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FOR MORE SNOW STORM PICTURES ... See pages 12-13A

Snow Storm 2014Above, Gemma DiCristina and Amanda Burns sled down Wiltshire Drive in Avondale Estates after a snow storm, the second of the season, hit metro Atlanta Feb. 12. Because state andounty officials declared states of emergency before the February storm hit, most residents were in their homes when the ice and snow began. Below left, Will Laughter sledding inAvondale Estates. Photos by David DiCristina. See story on page 15A.

SPORTS, 23A

Business ........................19A

Classified .......................20A

Education .....................18A

Sports......................21-24A

QUICK FINDER DEKALB SCHOOLSUPERINTENDENT WANTS

TO FINISH STRONG

COUNTY HOLDS

VARSITY BASKETBALL

TOURNEY

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CELEBRATES NEW

AMERICANS

LOCAL, 14ALOCAL, 9A

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Were SocialFRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 VOL. 16, NO. 48 FREE

A PUBLICATION OF ACE III COMMUNICATIONS Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker and Stone Mountain.

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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 2ALOCAL NEWS

County school

district pondersflexibility options

Online studentLindsay Littleenrolled inan accountingclass whilestudying abroad.

Step up

the pace.

Be Fearless.

Are you juggling work and family and just need one class to

graduate? Maybe you want to start college by taking just an

art or history class? In any case, GPC offers eight-week spring

courses on campus and online to fit your busy schedule. Second-

half registration is now open for classes starting March 19.

Registration must be completed by February 21.

gpc.edu/secondhalf

. :

y Andrew [email protected]

he DeKalb Countychool District has to decide

what kind o district it wantso be.

School districts canhoose rom three major op-ions, including a Investingn Educational ExcellenceIEE) system, charter systemnd the status quo option,ccording to Trenton Ar-

nold, Region III superinten-dent or DeKalb schools.

All school districts in thetate is being required by thetate legislature to notiyhe Department o Educa-ion no later than June 30,015, o their intention toeek waivers rom state lawsnd department o educa-ion regulations or to not

eek any waivers, Arnoldaid.Schools are allowed to

waive various education re-quirements as long as theyreceive permission rom thestate government.

What that basicallymeans in a nutshell is thatdistricts have the lexibilityto remove any regulations,policies or laws associatedwith educationno allo them but almost all othemin the state o Geor-gia i they select the lexibil-ity options that are availableor they can choose not totake any waivers whatsoeverand ater June 30, 2015,not waivers will be givenwhatsoever except in caseso natural disaster, Arnoldsaid.

he status quo optionis basically a district say-ing were no longer going toseek any waivers ater June

30, 2015, Arnold said.Many Georgia schooldistricts, including the

REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE REDUCE

REUSE RECYCLE REDUCE See School on page 3A

All of DeKalbs students could one day be in schools governed like Drewharter. File photo

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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 3A

School Continued From Page 2A

NoticeofPublicHearingTheMayorandCityCounciloftheCityofChamblee,Georgiawillholdapublichearingat6:00p.m.on

Thursday,March13,2014attheChambleeCivicCenter,3540BroadStreet,Chamblee,GA30341to

receivepubliccommentsregardingthefollowingmatters:

1) TextamendmenttothefollowingportionsofAppendixA, ZoningOrdinance: Section301. Definitions; Section601. AccessoryUses;and ArticleVI.GeneralUseProvisionstoaddanewSection623. SolarEnergySystems,

PrincipalUse;and

Section1002.PermittedUses.ThepurposesoftheseamendmentsaretoprovidefordefinitionsofSolarEnergySystemsand

relatedterms;topermittheuseSolarEnergySystems,PrincipalUseintheIndustrialTransitional

(IT)andLightIndustrial(I)ZoningDistricts;topermittheuseSolarEnergySystems,AccessoryUse

inallzoningdistricts;toprovidegeneralusestandardsforSolarEnergySystems;andforother

relatedpurposes.

2) MikeVanWie,ExecutiveDirectoroftheDeKalbPeachtreeAirportAuthorityrequestsarezoningofpropertieswiththefollowingaddressescomprisingatotalofapproximately14acresfromVillage

Commercial(VC)toIndustrialTransitional(IT)forthepurposeofusingthesubjectpropertyfora

SolarEnergySystemandrequestsavariancefromAppendixC,AirportRelatedProvisions,Section

100.025.1toallowforpermanentstructurestobeerectedintheRunwayProtectionZone:

3374BEVERLYDRIVE,3382BEVERLYDRIVE,3386BEVERLYDRIVE,3392BEVERLYDRIVE,3398

BEVERLYDRIVE,3404BEVERLYDRIVE,3410BEVERLYDRIVE,3416BEVERLYDRIVE,3422BEVERLY

DRIVE,3428BEVERLYDRIVE(SeeNote1),3373BEVERLYDRIVE,3381BEVERLYDRIVE,3385BEVERLY

DRIVE,3391BEVERLYDRIVE,3403BEVERLYDRIVE,3409BEVERLYDRIVE,3415BEVERLYDRIVE,3421

BEVERLYDRIVE,

3427

BEVERLY

DRIVE

(See

Note

1),

3374

REEVES

STREET,

3382

REEVES

STREET,

3386

REEVESSTREET,3392REEVESSTREET,3402REEVESSTREET,3408REEVESSTREET,3414REEVES

STREET,3420REEVESSTREET(SeeNote1),3428REEVESSTREET(SeeNote1),3373REEVESSTREET,

3381REEVESSTREET,3385REEVESSTREET,3391REEVESSTREET,3413REEVESSTREET(SeeNote1),

3419REEVESSTREET(SeeNote1),2354LUJANDRIVE,2360LUJANDRIVE,2366LUJANDRIVE,

3374CUMBERLANDDRIVE,3380CUMBERLANDDRIVE,3386CUMBERLANDDRIVE,3392

CUMBERLANDDRIVE,

Note(1) fortheseaddresses,therezoningincludesonlythatportionoftheparcelcontainedin

theRunwayProtectionZoneasdefinedontheOfficialZoningMapoftheCityofChamblee.

DeKalb County School Dis-rict, request many waiversor many reasons such as orlass size, Arnold said.

hose class size waiverswould no longer be allowed

nd any class sizes abovewhatever the state require-ment is would no longer beunded as they are now, heaid.

Currently there are threeEE districts in Georgia:

Gwinnett, Forsyth andRabun counties.

Whats unique aboutEE is that the districts mustelect their waiversex-ctly which laws and poli-ies theyre going to request

waivers rom, Arnold said.Charter districts are grantedmuch more lexibility.

I a district requests tobe a charter district, theDepartment o Educationlready understands thathe district is going to be re-

questing lexibility rom anyo the laws that are availableo be waived, Arnold said.

You cant waive every-hing, he said. You cant

waive the U.S. Constitu-ion. You cant waive [theequirement or] a moment

o silent relection. Youant waive the requiremento remove asbestos rom

buildings. here are cer-ain things that you cannotwaive, but the list o thingsyou cannot waive is muchhorter than the list o what

you can waive.he charter system op-

ion does not ocus as muchon the waivers as it doesthe requirement that as

much autonomy, as much

control as possible be passedto the local school level.hat is one o the key di-erences between IEE andcharters, Arnold said.

IEE districts do not have

to hand o any local con-trol. hey can have a verystrong central governingsystem, he said.

Charter petitions thatare granted by districts thepetitioners usually ocusmore on what local schoolgovernance is going to looklike and how much au-tonomy is being granted tolocal schools and how thatdecision-making authoritylooks, Arnold said. Withcharters, its already under-stood youre getting broadlexibility.

he school districtormed a lexibility advisorycommittee to review thelexibility options.

he 46-member com-mittee, composed o teach-ers, parents, communitymembers, a school boardmember, central oice staand parent council leaders,have been reviewing all thisinormation and preparingan executive summary.

he summary is dueto school SuperintendentMike Thurmondby Feb.

