2439 N. Elm St. • Commerce, Ga • 335-2162
4-6” Catfish $35.00 pen 1 □□
6-8” Catfish $55.00 pen 100
8-11 ” Catfish $95.00 pen 100
We also carry: Largemouth Bass • Crappie • Koi’ • ’Bluegill
■ Hybrid Bluegill • Grasscarp - Minnows - Red Ear Bream
Call ahead for large quantity orders.
501-676-3768 • www.stockmypond.com
Apple Specialist
Graduation is here
(May we suggest a gift?)
—
The new iMacs, MacBooks and MacBook Pros make perfect graduation gifts.
f
peachmac
macs • ipods • software • service
1850 Epps Bridge Pkwy (across from Lowe's) • Athens • 706-208-9990
visit peachmac.com • also in Augusta!
The
Jackson Herald
MEMORIAL DAY
AD DEADLINE
Classified and Display Ads
12 Noon,
Friday, May 22
for the May 27 publication
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Jefferson, Ga. 30549
(706) 367-5233
Did not get in State
Pre-K?
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Limited Spaces Available
• Half Day Preschool for ages two thru four
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• Music and Movement Classes
• Chapel and Bible Time
• Computers in classes
• Playground and Gym
• Experienced and Loving Staff
Tuition range from
$120 to $160 a month
Registration Fee - $140
Call 706-335-9589