About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 30, 2018)
OUR REGION Shannon Casas Editor in Chief | 770-718-3417 | news@gainesvilletimes.com She Strnes gainesvilletimes com Sunday, December 30, 2018 Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Jessica Kleinhardt and daughter, Addysun Turner, 3, visit the fountain at Brenau University Tuesday Dec. 18. Kleinhardt just received her GED this year from Goodwill program and is enrolling in online courses at Brenau. Less than half of GED recipients go on to pursue post-secondary (college or university or trade school) education. ‘It’s never too late’ to get GED Hall County mom beats odds to attend Brenau University JOSHUA SILAVENT jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com Less than half of individuals who pass the General Education Development test, or GED, a high school diploma equivalency pro gram, go on to attend college or university. Jessica Kleinhardt, 39, a Hall County resident and mother, fig ured she’d be on the lesser side of that divide. In fact, she considered getting a GED pointless — at one point in time. “To me, it was like, ‘Why waste time’”? she said. According to the GED Testing Service, which harvested data from the National Student Clear inghouse, just 45 percent of GED earners enrolled in a college cer tificate or degree program within three years. And only one-third enrolled in post-secondary education. When Kleinhardt began to study in a GED test preparation course, her instructor, Angela Middleton, knew she’d found a perfect pupil. Middleton is a former Hall County educator and coach who teaches GED prep classes at the Goodwill Career Center in Oakwood. She said Kleinhardt’s attitude quickly changed. Kleinhardt agreed. “Once I got into the classes, Angela pushed me,” she said. “I found this new drive.” There are many GED prep pro grams across Hall County. ■ Please see GED, 3C Jessica Kleinhardt and daughter, Addysun Turner, visit the fountain at Brenau University. ‘People deserve a second chance’ Collins lauds work of old-school’ legislating to get justice bill signed BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, R-Gainesville said when looking at criminal justice reform it came down to good steward ship of our taxpayer dollars as well as a valuation of peo ple who may need a shot at redemption. Collins sponsored H.R. 5682, a form of the “FIRST STEP Act” focusing on recidivism-reducing pro grams for federal offenders that would ultimately pass as a combination of legislation. The bill was signed by President Donald Trump on Dec. 21. “People deserve a second chance. If they meet certain criteria, they pay their debt to society, then I think we owe a chance as well to give them a second chance at life, a second chance to rejoin their family and to rejoin society,” he said. Evidence-based recidivism reduction pro gram was defined as a number of options, including family relationship building and parenting skills, academic classes, mentor ing, substance abuse treatment, vocational training, civic engagement and reintegrative community services and trauma counseling. ■ Please see COLLINS, 3C Collins All county roads reopened after Friday flooding All roads have reopened in Hall County fol lowing heavy rain and subsequent flooding Friday. Several roads in the area of West Fork Little River were closed Friday due to water over the roadways. Cagle Mill Road and Jim Hood Road both reopened Friday afternoon while Belton Bridge Road and Conner Drive reopened early Saturday, according to a release from Hall County Public Information Officer Katie Crumley. “Smaller streams reached their peaks ear lier in the day, and larger streams continued to rise later in the afternoon, which meant we were constantly having to re-evaluate the conditions of area roadways,” said Hall County Engineer Kevin Mclnturff. Matt Tarver, Gainesville’s deputy director of public works, said Friday that no roads in the city closed due to flooding, but crews did clear drains. Releases from Buford Dam have been reduced to control flooding conditions downstream of Lake Lanier, according to James Hathorn Jr. of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. As of 9:15 p.m. Friday, the water level at Lake Lanier was 1,072.77, which is 1.77 feet above full pool. Compiled from Hall County press release. Kamili Krew offers young girls dose of empowerment BY KELSEY RICHARDSON krichardson@gainesvilletimes.com Once a girl becomes a member of Kamili Krew her life changes instantly. The organization first met in Octo ber 2018 at Fair Street International Academy in Gainesville after a group of teachers noticed the challenges facing their female students. “We wanted to give them that supplemental support that you don’t always get in the instructional day,” Kerry-Ann Holmes, one of Kamili Krew’s directors said. “We provide support with emotional skills, mental skills and also their overall interac tion with their peers.” Holmes said the after-school pro gram meets every other Thursday to encourage girls on a journey of per sonal growth and improvement. The program in Gainesville was inspired by an older Kamili Krew group she noticed at a different school. The name Kamili in Swahili means perfect self. The group proudly wears the colors pink and black as a symbol of their comradery. “Pink and black is bold and when the girls see it they get empowered and excited,” Holmes said. Currently the Kamili Krew at Fair Street has 26 active members. All of the teachers at Fair Street Interna tional recommended three girls per classroom to become a part of the program. Holmes said the teachers identify their students’ specific needs, so the directors know which direction to take with the girls. Those chosen come into the program not knowing the process behind their selection. During the first 15 minutes of the after-school program, the Kamili Krew girls work on their homework and receive snacks. The directors then will lead an hour-long session that focuses on a certain topic. Holmes said sach lesson incorpo rates fun peer-bonding activities. One of the most recent sessions involved acting out conflict resolu tion strategies. Separated by grade, each group was presented with a sce nario that would relate to their cur rent challenges. ■ Please see KREW, 6C From left, fifth-graders Jacee Dukes and Eyly Turcios decorate cookies during a Kamili Krew session at Fair Street International on Thursday, Dec. 13.