28. hurmond will thenmake a recommendation tothe school board by April14. he school district isrequired to submit a let-ter o intent to the stateschool board by May 1. Alldocuments related to thedistricts choice due by Nov.1 to the state school board.he school district is aim-

ing to be operating under itsschool lexibility choice bythe 2015-16 academic year.

he district is veryexcited about this opportu-nity, Arnold said.

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ONE MANS OPINION

A cautionary cablegram

I was in cable before cable wasool.entrepreneur, innovator and

cable television magnate and CNN-ounderTed Turner.

I you havent heard the story,cable television actually got its startas a neighborly gesture by the ownero a arm in Maple Dale, Penn. hearmer, who had good television re-

ception, placed a large television an-enna atop a high hillside, and then

an co-axial cable, irst down to hisown home and arm in the valleyand as the word spread, he startedplitting that cable signal to other

neighbors in the valley, carryingprogramming rom Philadelphia.

his idea and cable use spreadapidly, and a ew decades later, a

division o Hughes Corporationas in Howard), tried skipping the

cable by beaming the program upo a satellite in space, and bouncinghat back to smaller northeastern

elevation acing satellite dishesandDirectV and later Dish Networkwere born.

And while the Internet movedout o the halls and walls o aca-demia and into the mainstream,urner and several hundred cablecontent providers were ighting tobe your preerred viewing channels,while initially hundreds o cableystem providers delivered that last

mile o connectivity.During the decades that ollowed,

he industry heavily consolidated,and though regional players remain,he cable/home entertainment spaces largely divided among seven key

playersthree in cable, two on sat-ellite and two expanding out o theandline and mobile phone arenas.

And as o last week, No. 2 incable households, ime WarnerCable (11.4 million subscribers),announced its $45 billion acquisi-ion by Comcast, the industry leader

with 21.7 customers. Jilted and still

No. 3 is Charter Cable. he twodish networks combined have 35million households, with DirecVas the long dominant player (20.2

million households). Fast movingup the ranks at the rear are A&and Verizon with their U-Verseand similar oerings, bundled withother existing communicationservices. A& is perhaps play-ing most aggressively, oering newtwo-year subscribers a rate o $19.95per month or internet and somelimited entertainment options.

Due to owning several pieces oproperty, and having need or highspeed internet and television atmy oice locations, I am a currentsubscriber at one or more locationsto A& U-verse, Charter Cable,Comcast Cable and DirecV. But

regardless o which provider, thereis one area o perormance that theyall seemed to uniquely share andthat only seems to get worse by theyear.

heir back oice operations, andremotely treating existing custom-ers hal as well as new customersappears to be the only standardand accepted marketing platormand business practice in the indus-try. Any longtime business ownerwill tell youjust askthe easi-

est customer to sell is an existingcustomer. he simplest businessrelationship to grow is with a happyexistingcustomer.

here will always be a percent-age o consumers who buy solely onprice, and who will go through theheadaches o jumping and switchingwhenever the opportunity is pre-sented or a ree $100 rebate, or tem-porarily reduced price bundled ser-

vices package. But there are also lit-erally millions o Americans, willingand able to pay a reasonable price,or a solid product, well-servicedwith a responsive call center. Just askcustomers o the old BellSouth orany o many companies no longerin existence who understood andappreciated the need or a trainedworkorce to support customers a-

ter the sale.When any industry consolidates

to a handul o major players, typi-cally consumers are among the irstto suer. Less competition is usuallyollowed by higher prices. A $45-bil-lion acquisition will require a lot onew customers and earnings to paydown and absorb.

Interestingly, just as the tele-phone replaced the telegraph, emailreplaced the ax and the Internet hasa new platorm almost every day, the

astest growing home entertainmentproviders are not actually hard-wired to your home. Netlix, Hulu,Vudu, Roku, Crackle, Youube and

others presenting lower and/or nomonthly ee programming, with andwithout advertisers embedded inthe content. he champagne corksmay be popping at Comcast HQ thisweek, but i cable prices head higheras a result, the sound you maysoon hear is the snip o consumersclipping their cable landline, andincreasingly seeking ree Wi-Fi net-works nearby or their internet andhome entertainment options.

ed, where are you when we needyou buddy? Any chance we canbring you back? Which reminds meo another o my avorite quotes byed urner, Lead, ollow or get out

o the way.

Bill Crane also serves as a politicalanalyst and commentator for Channel2s Action News, WSB-AM News/Talk750 and now 95.5 FM, as well as acolumnist forThe Champion, Cham-pion Free Press andGeorgia Trend.Crane is a DeKalb native and businessowner, living in Scottdale. You canreach him or comment on a column [email protected].

THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 4AOPINION

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During his iconic I Have ADream speech, Martin LutherKing Jr. evoked hope or a daywhen my our little children will beudged not by the color o their skin,

but by the content o their charac-er.

Now as Dr. Kings surviving off-spring battle over whether his Bibleand his Nobel Peace Prize should besold to the highest bidder, many areef to wonder about the content oheir character.

Bernice King, Kings surviving

daughter, is embroiled in a legal bat-le with her brothers Dexter Kingand Martin Luther King III, whowant to sell the Bible and the peace

prize. Bernice King has possessiono both.

I am appalled. I cannot imag-ine that any o Dr. Kings childrenwould think so little o items thatspeak so directly to who Dr. King

was as to be eager to convert themto cash. And its not as i any o themare strapped or cash. In 2006theyear o their mothers deaththeKing children arranged or Sothebysto auction off 10,000 documents re-lated to Dr. Kings lie and his workor $32 million, with the siblings re-ceiving equal shares o the money.

Under the circumstances its di-ficult to imagine how the King sonscould be motivated by anything butgreed. Te ironies here are almosttoo glaring to point out. Te manwho advocated peace and helpedteach the world that even deep seat-ed animosities could be overcomewith love athered children whocant seem to make peace amongthemselves.

Dr. Kings children may indeedhave a legal right to sell his Bibleand his Nobel Peace Prize, but Kinghimsel repeatedly made the pointthat what is legal and what is rightofen are ar rom the same thing.

Being related to a great personis an accident o birth, but it ofenpositions people to make decisionsabout items that the greater society

values more than the heirs apparent-ly do. I was dismayed when the Kingchildren repeatedly reused to allowootage o their ather to be used inprojects that would document thegreat events o the 20th century, butsold the right to use ootage romhis March on Washington speechto be used in an ordinary televisioncommercialsimply because therewas money to be made.

Tere have been a distressingnumber o battles among the chil-dren o one o the most recognizedwinners o the Nobel Peace Prize,but in this latest dispute, Im in-

clined to side with daughter Bernice,who in a news conerence said shebelieves that i her ather were alivehe would say, My Bible and mymedals are not to be sold.

Te person whose opinion on all

this most closely mirrors my own ishistorian David J.Garrow, whosebook Bearing the Cross: Martin Lu-ther King Jr. and the Southern Chris-tianLeadership Conferencewon the1987 Pulitzer Prize. He said KingsBible should go to a museum orsome other place where it can be onpublic display.

Calling Martin Luther King Jr.the most unselfish, ungreedy per-son who ever lived, Garrow said,Te undamental bottom line hereis that the King children have noclue what their athers legacy reallymeans.

Let Us Know What You Think!

THE CHAMPION FREE PRESSencourages opinions fromits readers. Please write to us and express your views. Lettersshould be brief, typewritten and contain the writers name,address and telephone number for verification. All letters willbe considered for publication.

Send Letters To Editor, The Champion Free Press, P. O. Box 1347,Decatur, GA 30031-1347; Send E-Mail to [email protected] To: (404) 370-3903 Phone: (404) 373-7779Deadline for news releases and advertising: Thursday, one week prior topublication date.

EDITORS NOTE: The opinions written by columnists and contributing editorsdo not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor or publishers. The Pub-lisher reserves the right to reject or cancel any advertisement at any time. ThePublisher is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts.

