Newspaper Page Text
VOLUME CVII — NUMBER LI
Dropout Rate Rises
To 7th In Georgia
Number Of Quitters Also Increases
By TOMMY TOLES
Editor
The Chattogga County
school system tied for having
the seventh highest dropout
rate in Georgia durin’g the
1990-1991 school year. That'’s
up from a ranking of 16th dur
ing the Frevious term.
While the number of
dropouts increased by ei§ht,
from 89 in 1989-90 to 97 in
1990-91, the county system'’s
enrollment dropped slightly.
Enrollment, or Full Time
91 Tax Bill Mailing Set
1990 Notices Unlikely Unitil Mid-January
Most Chattooga County
propertK owners were to
receive their 1991 property tax
bills late this week or early
next week. But it m?' be the
middle of January before they
get their final 1990 tax bills.
Hugh Don Hall, Chattooga
County tax commissioner,
received the 1991 bills last
week, as well as conditional
state approval of the county’s
19981°tax digest.
me property owners went
to Hall's of?i‘ér: to palfistheir
1991 taxes before the bills were
to be mailed today, Jan. 2.
Most wanted to claim the taxes
as a deduction on their state
and federal income tax returns,
so they paid them before the
tax commissioner’s office clos
ed Tuesday, Dec. 31.
Taxes, Landyfill Top News In Last Half Of Year
Following is a review of the final six months of 1991
in Chattooga County, as compiled by The Summerville
News:
JULY
* The Summerville News provides full advance coverage
of the Old Timer’s Festival, includinfi the stories of Jim
Ed Cavin and Frances Holt, two World War II veterans.
A two-part series on how Marine Corps CWQ4 Steve Ayers
won the Bronze Star in Desert Storm also started.
* Teacher aides met with three members of the Chat
tooga school board to ask for changes in the recently
adoyted iay scale. They said it was unfair.
Work was pushed on the Rocky Mountain Project
south of Summerville.
* Chattooga Commissioner Jim Parker was studyin%la
gossible regional recycling landfill operation which might
e located in Walker County.
* Repair was under way on Penn Bridge Road.
* Some $2,200 in cash stolen from a Pennville woman
was recovered by the sheriff’'s office. A relative was
susgected in the theft.
It :gpeared that 1990 tax assessment notices would
be mailed in July.
* The Trion school board E)ostponed a decision on nam
ing an assistant principal at Trion High. It also hired a
teacher after refusing at a previous board meeting to hire
other teachers for the same post.
* Donald Wojek, engineer for the Town of Trion, said
he may have found the culprit chemical that had caused
most of the town’s wastewater treatment plant woes.
* An old easement on Summerville Industrial Park pro
pfirty was causing problems in locating a new industry on
the site.
* Larry Henson was installed as the new president of
the Summerville-Trion Rotary Club.
* Three ieople were arrested on drug charges by Sum
mgrev:'l.lle police. Suspected cocaine and marijuana was
seized.
* Summerville received a SIO,OOO grant to go toward
the cost of the Smallen Road water project. It was announc
ed by Gov. Zell Miller.
* The Resolution Trust Corp. sued WSAF radio, its
owllixers, and its insurer, over the proceeds of a fire insurance
policy.
* Bill Baisley was lpromot,ed to domestic sales manager
for Peterson Farms Inc.
* Rep. Tim Perry came up with a plan that would allow
Council Meeting
..See Page 3-4
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Equivalent (FTE) numbers,
dipped by 39 pugils, from 2,976
in 1989-90 to 2,937 in 1990-91.
The dropout rate increased
by a full percentage point, from
8.8 percent in grades eight
through 12 in 1989-90, to 9.8
percent in 1990-91. That’s ac
cording to statistics compiled
léy the Georgia Department of
ducation.
-HIGHEST LOCALLY
Chattooga County’s rate
was the highest in 11 Nor
thwest Georfiia school
systems. Only the Rome city
system, with a dropout rate of
9.1 percent, came close to the
Chattooga rate.
Hall said the tax bills for
1991 had to be sorted and the
bills of property owners with
g:ndinfi afipeals removed
fore the others could be mail
ed this week.
CONDITIONAL
The letter of conditional ap
g:-oval of the 1991 county tax
igest was received this past
Thursday, Dec. 26, Hall said. It
came from Marcus Collins,
commissioner of the Georgia
Department of Revenue, which
checks each digest for com
pliance with state regulations.
Although the county may
collect taxes on the 1991
digest, several problems with
the digest must be corrected
before the 1992 digest is sub
mitted, Hall said.
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEORGIA — THURSDAY, JANUARY 2, 1992
Meanwhile, the rate for the
Trion town school system fell
slightly, from 2.0 percent in
1989-90 to 1.9 percent in
1990-91 in grades eight
through 12.
While FTE figures dipped
from 1989-90 to 1990-91 in the
county school system, the
Trion town system gained
students durinl_gr that same
geriod. Trion’s FTE increased
y 139 students, from 1,017 in
1989-90 to 1,156 in 1990-91, ac
cording to state figures.
