Newspaper Page Text
Page 2—Wednesday, October 2,2013, TheTrue Citizen
ARE YOU GRADUATING
THIS YEAR?
Then plan on attending “Senior
Night” at Burke County High
School, 6-7:30 p.m., Thursday,
Oct. 3. College representatives
and military recruiters will be on-
hand to talk one-on-one with stu
dents and parents about
postsecondary options. For more in
formation call BCHS counselor
Regenia Jordan at 706-554-6691.
CAN'T STOP READING?
Then feed your habit at the
Friends of the Burke County
Library’s used book sale. It’s
going on right now with prices
ranging from a dime to a buck
for paper and hardbacks. There
are even a few selections on
cassette. The sale will con
tinue until the books are
gone.
WANT TO HELP WITH HEAT?
The City of Waynesboro is working with the Heating Energy Assistance Team
(HEAT) to ensure senior citizens and families in Burke County have heated
homes this winter. You can make a tax-deductible donation through your city
utility bill or online at www.heatga.org. In Burke and surrounding counties,
nearly $35,000 helped more than 100 families through heating emergencies
last winter. “But the need is much greater than the funds available. More than
1,100 families are still waiting to be served in Burke
County but all the money is gone right now,” said
Patricia Johnson, Energy Coordinator for the Cen
tral Savannah River Area Economic Opportunity
Authority.
By Anne Marie Kyzer
annemariek@thetruecitizen.com
What’s in a name?
Everything, if you ask the
new principal at the Burke
County Academy of Success.
Earl Ishmal took the reins of
the school, formerly the Burke
County Alternative School, this
year and he’s making some
changes he hopes will reverse
the mindset, and the course, for
many of his students.
The name of their school is
just the start.
“What we’re trying to do is
change the entire perception of
this school,” he explained. “If
we are going to change culture,
we have to change mindset.
That’s part of why that name
had to go.”
Ishmal said it’s not just a
place for students who were put
out of the middle school. It’s a
ttie5- Part
New principal sets out
to change perception
place for anyone wanting to
straighten their path to gradua
tion, whether they’re behind
grade level or for other reasons.
“We can do some non-tradi-
tional things to get them back
on track and using research-
based methods to do it,” he said.
Aside from intensive pro
grams to help them catch up in
academics, the students are get
ting face time with teachers and
administrators to talk about is
sues aside from their studies.
Principal Earl Ishmal stands
with several of his studenst at
the Burke County Academy
for Success, formerly the
Burke County Alternative
School.
Ishmal also wants to make
sure they know what kind of
success is within their reach if
they apply themselves.
“We are also taking them on
college trips to expose them,”
he said, noting many students
have never been on a college
campus. “If I want you to go to
college, I need to show you what
one looks like and how to get
there.”
They’ll take their first trip
later this month when they head
to Atlanta for visits to
Morehouse College and
Spelman College. Plans are also
in the making to visit Paine Col
DRESS FOR SUCCESS
Ishmal wants his students to dress the part when it comes to
being successful. Ishmal wants students to begin wearing blaz
ers and ties.
“When we dress up, we feel so much better,” he said. “I want
to show them what mainstream society finds acceptable dress.”
Ishmal is looking for community members willing to help with
the purchase of the blazers. For more information, call him at
706-554-8046.
lege, Georgia Southern Univer
sity and the University of Geor
gia.
“I want them to get the awe
affect and see what it can be
like,” Ishmal said, adding that
there arc also professionals lined
up to come speak to the students
about their paths to success.“We
want them to see people they
can talk to, who can tell them it
doesn’t matter what path
you’ve traveled thus far, it’s the
goal you are trying to reach,”
he said. “I knew this wouldn’t
work if we didn’t show them
more than just the education
part, but the application as
well."
Ishmal said the students have
been very receptive to his ideas
and seem eager to work hard.
“The students are really
running with the program,” he
said. "I told them if they would
come in here and give their best
effort and be willing to work,
I’d work with them. Nobody
wants to be a failure but they
have to be shown how to deal
with things. There are hurdles
they face that would be tough
for an adult, much less a
teenager.”
Burke unemployment
rate improves to 11.7
By Elizabeth Billips
lizbillips@yahoo.com
Burke County’s job market is showing small
signs of relief.
According to preliminary figures just released
by the Georgia Department of Labor, Burke’s
unemployment rate hovered at 11.7 percent
during the month of August, a 1 percent im
provement from July.
However, Burke continues to fare poorly com
pared to Georgia’s other 159 counties and shared
the state’s 22 nd highest unemployment rate with
Montgomery County.
Although fewer initial unemployment claims
were filed by workers laid off in manufacturing
and administrative/support services, Burke
County’s improvement was only partly due to
new hiring.
According to GDOL Labor Market Analyst
Corey Smith, the labor force here actually shrank
by 162 residents.
While that decline includes a small number of
recent retirees, it also includes employable resi
dents who have either moved away or given up
on their job searches.
In fact, Burke County’s count of employed
residents actually dropped in August from 8,749
to 8,698.
However, Georgia, as a whole, saw a brighter
job market as lay-offs hit their lowest mark since
September 2007.
Labor Commissioner Mark Butler reported
82,300 new jobs were created over the past year
with approximately 3,000 in August alone. State
wide, there were 176,300 long-term unemployed
workers, down 3,600 from July.
BIG PICTURE
u.s.
7.3
Georgia
8.7
CSRA
9.6
Burke
11.7
AMONG NEIGHBORS
Emanuel
12.2
Jefferson
15.8
Jenkins
15.9
Richmond
10.1
Screven
10.8
BURKE BY THE MONTH
May 2012
11.8
June
12.5
July
13.2
August
12.0
September
10.8
October
10.3
November
11.0
December
11.8
January 2013
12.4
February
11.8
March
12.1
April
10.9
May
12.3
June
13.0
July
12.7
August
11.7
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