Publisher: John Hewitt

Chief Financial Offi cer Dr. Earl D. Glenn

Managing Editor: Kathy Mitchell

News Editor: Andrew Cauthen

Production Manager: Kemesha Hunt

Photographer: Travis Hudgons

The Champion Free Press is published each

Friday by ACE III Communications, Inc.,

114 New Street, Suite E, Decatur, GA. 30030

Phone (404) 373-7779.

www.championnewspaper.com

DISPLAY ADVERTISING (404) 373-7779 x 110

FREEPRESS

STATEMENT FROM THE PUBLISHERWe sincerely appreciate the discussion surroundingthis and any issue of interest to DeKalb County. TheChampionwas founded in 1991 expressly to providea forum for discourse for allcommunity residents onall sides of an issue. We have no desire to make thenews only to report news and opinions to effect a

more educated citizenry that will ultimately move ourcommunity forward. We are happy to present ideasfor discussion; however, we make every effort to avoidprinting information submitted to us that is known tobe false and/or assumptions penned as fact.

Kathy [email protected]

Editor

Dispute among King children raises ironic content of their character questions

OPINIONTHE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 5A

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COMMUNITY in

If you would like to nominate someone

to be considered as a future Champion

of the Week, please contact Kathy

Mitchell at [email protected] or

at (404) 373-7779, ext. 104.

KIMBERLY ESTEP

ChampionoftheWeek

State school superintendent candidateaddresses south DeKalb business leaders

See Morgan on page 18A

by Andrew [email protected]

One reason Rep. Alisha

T. Morganisunning fortate school su-

perintendent,he said, is theow high school

graduation rate.The num-

bers of thetudents who

graduate fromhigh school inDeKalb Countys about 57 per-

cent, Morganold members of the South

DeKalb Business AssociationFeb. 7 I want that to sinkn for just a second. Fifty-even percent of students in

DeKalb County are graduat-

ing from high school. So youcan imagine what that num-ber is for those who go off tocollege and graduate or those

who go off intosuccessful careers.

If that doesntmake you angry, Idont know whatwill, Morgan said.Today kids aresitting in a class-room and some ofthem are not goingto walk across thestage.

Are they goingto come into yourcounty, into your

company, and are they going

to be preparedto do a goodjob for you? she asked. Arethey going to be a threat tosociety and to our communi-ties because they will resort

to violence because theyhave no other skills to use?

Morgan said the realityof the statistics is made clear

when you go to the DeKalbCounty Jail because thatswhere theyre going whentheyre not graduating fromhigh school and not preparedas we want them to be.

I have not come to saythe sky is falling but I havecome to say that we have alot of work to do, Morgansaid.

Elected to her sixth termin July 2012, Morgan madehistory at age 23 by becom-ing the first Black to serve inthe Georgia House of Repre-

sentatives for Cobb County.Most business leaders donot think about educationdaily, she said.

Morgan

Kimberly Estep,public outreach and vol-unteer coordinator orthe Arabia Mountain Na-tional Heritage Area, saidher whole lie has beenbased on working withnonproits and environ-mental organizations.

Ive worked all overthe country with dierentnonproits to see what Ican do to engage the pub-

lic to work to better theenvironment, Estep said.Since Estep works or

the Arabia Mountain Al-liance she is responsibleor coordinating the vol-unteer events that takeplace in the approximate-ly 40,000-acre heritagearea.

Im able to get volun-teers to a lot o dierentsites, Estep said.

Additionally, Estepsaid she and her husband

volunteer with Furkids,a nonproit organization

that provides a cage-ree,no-kill shelter or rescuedanimals. Estep said shehas also helped the orga-nization oster animals.

I even ended up withone o the dogs, Estepsaid.

Estep said the thingshe enjoys most about or-ganizing volunteer eventsis when she can bringhundreds o volunteerstogether to work on proj-ects all over the heritagearea.

Estep recently coordi-nated an event with the

Georgia Conservancy tocollect used tires that hadbeen dumped. Withinonly our hours, Estepsaid, volunteers collectedmore than 1,000 tires.

hat would not havehappened i we had notall worked together, Es-tep said.

Previously, Estep hasworked with Ameri-Corps, served as a wastereduction educator andwas an outreach coordi-

nator or the Perimeterransportation and Sus-tainability Coalition.

Ranger Robby As-trove, who works at Da-

vidson-Arabia MountainNature Preserve, said Es-tep has been responsibleor many volunteer proj-ects in the communityand is an inspiration.

Shes always doingsomething, whether itshere at the nature pre-serve or working with thecity o Lithonia, Astrove

said.

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COMMUNITY

AROUNDDEKALBSPECIAL EVENTS

Emory Hospital to host heart health event

The presentationHow to Prevent, Detect andTreat Heart Disease in Women will be delivered by Emory Womens Heart Center physician AlexisCutchins at Emory University Hospital, 12:30-1 p.m.Feb. 21 in the hospitals atrium. Emory UniversityHospital is located at 1364 Clifton Road, NE, Atlanta.To learn more or to register for a womens heart healthevent, call Emory HealthConnections at (404) 778-7777. The event is free and parking will be availablen the hospitals main parking lot.

DeKalb Convention & Visitors Bureau to holdreunion planning workshop

Those planning a family reunion may want to attend

his workshop to gain advice and tips on making themost of this special family event. The workshop takesplace from 9 a.m. to noon, Feb. 22at Marriott Ever-green Conference Resort, 4021 Lakeview Drive, StoneMountain. It is free but pre-registration is required.Call (770) 429-5016 to register.

School Choice Enrollment Fair scheduled

Parents searching for educational options can learnmore about metro Atlantas public charter schools athe 2014 School Choice Enrollment Fair on Saturday,

Feb. 22. Parents can learn about the curriculum, schoolculture and extracurricular activities offered at sev-eral Atlanta charter schools: Atlanta NeighborhoodCharter School, Fulton Leadership Academy, IntownAcademy, Ivy Preparatory Academy at Gwinnett, Ivy

Preparatory Academy at Kirkwood, Latin AcademyCharter School, Provost Academy, Utopian Academyof the Arts and Wesley International Academy.

The schools serve students in the City of Atlanta,DeKalb, Fulton and Gwinnett counties.

The inaugural School Choice Enrollment Fair willbe held from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Ivy Prep Academy atKirkwood, 1807 Memorial Drive.

For more information, visit choosecharters.org.

Library to celebrate Black History Month

Tattle Tales, the youth group of the Kuumba Sto-ytellers of Georgia, will be at the Clarkston Library

Feb. 22 for the librarys Black History Month cele-bration. The 2-3 p.m. event is funded by the Friends

of the Clarkston Library. The library is located at951 N. Indian Creek Drive. For more information,call (404) 508-7175.

County sets jobs bus schedule for FebruaryThe DeKalb County Mobile Career Center, also

known as the countys jobs bus, will be stationed atvarious locations throughout DeKalb County duringFebruary.

The mobile unit provides residents with vari-ous services, including job search assistance, adultworkshops and training, resume writing pointers andnterviewing tips. Businesses are also able to use the

mobile unit for recruiting, pre-employment screen-ngs, interviewing and training.

The mobile career centers upcoming scheduledtops are:

Monday, Feb. 24, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Clarkston Library,951 N. Indian Creek Drive, Clarkston; Tuesday, Feb.25, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Redan-Trotti Library, 1569 Well-born Road, Lithonia; Wednesday, Feb. 26, 10 a.m.-4

p.m., DeKalb Access and Resource Center, 949 NorthHairston Road, Stone Mountain; and Thursday, Feb.27, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Stonecrest Library, 3123 KlondikeRoad, Lithonia.

Author to speak about civil rights attorney

Maurice Daniels, author of Saving the Soul ofGeorgia: Donald L. Hollowell and the Struggle for CivilRights, will be giving a reading and authors talk at theDecatur Library Feb. 24, 7:15-9 p.m.

Daniels book tells the story of Donald L. Hol-lowell, Georgias chief civil rights attorney during the1950s and 60s. Hollowell defended Black men accusedor convicted of capital crimes and represented civilrights activists.

In his book, Daniels tells the story of this behind-the-scenes, yet highly influential civil rights lawyer.

The Decatur Library is located at 215 SycamoreStreet. For more information call (404) 370-3070.

State representative to host town hall meeting

Rep. Darshun Kendrick (D-Lithonia, Snellville)will host a town hall meeting Tuesday, Feb. 25, from6-8 p.m. at the Hope and Life Church in Snellville.During this meeting, Kendrick will give a legislativeupdate on events that have occurred during the firstweeks of the Georgia General Assembly session.

