Newspaper Page Text
VOL. 105, NO. 27, JANUARY 21, 2009
LEGAL ORGAN OF JENKINS COUNTY
MILLEN, GEORGIA • 75 CENTS
REMEMBERING
Dwcm
Local activities celebrating Martin
Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, Jan. 19,
included a parade through the downtown
section of Millen. Additional photos are
on page 3. (Staff photos by Deborah
Bennett)
School attendance shows improvement
By Deborah Bennett
Millen News Editor
Student attendance for the
2007-2008 school term showed
improvement over the previous
year, according to information re
cently released by the Jenkins
County Family Enrichment Cen
ter.
The local school system had
119 truancy referrals and 36 open
truant cases during the 2007-2008
term. Of those. 119 referrals, one
student was recommended for li
cense revocation, per provisions
of Georgia’s Mandatory Educa
tion Statute Code (20-2-690.1)
and Teenage and Adult Driver Re
sponsibility Act (40-5-22). This
compares to 152 truancy referrals
and three license revocations the
previous year.
Georgia’s Compulsory Atten
dance Law states that any parent,
guardian or other person residing
in Georgia who has control or
charge of a child residing in Geor
gia between six and 16 years of
age is required to enroll that child
in school and see to it that they
attend. The Jenkins County Atten
dance Protocol Committee and
Georgia Compulsory Attendance
Law define five unexcused ab
sences from school within a single
year as truancy.
Lawful, or excused absences, as
stated in the Georgia Attendance
Rule and adopted by the Jenkins
County Attendance Protocol
Committee, include the following:
serious illness within the imme
diate family-father, mother,
brother, sister, husband, wife,
child or relative residing perma
nently and continuously in the
student’s home, which necessi
tates the student’s absence from
school (a doctor’s statement is re
quired for verification); personal
illness and when attendance in
school would endanger a student’s
health or the health of others;
death within the immediate fam
ily is the same as stated for seri
ous illness, and to include grand
parents (the principal or school
can verify by personal knowledge
or other verification); special and
recognized religious holidays ob
served by the student’s faith,
which requires an absence; medi
cal or dental appointments that are
verified by an official appointment
card or memo from the doctor;
absences mandated by order of
governmental agencies, mandated
by court order or court subpoena
as a witness; conditions rendering
attendance impossible or hazard
ous to student health or safety;
absence for the purpose of regis
tering to vote or voting, for a pe
riod not to exceed one day; serv
ing as pages in the Georgia Gen
eral Assembly; away from school
while participating in an approved
school-sponsored activity; any
student who gets sick at school
and has to go home (the principal
is authorized to make the final de
termination to the validity of the
illness); and the principal shall
have the authority to dec I arc le
gal absences that arc due to recur
ring, periodic illnesses, which are
supported by a doctor’s statement
describing the nature and fact of
the illness.
Unlawful, or unexcused ab
sences, include: car trouble; over
sleeping; running errands; miss
ing bus; cutting/skipping class;
lack of electricity; lack of trans
portation; and taking care of fam
ily business.
The Jenkins County School sys
tem encourages parents/ guardians
and the community as a whole to
ensure that students get to school
each day and on time, setting an
example to help pave the way to
greater academic heights for all
children the new school year.
County ranks
second in
unemployment
By Deborah Bennett
Millen News Editor
A lack of jobs for local citizens continues to place Jenkins
County at the top of the state’s unemployment chart. Infor
mation provided by the Georgia Department of Labor (GDL),
indicates the county had the second highest rate, 14.8, for
November 2008. Hancock County captured the top spot for
the month with a rate of 20.1.
Approximately 422 persons were unemployed in Novem
ber with initial claims for the month totaling 102. Initial claims
for December 2008 totaled 378. Personnel with the GDL ex
plained that the dramatic increase in claims, 270.6 percent,
was mostly due to current unemployment recipients renew
ing/extending their claims. Renewals and extensions are
counted as “initial” claims by the GDL.
Other counties topping the chart for the month of Novem
ber were: Warren, 13.7; Jeff Davis, 12.8; Cook, 11.4; and
Chattooga, 11.2.
The county’s unemployment rate was unchanged from the
month of October 2008 when approximately 421 persons were
unemployed. The county earned a third place ranking in the
state for the month, behind Hancock with a 16.2 rate and Telfair
at 15.5.
The state’s unemployment rate for November 2007 was 7.5,
and the national rate was 6.5.
The county’s high unemployment rate results from the clos
ing of several plants and lay-offs at others over the past four
years.
On the bright side, officials at the Georgia Department of
Labor Transitional Center in Millen call attention to the fact
that many of the unemployed have elected to continue their
education or to get their General Education Diplomas as they
attempt to re-enter the job market, which translates into a bet
ter trained workforce.
Jenkins County is also a pilot community for the Georgia
Work Ready Program, an initiative comprised of a skills as
sessment and certification for job seekers and a job profiling
system for businesses. The certificate indicates that job appli
cants have the necessary skills to serve as a foundation for
training and that they are willing and able to work and learn.
The county has also earned the “Entrepreneur Friendly”
designation by the Georgia Department of Economic Devel
opment. The designation indicates that community leaders
desire to build a supportive environment not just for major
industries but also for small businesses and entrepreneurs.
Community leaders remain hopeful that their efforts to bring
jobs to Jenkins County will be successful in the future.
Unemployment Rate by Counties
November 2008
JCSD arrests man
on drug charges
Rotema Alexander Watson, 38, of Millen was arrested by
deputies of the Jenkins County Sheriff’s Department on a vari
ety of charges Friday, Jan. 9, following a routine traffic stop.
Deputies Tracey Herrington and Brad
Adams of the sheriff’s department
stopped Watson on U.S. Highway 25
South. After obtaining consent to search
the vehicle, the officers found a small
quantity of cocaine and marijuana as well
as drug-related objects. Deputies
Herrington and Adams were assisted by
Screven County Deputy Ken Kelly and
his K-9.
Watson was charged with seatbelt vio
lation, failure to maintain lane, driving
under the influence of drugs, possession
of cocaine, possession of marijuana and
possession of drug-related objects. He is
currently being held in the Jenkins County Jail awaiting Jenkins
County Superior Court action on the charges.
Watson is also on parole, and a warrant has been issued by
his parole officers in an attempt to have his parole revoked.
ROTEMA
ALEXANDER
WATSON