The county system’s
overall dropout rate from
kindergarten through the 12th
grade was 3.3 percent in
1990-91, up from 3.0 percent in
Deficiencies were found in
the agricultural, commercial,
industrial and residential dpro
perty classes, Collins said.
“The average assessment
variance of individual
assessments as measured by
the coefficient of disg)ersion of
the sample is 32.79 per
cent . .." the revenue depart
ment reported, when it should
have been no more than 25 per
cent in the agricultural, com
mercial and industrial classes,
and 20 percent in the residen
tial class.
In simple language, that
means too man[\]'.l parcels were
assessed too high and too
many were assessed too low,
according to Roger Jones, an
appraiser with the Chattooga
see TAX BILL, page 13-A
Chattoo(fa County to remain in one state house district.
It would squeeze Floyd County between Chattooga and
Floyd counties.
* Eight people were arrested by local and state
authorities after an undercover drug investigation.
* Hundreds watched a gatriotic parade and ceremony
and numerous ball games during the seventh annual Old
Timer’s. Festival.
* A bomb was found in a cell at the county jail. A
prisoner was a suspect.
* Chattooga tax officials said 1990 tax assessment
notices were to go in the mail in mid—Julg'.
* A retail-industrial trade show was set for Sept. 21-22
in Summerville by the Chattooga Chamber of Commerce.
* Steve %yers gave an account of the invasion of Iraq
and Kuwait during the second and final part of a two-part
series in The Summerville News.
* The Chattooga school board approved the 1991-92
budget although the final amount wasn’t known immediate
lly due to changes :Pproved by the Yanel at the last minute.
t also okayed an alternative school plan to help reduce the
drogout rate.
A worm and ant were allegedly spotted in inmate
meals at the county jail.
* Twenty-two drivers were charged with driving drunk
gurmg the Independence Day holidays in Chattooga
ounty.
* Summerville moved toward a water expansion to the
Alabama state line. The town also agreed to study a pro
gosed towing ordinance and said the recreation department
udget may be cut.
* Commissioner Parker caught heat from a group of ac
tivists at a hearinlg originally intended to discuss a propos
ed economic development grant to the city. They were wor
ried that private waste management companies were eye
ing Chattooga County for a landfill into which out-of-county
garboige would be hauled.
* Parker also caught flak from the group about the pro
posed grant.
* Roy Parrish Jr., Walker County’s sole commissioner,
said Chattooga County wasn’t targeted for a private land
fill by developers.
* %Vork progrmeed on the two boot camps and a fire sta
tion at Hays Correctional Institution.
* The Trion Town Council reviewed a proposed 1991-92
budget that called for $1.7 million more in revenue and $1.2
million more in expenses. Mayor Hoyt Williams said the
increases resulted from higher summer natural gas sales
Safe Appeals Ruling
--See Page 9-A
it 1991 By Espy Publishing Co., Inc. — All Rights Reserved
1989-90. The Trion system’s
K-12 rate remained the same at
0.7 é)ercent.
tatewide, the dropout rate
fell from 5.5 percent in grades
8 through 12 in 1989-90 to 5.1
percent in 1990-91. In K-12, the
rate fell from 2.0 percent to 1.8
percent.
UNFAMILIAR
Don Hayes, Chattooga
County school superintendent,
had not seen the statistics com
?iled by the state and was un
amiliar with the figures.
“I really don’t know why it
went up,” he said. “I really
haven'’t seen the figures.”
He was informed that more
than half the dropouts — 54 —
occurred in the ninth grade in
1990-91. That figure included
36 boys and 18 girls.
I hope the Delta program
will help eliminate some of
that,” S‘:lperintendent Hayes
said. “We want to encourage
them (eighth graders
graduating into the ninth
grade) and to show them that
there are some opportunities
for them.
DELTA PROGRAM
The Delta program, which
started this year, is designed to
help fiet selected students who
enroll in the ninth grade at
Chattooga High School back
‘“‘on track” for graduation,
Hayes explained.
The county system has
tried a number of programs to
reduce its dropout problem
during the past several years,
with varymfil success. The
dropout rate dipped from 11.9
percent during a two-year
period from 1985 through
1987, to 9.4 percent in 1987-88.
But it shot back g&to 10.3 Ber
cent in 1988-89. Then it fell to
see RATE RISES, page 11-A
YEAREND REVIEVW FOR 1991
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SMOKE ENGULFS CITY FIREMAN
Backdraft Boils From Roof
Fires Rage During Yule Holidays
Firemen in Chatt;oo%a
County battled a rash of holi
day fires, including one that
destroyed a residence and
another that heavily damaged
a house being used for storage
pur’?oses.
he home of Jeffery Dot
son, Highway 100, was
destroyed by fire on Dec. 26,
according to the Summerville
Fire D?artment. Firefighters
responded to the blaze at 1:38
p.-m. and were on duty until 5
p.m.
Members of the Holland
to Mount Vernon Mills.
* Lewis Strange, a local activist, was sued by a Sum
merville businessman for an alleged comment made on
radio station WGTA's Feedback program.
* A Trion couple and their son sued a Summerville man
for $450,000 in connection with a 1990 accident in Alabama.