Hope and Life Church is located at 3594 CentervilleHighway, Snellville.

Dunwoody library to host event for toddlers

Stories, fingerplays, rhymes, songs and more willbe on hand for 2-year-olds at the Dunwoody libraryFeb. 25, 10:30-11 a.m. The activities will be targetedfor the developmental needs of 2-year-olds. Parentscan register in the library childrens department 15minutes before the program begins. The event is opento the first 25 pairs. The library is located at 5339Chamblee-Dunwoody Road. For more information,call (770) 512-4640.

Village to host annual bluegrass festival

Stone Mountain Village is hosting its annual blue-grass and arts and crafts festival, located on MainStreet in Stone Mountain.

The fifth annual Bluegrass Roots Music and ArtsFestival will also be celebrating the 175th anniver-sary of the founding of Stone Mountain.

Entertainment includes bluegrass music, arts and

crafts, folk dancing and other genres of regional mu-sic.

The festival will also feature glassblowing, ablacksmith, food, train rides and inflatables for chil-dren. Parking, admission and all musical perfor-mances are free and open to the public.

The festival runs March 29-30, Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m.- 6 p.m. For more informa-tion contact Chris Strawbridge at (770) 413-0607.

Callanwolde Mansion open for toursArea residents can experience Callanwoldes

27,000-square-foot Gothic-Tudor mansion located on12.5 acres in the Druid Hills neighborhood of Atlanta.Those on the tour see how the Candler family of Coca-Cola fame lived as they stroll through the formal andnative gardens, view artists at work and learn moreabout Atlanta history. Callanwolde, located at 960Briarcliff Road NE in Atlanta, is listed on the NationalRegister of Historic Places. Tours are available from

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. Tickets are $8-$12. Formore information, go to www.callanwolde.org.

Jewish community center to offer activities forhomeschool families

The Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta(MJCCA) recently introduced Homeschool Extras.Metro Atlanta homeschool families are welcome toMJCCAss 52-acre, state-of-the-art Dunwoody campusto participate in hands-on group activities. Partici-pants in Homeschool Extras can get active with sportssuch as tennis, gymnastics, and swimming; or exploretheir artistic side with drama and dance. Registrationis open now. Classes start in January. Programs areoffered between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., Monday-Friday.For more information, contact Ashley Cohen at(678) 812-3867 or via [email protected];or visit www.atlantajcc.org/homeschool. Offered ona semester basis, Homeschool Extras is designed for

age groups: 4-6, 7-9 and 10-13. MJCCA membershipis not required, and Homeschool Extras is open tothe community.

Registration open for Second Annual Race for theArt

Registration is open for this 5K run/walk starting atthe Porter Sanford Performing Arts and CommunityCenter, 3181 Rainbow Drive, Decatur. Cost for anindividual is $20 and $25 for teams with five or moreparticipants. The race takes place March 29.To registergo to www.active.com/decatur-ga/running/distance-running-races/second-annual-porter-sanford-race-for-the-arts-5k-walk-run-2014.

Free tax assistance and preparation available

This service, available for low- and moderate-income taxpayers, is available from AARP Founda-tion Tax-Aide from Feb. 3 through April 15. You donot need to be a member of AARP or a retiree to usethis service. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide volunteers,trained in cooperation with the Internal Revenue Ser-vice, will offer help with personal income tax returnsat various locations around Georgia. Last year, AARPFoundation Tax-Aide volunteers in the United Stateshelped more than 2 million people file their federal,state and local tax returns. The program is offered atmany sites in Georgia, including senior centers, librar-ies and other convenient location. Call the toll-freenumber, 1-888-AARPNOW (1-888-227-7669) or visitthe website at www.aarp.org/taxaide during this tax

season, to locate an AARP Foundation Tax-Aide site.

Eat Well Indie-catur campaign planned

In February, Decatur Active Living and Decatur Visi-tors Center team up again with local restaurants forthe Eat Well Indie-catur Campaign. Visit a participat-ing restaurant any day during February, choose oneof their featured healthy entrees and get a Eat WellIndie-catur card signed. Cards will be available atparticipating locations and at the Decatur VisitorsCenter. Participate three times during February andearn a recipe book featuring some of Decatur restau-rants healthiest recipes. Recipes will be available atthe Decatur Visitors Center, 113 Clairemont Ave. inDecatur. Participating restaurants are Victory, 246,Chai Pani, Twains, Parkers on Ponce, Corner Pub,Colbeh, Cakes and Ale and Sapori di Napoli.

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1

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE FOR PHASING OUT OF INSTRUCTIONAL FACILITIES

Revisions for Clifton Elementary Facility and Gresham Park Elementary Facility

Note: This notice is an update to the p reviously published notice in the Champion Newspaper from February 14, 2013 to February 27, 2013, with changes (noted in

bold, underline) to reflect the change in status for the Clifton Elementary Facility and the Gresham Park Elementary Facility. The hearings will focus ONLY on the

changes that will affect Clifton ES, Meadowview ES, and Gresham Park ES. Previous decisions related to other facilities listed will remain the same.

Public Hearings, 7:00 PM at:

February 18, 2014 at Meadowview ES1879 Wee Kirk Rd

Atlanta, GA 30316

February 25, 2014 at Clifton ES3132 Clifton Church Rd

Atlanta, GA 30316

In accordance with SPLOST IV and the 2011, ten-year master facility plan*, the DeKalb County School District proposes to phase-out twelve (12) instructional facilities over the next five years: 1)

Austin Elementary Facility, 2) Avondale High Facility, 3) Clifton Elementary Facility, 4) DESA/Terry Mill Facility 5) Fernbank Elementary Facility, 6) Meadowview Elementary Facility, 7) Midway

Elementary Facility, 8) Ronald McNair Middle Facility, 9) Pleasantdale Elementary Facility, 10) Rockbridge Elementary Facility, 11) Smoke Rise Elementary Facility and 12) Wadsworth Elementary

Facility.

Students from these schools will return back to their schools after construction as listed in Table 1 and Table 2. The date of phase-out, date of last instruction, and proposed use for each affected

building is also listed below in Table 1.

In Table 2, please note that Peachcrest ES and Gresham Park ES are two, new, 900-seat schools. It is envisioned that students from Clifton ES and M eadowview ES schools will move into the new

Gresham Park ESat the current Clifton site. Students from Knollwood ES and Midway ES will move into the new Peachcrest ES.

Any attendance lines adjustments for any receiving schools and their adjacent schools in order to accommodate the relocated students within each schools capacity limits will be discussed the year

prior to phase out. Fernbank ES is presently scheduled to occupy Avondale MS during the construction period.

* Ten-year Facility Master Plan (http://www.dekalb.k12.ga.us/www/documents/vision-2020/master-plan.pdf)

Table 1. Instructional Facilities to be Phased-out

Instructional

FacilityFacility Address

Date of Last

Instruction at Facility

and Date of Phase

Out

Resident Students Transferred and Where Future Use of Facility

Austin Elementary

Facility

5435 Roberts Drive

Dunwoody, GA 30338

June, 2018 All students to attend replacement Austin ES

facility

Torn down and replaced by new facility

Avondale High

Facility

1192 Clarendon Ave

Avondale Estates, GA 30002

June, 2016 All students to attend new Comprehensive Arts

Magnet School at Avondale MS facility

Declared surplus and possible reuse or disposal

Clifton Elementary

Facility

3132 Clifton Church Rd

Atlanta, GA 30316

June, 2016 All students to attend new Gresham Park ES

facility at current Clifton site

Rebuild 900 seat school, $20.2 million,

SPLOST IV

DESA/Terry Mill

Elementary Facility

797 Fayetteville Rd

Atlanta, GA 30316

June, 2016 All students to attend new Comprehensive Arts

Magnet School at Avondale MS facility


Fernbank

Elementary

Facility

157 Heaton Park Drive NE

Atlanta, GA 30307

June, 2013 All students to attend Avondale MS during

construction and then return to replacement

Fernbank ES facility in Fall 2015


Meadowview

Elementary Facility

1879 Wee Kirk Rd

Atlanta, GA 30316

June, 2015 All students to attend new Gresham Park ES

facility at current Clifton site


Midway

Elementary

Facility

3318 Midway Rd

Decatur, GA 30032

June, 2015 All students to attend new Peachcrest ES facility Declared surplus and possible reuse or disposal

