Newspaper Page Text
TheTrue Citizen, Wednesday, December 30, 2009 — Page 3
SGA looks for ways to involve parents in education
By Anne Marie Kyzer
annemariek@thetruecitizen.com
Shelly Oglesgy readily admits
she’s not a master when it comes
to some of her fifth-grader’s
math lessons. But that didn’t
stop her from stepping in one
day to help her son, Jesup
Gaskins, teach his class at SGA
Elementary School.
His teacher, Matasha Ellison,
invited all the parents of her stu
dents to take a turn at the head
of the class in an effort to get
them more involved.
Oglesby said showing up and
From left, SGA’s Renitta Johnson recruits parent volun
teers like Demetria Washington who help out in the class
room to become more involved in their children’s educa
tion.
Barrow to visit Midville
From Staff Reports
Congressman John Barrow
will visit Midville next week as
part of his weeklong Rural Lis
tening Town Hall meetings.
From 3-4 p.m., Tuesday, Jan.
5, the Congressman will be at
Mead Farms, located at 1222
Reeves Road near Midville.
“I hope folks will stop by,”
said Barrow, noting he planned
the tour as a means of learning
more about the issues being
faced by residents in rural sec
tions of the 12 th Congressional
District. “We can talk about
what’s been going on in Wash
ington ... but most of all, I want
to hear from them.”
Besides Burke, he’ll also be
making stops in Warren,
Glascock, Washington,
Jefferson, Evans, Bulloch, Can
dler, Emanuel and Tattnall
counties, touring farms and fa
cilities along the way.
Holiday Closings
Burke County government offices: Jan. 1
Burke County Library: Jan. 1
City of Waynesboro government offices: Jan. 1
City of Midville government offices: Jan. 1
City of Sardis government offices: Jan. 1
The True Citizen, Chalker Publishing: Dec. 31 - Jan. 1
Jobless pool grows
to 11.4 percent
By Elizabeth Billips
lizbillips@yahoo.com
Burke County’s unemployment rate hobbled back up to 11.4
percent after months on the decline.
According to Georgia Department of Labor officials, an esti
mated 1,135 Burke County residents were looking for work in
November, compared to 917 at the same time in 2008.
Since hitting a 13.4 percent high in July, the county’s jobless
pool had consistently shrunk through October when it was esti
mated at 10.8 percent. November’s rise, however, was in line
with state and CSRA estimates, which also increased.
The nation, as a whole, saw a slight decrease from 10.2 to 10
percent.
Compared to Georgia’s other 159 counties, Burke is ranked
the 53 rd highest for unemployment, along with Haralson, Johnson
and Twiggs counties.
Neighboring Jenkins County was the second highest with a
19.8 percent unemployment rate, and Hancock was at the top
again with 22 percent. Georgia’s lowest unemployment rate was
logged in Oconee County where an estimated 17,288 residents
were employed with only 1,015, or 5.5 percent, looking for work.
Big Picture
United States: 10 percent
Georgia: 10.2 percent
CSRA: 10.2 percent
Burke: 11.4 percent
Burke by the month
July: 13.4 percent
August: 12.3 percent
September: 12 percent
October: 10.8 percent
November: 11.4 percent
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helping out is just part of her job
as a mother.
“If I’m not coming, I don’t
feel like I’m doing my part,” she
said. “I always ask him what he
is doing in class. Sometimes
he’ll tell me, sometimes he
won’t.”
Oglesby’s attitude toward her
son’s education is exactly what
Ms. Ellison and others at SGA
want to foster among more par
ents.
Renitta Johnson, SGA’s par
ent coordinator, spends her days
developing new ways to involve
parents in the learning process.
She said parent participation
helps them know how to better
assist their children with their
homework and other aspects of
school.
Though most schools have
similar programs, Burke County
public Schools Title I Coordi
nator Dr. Allen Kicklighter said
Johnson’s program is an ex
ample to follow.
“Mrs. Johnson and SGA have
just embraced the concept, and
they are my model,” Kicklighter
said.
More than a dozen parents are
in the building each day to help
in classrooms, file paperwork or
assist with school-wide activi
ties.
Beyond her faithful volun
teers, Johnson reaches out to
parents in ways she thinks will
benefit them.
Pizza Pi Nights bring parents
and students to the school for
Italian food and math games.
Reading Rodeos equip them
with strategies for taking the
Criterion Referenced Compe
tency Test (CRCT) in the spring.
A newsletter distributed in the
community keeps parents and
others in the know about what’s
going on at school.
Johnson even hosts a parent
technology center in her office
with computers available for
use. Parents may go there to
catch up on the technology their
children are learning in school
or brush up on subjects in which
they need to tutor their children.
The computers can even be used
to apply for jobs through the
Department of Labor, which
Johnson contacts each week for
an updated listing of openings.
In the coming
weeks, she hopes to
start offering GED
classes through the
parent center as
well.
Though John
son’s duties require
her to deal with is
sues ranging from
behavior to atten
dance and academ
ics to health, she
said building the capacity of
parents is a way to improve
most situations.
For SGA principal Sam
Adkins, the results of her work
can be seen on a daily basis.
“For a small school in a rural
setting to have that many par
ents involved in their children’s
education and willing to give of
their time, it’s outstanding,” he
said. “It bridges the gap be
tween family, community and
school.”
Jesup Gaskins teaches his class with
help from his mother, Shelly Oglesby.
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