* The Trion Board of Education took no action on a re
quest from a parent that it disciFline a teacher who had
allegedly sent the parent’s child home from a dance
unescorted.
* A 17-year-old escapee leaped into the arms of Sheriff
e owaW W oW
Top 10 Stori
Following are the top 10 news stories in Chattooga
County during 1991, as selected by The Summerville News.
1, %he pro%lems and delays associated with completin
a massive county-wide property re-evaluation program ang
completing the 1990 and 1991 tax diglests.
2. Chattooga County's continuing difficulties in trying
go clfi)se the existing landfill and attempting to open a new
acility.
3. K’lount Vernon Mills Inc. announcing a $63 million
expansion project at Trion, and reporting that it will hire
some 60 more people, and may hire up to 400 more workers
in late 1992.
4. Longtime Sheriff Gary McConnell resigns, and Ralph
Kellett being elected to serve his unexpired term.
o 5. Chattooga County’s Memorial Home burning on Jan.
6. Tim Brown being tried and convicted of the double
slaKling of his estranged wife and an Alpine man in front
of Menlo City Hall in 1990.
7. The U. S. war with Iraq and its effects on almost
every Chattooga Countian.
8. The Georgia Department of Corrections announcin,
that it would build two boot camps at Hays Correctiona%
Institution, Pennville.
9. WSAF-AM radio burns on Jan. 2.
10. Chattooga County’s school dropout rate falls from
%gglpercent to 8.8 percent in 1989-90, as announced in early
Volunteer Fire Department
helped fight the blaze.
The fire rekindled at 12:24
a.m. Friday and Summerville
firemen were on duty until 1:48
a.m. knocking down the blaze,
reports indicated.
A huge cloud of thick black
smoke from the fire could be
seen for several miles. Firemen
said they were hampered in ex
tinguishing the blaze because
of a double ceiling.
The building was owned b
Gail Dotson, reports indicate(i
Shooting Probed
--See Page 13-A
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FIREMAN LEAPS TO GROUND
After Backdraft Of Smoke, Fire
Meanwhile, a house owned
by Howard Pollard was heavi-
R' damaged in a fire early Fri
ay, Summerville firemen said.
The house, located off
Highway 114, was used
primarily for storage, firemen
said. Extensive damage was
reported to the rear of the
building and smoke and water
damage to the rest of the
house.
Summerville firemen were
on duty from 5:58 until 7:42
a.m. They were assisted by the
Lyerly Volunteer Fire
Rali)h Kellett from the roof of Kellett’s office.
A report of a %lane crash on Taylors Ridfiia near Trion
turned out to be the sighting of an optical illusion. :
* Tax assessment notices were not mailed as planned
since the Chattooga Board of Tax Assessors had questions
for the private firm that was conducting a massive tax
reevaluation program.
* No leads were reported in the probe of a bomb found
at the county jail, Sheriff Kellett said.
* No leads were reported in a state probe of five firearms
missing from the Chattooga sheriff's office in June.
* Elementary school students seemed to be enjoying a
summer school program, which included a Newspapers In
Education component that used The Summervine News.
* The Au%xst term grand jury list was announced.
* Several Chattooga Countians were employed at the
Rocky Mountain Project in Floyd County, the Summerville-
Trion Rotary Club was told.
* The Rev. Jonathan C. Wallace was named pastor of
Summerville Presbyterian Church, West Washington
Avenue.
* Chattooga's jobless rate for May increased to 8.9 per
cent from 7.8 percent in April, the Georgia Department of
Labor said.
* The News reported that Sheriff Ralph Kellett had en
couraged a deputy to drop chardges against two Menlo men
after a June 30 incident at a dance hall. The sheriff said
the deputy shouldn’t have arrested the people who called
the sheriff’s office for help. A Dalton detective also said
he was beaten at the esta%lishment.
* An operating deficit of $161,574 was recorded by
Chattooga County in 1990, according to the annual coun
ty audit. Commissioner Jim Parker blamed lower than
estimated revenues and high jail costs.
* Floyd County Rep. Paul Smith said Chattooga Rep.
Tim Perry had not yet succeeded in squeezing Floyd Coun
ty out of one reflresentative. Smith spoke to the
Summerville-Trion Rotary Club.
*Oak View Nursing Home and Chattooga County
Hospital posted a small profit in June, the hospital authori
= Y“w;:etol% P d h uld d
. Tim Perry said he would return a day’s pay
volum:agil to the state treasury after Gov. Zelr Mfil‘er
ordered aJlstateemglo ecs on oné day per month furloughs *
due to the state’s uti'get pinch.
* A Chattooga County canoe rental owner and the
Georgia Canoeing Association filed an appeal with the
see TAXES, LANDFILL, page 6-A
STILL
ONLY
25¢
Department.
The state fire marshal’s of
fice and the Chattooga
Sheriff’s Office were probiné
the cause of the fire. Deps. Je
Keen and Tony Cobb of the
sheriff’s office responded to the
blaze.
ASHES
A fire at the home of Susie
Ray, Summerville Rte. 5, was
out on arrival Dec. 20, reports
indicated. A neighbor dumped
out ashes, which caught grass
see FIRES RAGE, page 8-A