Ronald McNair

Middle Facility

2190 Wallingford Dr.

Decatur, GA 30032

June, 2018 All students to attend replacement McNair MS

facility


Pleasantdale

Elementary Facility

3695 Northlake Drive

Doraville, GA 30340

June, 2018 All students to attend replacement Pleasantdale

ES facility


Rockbridge

Elementary Facility

445 Halwick Way

Stone Mountain, GA 30083

June, 2018 All students to attend replacement Rockbridge

ES replacement


Smoke Rise

Elementary Facility

1991 Silver Hill Road

Stone Mountain, GA 30087

June, 2018 All students to attend replacement Smoke Rise

ES facility


Wadsworth

Elementary Facility

2084 Green Forrest Dr.

Decatur, GA 30032

June, 2015 All students to be housed at Knollwood ES

facility


Table 2. Receiving Instructional Facility, Proposed Size, Grade Configuration, and Cost

Receiving Instructional Facility Address

Prop. Facility

Capacity

(Students)

Grade

ConfigurationExpansion, Cost, and Funding Source

Arts School at Avondale Middle Facility 3131 Old Rockbridge Rd Avondale Estates, GA 30002 1,100 K-12 Add auditorium, $4.0 million, SPLOST IV

Austin Elementary Facility 5435 Roberts Dr Dunwoody, GA 30338 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV

McNair Middle Facility 2190 Wallingford Dr. Decatur, GA 30032 1,200 6-8 Rebuild 1200 seat school, $34.6 million, SPLOST IV

Fernbank Elementary Facility 157 Heaton Park Drive NE Atlanta, GA 30307 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV

Gresham Park Elementary Facility at

Clifton site

3132 Clifton Church Rd Atlanta, GA 30316 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $20.2million, SPLOST IV

Knollwood Elementary Facility 3039 Santa Monica Dr. Decatur, GA 30032 650 4-6 No expansion necessary

Peachcrest Elementary Facility 1530 Joy Ln Decatur, GA 30032 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV

Pleasantdale Elementary Facility 3695 Northlake Drive Doraville, GA 30340 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV

Rockbridge Elementary Facility 445 Halwick Way Stone Mountain, GA 30083 900 PK-5 Rebuild 900 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV

Smoke Rise Elementary Facility 1991 Silver Hill Road Stone Mountain, GA 30087 600 PK-5 Rebuild 600 seat school, $18.4 million, SPLOST IV****Cost for 600-seat school pending review.

Note: This notice is an update to the previously published notice in the Champion Newspaper from February 14, 2013 to February 27, 2013, with changes (noted in

bold, underline) to reflect the change in status for the Clifton Elementary Facility and the Gresham Park Elementary Facility. The hearings will focus ONLY on the

changes that will affect Clifton ES, Meadowview ES, and Gresham Park ES. Previous decisions related to other facilities listed will remain the same.

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Thurmond: People are beginning to believe againOn Feb. 8, 2013,Mike Turmond

became the superintendent of theDeKalb County School District. Inhe past year, Turmond, a former

Georgia labor commissioner, hasdealt with accreditation probation, achool shooting, a contentious lawsuit

and even a snow storm.Te following is the second of

a two-part interview by AndrewCauthen, news editor for TeChampion Newspaper.

Whats your motivation for servingDeKalb this past year and in thefuture?

I dont even know how I gothere. Tis was not part o my careerrajectory. I was not expecting it. I

was not considering it as a careerchoice. Te Good Lord created this.

You know, he orders all your stepsand so, while Im here, Im going todo the very best that I can.

One other thing we mustaddress is the salary structure heren DeKalb. Weve got to eliminatehe remaining urlough days. Oureachers and other employees have

actually experienced pay cuts overhe last five or six years. We haveo begin to address that. Our bus

drivers, custodians and others areunderpaid. Our lowest paid deservea more reasonable salary. So thatswhat Im going to be working onowards the end. You shouldnt haveo impoverish yoursel to help to

educate our children. I dont thinkhose two things correlate.

Would you do it again?

Oh, yeah. I would do it again.Hopeully, I will be judged by ouraccomplishments as opposed tohe length o time I was here. Buthis has been good or me. I eel

better about mysel as a publicervant. When I look in the mirrorsee something different now. In

electoral politics, its a mean game.t just is, by design. I youre goingo be successul you have to play

he game. Te motives here, as itelates to educating children, are

pure. Tey are not as connected tohe acquisition and the retention o

power or powers sake. Tats beenereshing to mesomeone whospent the last 35 years immersed in

power politics.

What are you personal futuregoals?

I want to finish strong. I wanto run through the finish line.

When I ran track in high school,my coach used to always tell us,

Run through the finish line. Runhrough the tape. Dont look back.And hopeully when I come to theend o this contract period thathe stakeholders, the parents, the

taxpayers, will be able to say that Ilef it better than I ound it. Tats allyou can really ask.

What else do you want to talkabout?

o have been raised by a atherwho couldnt read or write, and or

me to be the superintendent o thethird largest school district in thestate o Georgia, thats the greatnesso God that all o that can transpirein one generation.

Te sacrifices [my parents]made or mysel and my eightbrothers and sisters and how much[my ather] and my mother valuededucation, I just think they would be

very proud i they were still here.Its a lesson or every child in this

district. It doesnt matter where youcome rom, it doesnt really matterwhat your station is, or what yoursocioeconomic condition is when

youre brought into this world. Itsnot where you come rom, its whereyoure going. Its a journey and iyou work hard and have aith, itsavailable to all children anywhere inthis county, anywhere in this state,anywhere in this nation.

What do you say to the teachersand stakeholders who are stillfrustrated with the school districtfor whatever reason?

I get that. I dont want tocriticizeas a matter o act, Im

very understanding o it.You were called or this purpose

and i its not here in DeKalb thensomewhere else I want you tocontinue and continue to love thechildren and continue to believe in

them. Te thing about education isyou are literally shaping the uture.I meet the little kids in kindergartenand I walk away thinking this kidcould be a governor or senator ordoctoryou just dont know. Tats

just the power o this whole thingcalled public education.

Were getting better. We didnt

get here overnight. We wont solvethese problems overnight. Its goingto be a process in order or us torebuild the trust and the respect orthe district, but I think were doingit. I just know we are. People arebeginning to believe again in theDeKalb County School District.

What do you say to parents andstakeholders who think they needto pull out of the school systemwhether its a charter schoolsystem, whether its a separateschool district or whether itsputting their kids in a non-public

school?

I leave that up to parents to makethose decisions or their children.Every parent has the right andresponsibility to do what they thinkis best or their child. I get that.But as the superintendent o theDeKalb County School District, Imresponsible or 100,000 children.Tat includes the children oparents who are trying to create newindependent school districts.

So even with them, were goingto do the very best we can everyday that they are enrolled in thisdistrict to provide them with all o

the opportunities that they need anddeserve.

What do you hope to continue in

your remaining time?

Continue to strengthen thefinancial outlook, improve uponour academic and perormanceand graduation rates, and begin therestoration o a competitive salarystructure or our employees.

What do you do when you are notin the schools? When you are notthe superintendent what are youdoing?

Im an introvert. Tat alwaysshocks people. Im very introverted.I enjoy reading. Im working onmy personal librarysetting upa system, organizing my books. Ilove books. Im going to publish thesecond edition o my last book andIm working on a documentary.

So is that how you unwind?

No. Im rom near Athens. Igrew up in Sandy Creek, which isnear Athens. So I still go back there.Its been converted into a naturecenterwhere I grew up. It was veryrural; we didnt have any neighbors.We raised cotton and all that stuff.

