About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 2020)
SCOn ROGERS I The Times Students at Early College kill time between classes Friday, Feb. 14, in the break room. Georgia’s Senate recently passed a bill that caps the number of college courses paid by the state. Gainesville, Hall schools react to dual enrollment cap BY KELSEY PODO kpodo@gainesvilletimes.com As each year passes, more and more Gainesville and Hall County students seize the opportunity to take college courses in high school. If House Bill 444 is signed into law in its current form, the amount of free credit hours would be capped at 30, and would limit the program to high school seniors and juniors with little exceptions. Students wanting more than 30 col lege credit hours can still take courses approved by the state, if they pay for it themselves. The bill was passed by the Senate on Jan. 28 with a 34-18 vote, and moved to the House for more debate. Gainesville High School has 261 stu dents in dual enrollment this year, and Hall has 838 dual enrollment students in its high schools. Laurie Ecke, Hall’s assistant director of innovative and advanced programs, said on average, dual enrollment stu dents in the Hall school system take six to 12 hours a year of college credit. She said ninth graders typically take up to six hours of credit, and juniors and seniors can take up to 20-30 hours. Wendy Savitz, who oversees dual enrollment at Gainesville High, said the average number of credit hours for Gainesville students ranges from nine to 15 hours. “Last year, 40 hours was the maximum hours earned by a single student earned with a total of six students earning more than 30 hours,” Savitz said. “I do not anticipate that changing dramatically this year.” In Hall, high school students can earn college credits at Lanier College and Career Academy and Howard E. Ivester Early College. Both Gainesville and Hall students also have the option of receiving credits from courses at the University of North Georgia, Brenau University and Lanier Technical College. Although some changes would come to schools offering dual enrollment in Gainesville and Hall, Ecke said she’s grateful that the current dual enrollment students would be grandfathered into the bill. Students who have taken dual enroll ment classes before June 30,2020, would not be subject to the 30 credit hour limit. Ecke said because of the pending bill, Hall has had to put its dual enrollment applications for next year on hold. ■ Please see BILL, 5A Woman faces charge she took $215K from disabled man BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com A Talmo woman allegedly took $215,000 from a disabled man, putting some into her own account, according to authorities. The 54-year-old man first made a report to the Hall County Sheriff’s Office Jan. 28. Sheriff’s Office spokesman Derreck Booth said Stephanie Elaine Moon, 48, allegedly exploited the man between Feb. 19, 2019, and Feb. 6 of this year. Moon is accused of taking “approximately $215,000 from him for her own benefit,” Booth wrote in a news release. ■ Please see MOON, 5A GDOT looks to replace bridge at Dawson line BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com A 64-year-old bridge at the Hall-Dawson County line is being eyed for replacement, with the state describing the structure as “function ally obsolete due to the narrow deck width.” A recent Georgia Department of Transporta tion environmental report about the bridge on Price Road/Ga. 136 says the deck has “severe cracking and (areas) with exposed rebar.” Also, “the bridge is classified as having an unknown foundation and therefore could be at risk for scour,” or sediment erosion around the base of the bridge. “Replacement of this bridge is recom mended,” the report says. “Once we have environmental approval, we will begin purchasing right of way, includ ing obtaining permits from (the Army Corps of Engineers),” district spokeswoman Katie Strickland said in a recent email. ■ Please see BRIDGE, 7A Two-day symposium will teach you how to ‘disrupt aging’ BY MEGAN REED mreed@gainesvilletimes.com A two-day symposium in March will inform about “disrupting aging” and focus on several aspects of wellness important for aging well. The March 6-7 event at the University of North Georgia’s Gainesville campus will feature two keynote speakers, Harry “Rick” Moody and Debra Tyler-Horton. Moody is retired as the vice president for academic affairs with the AARP and will speak about creativity through outlets such as art or dance. Tyler-Horton, state director for AARP Georgia, will speak about “living your best life at every age.” Wisdom Project 2030, the University of Disrupt Aging Symposium What: Learn about healthy aging and community involvement opportunities for seniors When: Friday and Saturday, March 6-7 Where: University of North Georgia Gainesville campus, 3820 Mundy Mill Road, Oakwood Fee: $75 Register: 678-717-3605 or wisdomproject2030.org North Georgia Center for Healthy Aging and the Georgia Division of Aging Services will host the symposium in partnership with the Georgia Gerontology Society, Brenau Univer sity Center for Productive Living, and Brenau University Learning and Leisure Institute. The event has been planned for over a year, event coordinator and Wisdom 2030 vice president Sandra Williams said. The groups involved decided to host a sym posium on healthy aging as Hall County sees its population age and deal with aging-related illnesses such as dementia, Williams said. “We do believe that if a person remains active and engaged in the community and has a social network, that they would be able to age well and maintain their abilities,” Wil liams said. “We thought it was important that we bring in experts to talk about spiri tual awareness and just overall maintaining health.” People attending the symposium can choose from 15 workshops, with topics rang ing from the benefits of music to nursing home alternatives, elder abuse and demen tia. Presenters include the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and The Green House Project, a Maryland-based group that partners with senior living communities to help people with dementia. There will also be some fitness sessions, including yoga, tai chi and tango dancing. Wisdom Project 2030 is a group of people 55 and over who have completed the program offered through the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce’s Vision 2030 initiative. The group uses the skills and expertise the members ■ Please see AGING, 5A INSIDE 0 40901 06835 Advice 5B Business 3B Calendar 2A Classified 7B Comics 6B Life 4B Lottery 2A Opinion 4A Sports 1B TV/puzzles 5B WEATHER 2A Lake Lanier level: 1,076.20 feet Full pool 1,071. Up 0.59 feet in 24 hours DEATHS 6A Glenda Blackstock, 77 Joy Brooks, 51 Franklin Heddings, 83 Jean Kennedy, 87 Hiteshkumar I. Patel, 52 Paul Sutton, 66 James Shirley, 96 Regular $149.99-$159.99 One Week Only $129.99 Safety Toe and Soft Toe Boot of the Week Now Open in Gainesville 1110 Dawsonville Hwy 678.971.4143