Tats where I go when I reallyseek peace. My tree is still there.So I go back and sit under my oaktree. Tats where I goeven inthe process o deciding to take this

jobI always go back to the wisdomtree. Tats what I call it.

All things are possiblewhen youre sitting there in asharecroppers shack under a treedreaming the dreams. Dreams docome true. Youve got to work hardthough. Youve got to have aith butthey come true.

DeKalb County School Superintendent Mike Thurmond meets students at Chamblee Charter High School in January. Photo by AndrewCauthen

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by Carla Parker

[email protected] legal battle between Chamblee and the property

owners o Century Center has led to the creation o twoGeorgia house bills that will clariy the legal boundarieso Chamblee and Brookhaven.

State Representatives Scott Holcomb(D-81), MaryMargaret Oliver(D-82), Mike Jacobs(R-80) and TomTaylor(R-79) are the presenters o House Bills 905 and906. Holcomb said the bills were ormed to resolve theegal battle between the city and Century Center prop-

erty owners.Chamblee and Brookhaven cant wait two or three

years or this to go through the court system, Holcombaid. We need an answer now.

he bills have passed the House and are currently inhe Senate.

I dont expect any diiculty with passage in theSenate, Holcomb said.

he legal battle centers on the Chamblee annexationeerendum, which was passed by Chamblee voters in

November. Century Center was scheduled to be an-nexed into Chamblee Dec. 30 along with 11,000 resi-dents who reside in the newly expanded city boundar-es.

However, Highwoods Properties, owners o CenturyCenter, iled an emergency motion or expedited re-view, supersedeas and injunction pending appeal Dec.17 to stop Century Center rom annexing into the city.On Dec. 19, the Court o Appeals granted in part anddenied in part the emergency motion.

he court granted Highwoods request or a stay toprevent Chamblee rom proceeding with the annexa-

ion. However, the court denied Highwoods request toexpedite the brieing schedule and consideration o itsappeal beore Chamblees annexation took eect Dec.30. he appeal will be heard in April 2014 and a deci-ion is expected to come in the summer or all.

Holcomb said he does not think Highwoods Prop-erties has a strong case because o the passing o theeerendum.

But the legislation clears it up so that there is noquestion whatsoever, he said. [I the bills pass theSenate] there will be no legal basis whatsoever or theawsuit to continue because the General Assembly hashe authority to deine boundaries.

Highwoods Properties continues to ight to be a parto Brookhaven despite residents o the Dresden Eastand Clairmont Road areas, which includes the CenturyCenter property, voting to be annexed into Chamblee.

Highwoods also lost the support o Brookhaven, whichpassed a resolution Nov. 12 to withdraw support o anappeal.

On Oct. 28, DeKalb Superior Court Judge TangelaBarrieruled to stop Brookhaven rom annexing Cen-ury Center and Brookhaven iled an appeal the next

day. Brookhaven City Council approved a resolution totop any urther unding o the appeal o Chambleesitigation.

Highwoods originally appealed the Oct. 28 order tohe Georgia Supreme Court, where it iled an emergen-

cy motion to block Chamblees annexation rom takingplace. However, the Supreme Court ruled Dec. 16 thatt did not have jurisdiction and transerred the case tohe Court o Appeals.

Highwoods Properties iled an application June

21, 2013 with Brookhaven or Century Center to beannexed into the newly created city. Barrie issued annjunction in August to prevent the Brookhaven City

Council rom voting on the annexation.

by Daniel [email protected]

Since 2010, the Atlanta Local Food Initia-tive (ALFI) has planted 13 orchards to pro-

vide direct access to local ood and improvethe quality o metro Atlantas landscape.

Robby Astrove, a ranger at the David-son-Arabia Mountain Nature Preserve, is incharge o ALFIs orchard program. his isthe ourth year Astrove has coordinated the

program.Its a really great coalition to be involvedwith, Astrove said. he tree sale or me be-came something really tangible to be a parto.

Astrove, who developed the idea or theorchard project, said working with ALFI is agood way to beautiy the metro Atlanta areaand also educate people about the impor-tance o sustainability.

All these projects are very much com-munity driven and led. We really look at thisas an opportunity to engage people in theood movement, Astrove said.

In past years, ALFI has planted orchardsat DeKalb County locations, includingAlonso Crim High School, Atlanta Charter

Middle School, Drew Charter School andBurgess Peterson Academy.

his year, ALFI will plant more than 60

trees at the Northlake Mall CommunityGarden, several ire stations located in At-lanta and DeKalb County and two schools.Each orchard, Astrove said, serves as an im-portant tool to educate communities aboutsustainability.

Its really an opportunity or people tolearn a lie skill, Astrove said. I use myselas a model saying you can make a career outo being a steward or the planet.

Astrove said they will be planting every-

thing rom small raspberry bushes to largeruit trees in the orchards, making a point toplant a diverse group o trees to make surethere is something always blooming.

We want people to have ood allthroughout the year, Astrove said.

he orchards will be maintained byteachers, community groups and urbanagriculture organizations. o date, Astrovesaid there have been more than 300 treesplanted at orchards throughout the city.

o be eligible or tree planting romALFI, sites must have an existing gardenthat is being used, caretakers who have at-tended or enrolled in arm-to-school train-ing, community supportand i its a school,itle I designation.

For more inormation about the orchardprogram visit www.atlantalocalood.org.

House bills written toclarify boundaries ofBrookhaven and Chamblee

Commissioner involved in domestic dispute

Local nonprofit plants trees for orchard project


Police responded to adispute between DeKalbCounty Commissioner

Sharon Barnes Sutton ather long-term boyriendWarren Mosbys Decaturhome Feb. 11. Each sidetells a different account owhat happened.

According to a policereport, Sutton arrived atMosbys house to find a carin the driveway, owned bya emale acquaintance oboth Sutton and Mosby.Sutton told police that asshe tried to enter Mosbyshome, he pushed her ontothe driveway.

She advised that Mr.Mosby continued to arguewith her about being at thelocation. She stated she gotback to her eet and Mr.Mosby pushed her backdown onto the driveway,the police report states.

According to Suttonsaccount, Mosby then tookher keys, threw her be-tween two vehicles andput his knee on her chestbeneath her throat.

Police said upon theirarrival at the scene, Sut-tons lef side and backwere covered in dirt and

she was visually upset,crying and rubbing herchest. Her keys wereound in the ront yard.

Mosbys account is quitedifferent, stating that Sut-ton instigated the incident.

According to police,Mosby said Sutton arrivedat his home and was upsetabout his emale visitor.He then said Sutton triedto enter his home and heblocked her entrance by

standing in the doorway.He stated [Sutton]

continued to be aggres-sive and began to hit himin the chest with her first,the police report states.

Mr. Mosby stated [Sutton]grabbed his glasses off hisace and threw them intothe ront yard.

Mosby admitted to po-lice he threw Suttons keysand tried to restrain her.

Neither party agreed topress charges and Mosbytold police he didnt wantSutton back on his prop-erty. Police gave Sutton awarning and told her i sheever returned to the loca-tion she could be arrested.

Im never coming back

heretrust me, Suttonreportedly said.According to the police

report, Sutton told policeshe and Mosby have beenin a relationship or thepast seven years. Mosbywas Suttons ormer cam-paign manager and is thebrother o Howard Mos-by, the chairman o theDeKalb County Delegationo the General Assembly.

Sutton

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Searching for Our Sons and Daughters:

For a programming guide, visit www.yourdekalb.com/dctvNow showing on DCTV!

Finding DeKalb Countys MissingStories of our missing residents offer profound

insights and hope for a positive reunion.

DCTV Your Emmy Award-winning news source of DeKalb County news. Available on Comcast Cable Channel 23.

Photos brought to you by DCTV

WEEKPICTURESIn

Decatur church sign displays a weekly religious message. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

Erin Webb of Celestial Sounds plays the harp at a South DeKalb Business Association breakfast. Photoby Caleb WadeMan rides horse along Covington Highway. Photo by Travis Hudgons

Miller Grove girls basketball Coach Renee Breedloveshows her emotions during a playoff game. Photo byTravis Hudgons

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A walker on Peachcrest Road. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

Runner in East Atlanta. Photo by Daniel Beauregard

A tree in south DeKalb. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

Snow at night. Photo by Travis Hudgons

Our Winter Wonderland

Tracks in the sleet. Photo by Andrew CauthenCar tracks on Wesley Chapel Road. Photo by TravisHudgons.

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DeKalb Schools resource ofcer drives on Peachcrest Road. Photo by Andrew Cauthen

Icy grill. Photo by Travis Hudgons

Above, below) A line at Kroger. Photo by Travis Hudgons

Driving on the snow-covered road. Photo by Travis Hudgons Magnolia leaves. Photo by Travis Hudgons

Sleet covered road. Photo by Travis Hudgons

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rom left, Basmat Ahmed, Refugee Family Services (RFS) and Darfur Communities Network;Roberta Malavenda, CDF; Mariam Adam, community member; Beena Dahal, RFS; Jeremy Lewis,CDF; Rachel Steinhardt, Welcoming America; and Angel Chin, Rutha Say, Prisca Uwigabye andeann Malone, RFS.

ommunity member Cing Ngaih Lain andefugee Women's Networks Doua Kue-Morris.

Fugees Academy students and staff with PollyMcKinney, Voices for Georgias Children.

Polly McKinney of Voices for Georgias Children speaks to Fugees Academy studentsand staff.

Clarkston High School Cooking Angoras.

Community member Cing Ngaih Lain; Kate Walker, Catholic Charities Atlanta; and aGeorgia legislator.

Aaron Sampson, RFS; Clarkston Mayor Ted Terry; and Clarkston Councilman DeanMoore.

ngel Chin and Rutha Say, RFS; community member Cing Ngaih Lain with son; and Kate Walker,atholic Charities Atlanta.

Community member Cing Ngaih Lain; AwetWoldegebriel, representing Knowledge Aidoundation and Coca-Cola; Jerome Baziruwiha,ommunity member; and Kate Walker, Catholic

Charities Atlanta.

New AmericansCelebration

More than 100 community members joinedrefugees at the State Capitol to celebrate therichness and contributions refugees maketo the state of Georgia. The New AmericansCelebration brought together 10 organizationsalong with elected ofcials. Photos provided byCDF

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by Carla [email protected]

he snow and ice storm that hitmetro Atlanta was as severe as me-eorologists predicted, but the re-ponse to it was completely dierento the response to the winter stormhat hit the area two weeks earlier.

he second go-round o snow-mageddon or snowpocalypsebrought nearly a quarter inch oce Feb. 12 and ollowed up with annch to two inches o snow Feb. 13.

Because state, city and county o-icials were more prepared or thistorm, most residents were saelyucked away in their homes instead

o trapped in their cars on Georgiahighways or at schools or oices.

his snow and ice storm couldhave been more damaging than theone two weeks ago, but it wasnt,aid interim DeKalb County CEO

Lee May. his is due primarily

to building upon the lessons welearned rom the last time, as well asthe engagement o the residents whoheard and heeded the warnings andstayed at home or in place most othe time. As a result, even thoughwe had more snow and ice this timearound, we had ewer accidents anddamage as a result o accidents.

he severity o irst winter storm,which hit Jan. 28 around 10 a.m.,caught many people in the metroAtlanta area and state o guard andcaused chaos. he main interstatesand roads in the metro area were

not treated in time beore the stormhit.State, county and private sector

employers released their employeeswhen the storm hit while schoolsdistricts, including DeKalb, dis-missed classes early. he combina-tion o the early dismissals alongwith the bad weather caused tra-ic gridlock on most metro roadsand interstate. Some people were

trapped in their cars or more than30 hours and some students weretrapped either on school buses or atschool.

At a Feb. 14 press conerence,Georgia Gov. Nathan Dealsaidlessons were learned rom the irststorm and several implementa-tions were put in place to betterprepare or the second storm. Someo those implementations includedweather alerts which were sent tocell phones. he state also commu-nicated with school district superin-tendents.

Deal said state oicials made themost o the second chance to betterprepare or the storm and he waspleased with the response o theGeorgia Emergency ManagementAgency, which came under ireor the lack o response to the irststorm.

I you do things right, it does re-store conidence, Deal said. And Ithink we did things right this time.

Although there were no traicissues this time around, the stormdid cause power outages or manyresidents across the state. Ice causedtrees to topple over onto powerlines. According to Georgia Power,which has two service stations inDeKalb, there were an estimated1,900 power outages in DeKalb dur-ing the two-day storm. As o Feb. 14,all power was restored in the county.

here was other damage acrossthe state, speciically in Augusta,caused by allen trees. Deal said hebrieed Department o Homeland

Security Secretary Jeh JohnsonFeb.14 and said he is hopeul Georgiacan secure ederal unds to help payor the cleanup.

here are times when peopledont want us to cooperate withthe ederal government, Deal said.his is not one o those t imes.

DeKalb Police Alliance helps officers wait out stormby Daniel [email protected]

As the state was being pounded by a sec-ond round o snow and ice, DeKalb CountyPolice oicers remained in the county in casetheir services were needed.

DeKalb Police Alliance President BrianShadix said to help those oicers, the alliancehoused more than 40 o them at the Hamp-ton Inn at Northlake.

his eort allowed the oicers to remainsae and in the DeKalb area to continue theirimportant work in the community without

interruption, Shadix said.Additionally, Shadix said Kroger and Bri-

an Mock, the general manager o the Hamp-ton Inn, donated unds to help house oicers.

On Wednesday, Feb. 12, while DeKalbCounty was getting hit with snow, ice andreezing rain, Shadix said, he spoke with As-sistant Police Chie Dale Holmes about thedepartments preparations or the storm.

hey were making arrangements to makesure they were prepared or the weather,Shadix said. heir strategy was to make surethey had police oicers in the area.

Shadix said the alliance typically helps theamilies o oicers cover expenses in the caseo an oicer dying in the line o duty. How-

ever, in the next year, Shadix said, the allianceplans on taking a more proactive outreach

with the department.In the past its not something that weve

normally done but this is one o those thingswhere we want the oicers to know that werehere to help, Shadix said. Were looking ormore ways we can try to help them.

Originally, 10 rooms were secured or theoicers to stay in at the Hampton Inn buteventually, the number rose.

Kroger caught wind o what we were do-ing and they ended up donating money tohelp cover the cost o the additional rooms,Shadix said.

A lot o the times its the police helping us

and it was nice or us to help them or once,Shadix said.

Scenes like these along Peachcrest Road in south DeKalb were seen all over metro Atlanta last week after the seasons second winter storm hit. Photos by Andrew Cauthen

DeKalb, metro Atlanta survives Snowmageddon, Part Two

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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 16AEDUCATION

See Budget on Page 17A

BUDGET RESOLUTION

2014 CEO Recommended

TAX FUNDS

GENERAL FUND

ANTICIPATED REVENUES:

Taxes $206,413,531

Licenses and Permits 93,013

Intergovernmental 2,428,680

Charges for Services 34,180,817

Fines and Forfeitures 12,291,029

Miscellaneous 4,209,144

Other Financing Sources 2,444,789

Fund Balance Carried Forward 24,810,618

TOTAL - GENERAL FUND $286,871,621

PROPOSED EXPENDITURES:

Chief Executive Officer $2,342,504

Board of Commissioners 2,638,518Ethics Board 118,000

Law Department 3,195,025

Geographic Info Systems 1,975,175

Facilities Management 14,038,503

Purchasing 2,854,759

Human Resources & Merit System 2,866,741

Information Systems 17,204,763

Finance 5,745,956

Property Appraisal 4,348,270

Tax Commissioner 7,028,612

Registrar 3,800,080

Sheriff 75,818,336

Juvenile Court 9,146,290

Superior Court 8,426,869

Clerk of Superior Court 6,438,212

State Court 13,230,468

Solicitor - General 6,002,207

District Attorney 12,173,303

Child Advocate's Office 1,926,259

Probate Court 1,550,176

Medical Examiner 2,411,858

Public Defender 6,900,703

Police 3,833,867

Magistrate Court 2,582,868

Fire & Rescue Services 8,096,259

Planning & Development 1,194,952

Public Works - Director 281,392

Economic Development 750,000

Library 12,701,400

Cooperative Extension 515,543

Public Health 3,955,634

Community Service Board 1,497,257

D F A C S 1,179,220

Human Services 3,945,795

Contributions to Capital Projects 6,000,000

Non - Departmental 28,155,847

TOTAL - GENERAL FUND $286,871,621

FIRE FUND


Property Taxes $53,056,834

Licenses & Permits 670,296

Charges for Services 21,302BUDGET RESOLUTION



TOTAL - FIRE FUND $58,272,711


Fire & Rescue Services $48,326,657

Non - Departmental 9,946,054TOTAL - FIRE FUND $58,272,711

SPECIAL TAX DISTRICT - DESIGNATED SERVICES


Taxes $11,835,607

Charges for Services 891,068

Miscellaneous 259,737



TOTAL - S T D - DESIGNATED SERVICES FUND $30,986,835


Public Works - Transportation $3,374,388

Public Works - Roads & Drainage 9,330,944

Parks & Recreation 9,791,338


TOTAL - S T D - DESIGNATED SERVICES FUND $30,986,835

SPECIAL TAX DISTRICT - UNINCORPORATED


Taxes $30,805,314

Licenses and Permits 20,862,265


Miscellaneous (101,998)

Other Financing Sources (53,518,190)

Fund Balance Carried Forward (7,734,058)

TOTAL - S T D - UNINCORPOR ATED FUND $12,063,144


C E O Office - Cable TV Support $379,680

Finance - Business License 776,780

Recorder's Court 3,957,262

Planning & Development- Zoning Analysis 3,208,864


TOTAL - S T D - UNINCORPO RATED FUND $12,063,144

HOSPITAL FUND


Taxes $17,354,121

Fund Balance Carried Forward (5,605,232)

TOTAL - HOSPITAL FUND $11,748,889

PROPOSED EXPENDITURES: $11,748,889

POLICE SERVICES FUND


Taxes $57,857,226

Licenses and Permits 1,027,952



Other Financing Sources 39,037,812Fund Balance Carried Forward 17,572,163

TOTAL - POLICE SERVICES FUND $116,138,312


DEBT SERVICE FUND


Taxes $1,442,010


TOTAL - DEBT SERVICE FUND $8,050,672


SPECIAL TAX DISTRICT - DEBT SERVICE FUND


Taxes $26,470,313


TOTAL - STD - DEBT SERVICE FUND $37,373,662


TOTAL RECOMMENDED 2014 TAX FUNDS BUDGET $561,505,846

SPECIAL REVENUE FUNDS

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

Due to weather uncertainties, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners will hold Public Hearings on the 2014 Proposed Budget at the times and places listed below:

Thursday February 20, 2014 10:00AM Maloof Center Auditorium 1300 Commerce Drive, Decatur

Thursday February 27, 2014 10:00AM Maloof Center Auditorium 1300 Commerce Drive, Decatur

All interested citizens are invited to attend these hearings and have the right to present comments pertaining to the proposed budget.

The recommended budget is available for public inspection in the office of the Director of Finance, 6th Floor, Maloof Center, at all DeKalb County Libraries during normal businesshours, and electronically at www.dekalbcountyga.gov.

BUDGET RESOLUTION


DEVELOPMENT FUND


Licenses and Permits $5,061,400


Investment Income 1,500

Miscellaneous (7,200)

Fund Balance Carried Forward 667,871

TOTAL - DEVELOPMENT FUND $5,749,571


Planning & Sustainability $5,749,571

TOTAL - DEVELOPMENT FUND $5,749,571

PUBLIC EDUCATION & GOVERNMENT ACCESS FUND


Investment Income $10,000



TOTAL - P E G FUND $1,985,066


COUNTY JAIL FUND


Intergovernmental $110,000

Fines and Forfeitures 807,288


TOTAL - COUNTY JAIL FUND $1,117,498


FORECLOSURE REGISTRY FUND


Charges for Services $240,000


TOTAL - FORECLOSURE REGISTRY FUND $1,180,620


HOTEL / MOTEL TA X FUND


Taxes $4,000,000


TOTAL - HOTEL / MOTEL TAX FUND $5,074,462


RENTAL MOTOR VEHICLE EXCISE TAX FUND



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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 17ACLASSIFIEDSBudget Continued From Page 16A

VICTIM ASSISTANCE FUND





TOTAL - VICTIM ASSISTANCE FUND $1,480,000


RECREATION FUND



Fund Balance Carried Forward (354,235)

TOTAL - RECREATION FUND $607,933

PROPOSED EXPENDITURES: $607,933

LAW ENFORCEMENT CONFISCATED MONIES FUND


Fund Balance Carried Forward $6,946,410

TOTAL - L.E.C.M. FUND $6,946,410


Sheriff $814,562

District Attorney 110,486

State Court Marshal 9,212

Public Safety - Police 6,012,150

BUDGET RESOLUTION


TOTAL - L.E.C.M. FUND $6,946,410

JUVENILE SERVICES FUND



Investment Income 225


TOTAL - JUVENILE SERVICES FUND $249,347


DRUG ABUSE TREATMENT & EDUCATION FUND


Fines and Forfeitures $130,000



TOTAL - D.A.T.E. FUND $263,454


STREET LIGHT FUND


Charges for Services $4,500,000



TOTAL - STREET LIGHT FUND $6,624,566


EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SYSTEM FUND


Investment Income $5,000



TOTAL - EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SYSTEM FUND $14,125,021


SPEED HUMPS MAINTENANCE FUND





TOTAL - SPEED HUMPS MAINTENANCE FUND $2,212,157


GRANT - IN - AID FUND


Miscellaneous Revenue $34,877,510

TOTAL - GRANT - IN - AID FUND $34,877,510

GRANT - IN - AID FUND (continued)


Community Development $17,007,973

Workforce Development 5,500,840

Other 840,801

Justice Assistance Grants 11,527,896

TOTAL - GRANT - IN - AID FUND $34,877,510

ENTERPRISE FUNDS

WATER & SEWERAGE OPERATING FUND






TOTAL - WATER & SEWERAGE OPERATING FUND $283,557,377


Public Works - Water & Sewer $276,146,587

Finance - Revenue Collections 7,410,790

TOTAL - WATER & SEWERAGE OPERATING FUND $283,557,377

WATER & SEWERAGE SINKING FUND


Miscellaneous $583,114

BUDGET RESOLUTION



Fund Balance Carried Forward 21,461,052TOTAL - WATER & SEWERAGE SINKING FUND $67,828,224


SANITATION FUND





Other Financing Sources 147,143


TOTAL - SANITATION FUND $66,373,559


Public Works - Sanitation $66,123,925

Finance - Revenue Collections 249,634TOTAL - SANITATION FUND $66,373,559

DEKALB - PEACHTREE AIRPORT


Miscellaneous $5,071,400


TOTAL - DEKALB - PEACHTREE AIRPORT $13,160,155


Airport Operations $11,160,155

Transfer to Capital Projects 2,000,000

TOTAL - DEKALB - PEACHTREE AIRPORT $13,160,155

STORMWATER UTILITY OPERATING FUND





TOTAL - STORMWATER UTILITY FUND $24,107,087


Stormwater Operations $22,017,246

Reserve for Appropriations 2,089,841

TOTAL - STORMWATER UTILITY FUND $24,107,087

INTERNAL SERVICE FUNDS

FLEET MAINTENANCE



Charges for Services 33,100,000


TOTAL - FLEET MAINTENANCE $33,900,000


Public Works - Fleet Maintenance $33,900,000

TOTAL - FLEET MAINTENANCE $33,900,000

VEHICLE FUND

ANTICIPATED REV ENUES:




Other Financing Sources 500,000


TOTAL - VEHICLE FUND $27,018,221


Vehicle Acquisitions $25,145,484

Interdepartmental Services 19,634

Reserves and Other Miscellaneous 1,853,103

TOTAL - VEHICLE FUND $27,018,221

RISK MANAGEMENT



Payroll Deductions and Matches 99,295,898


TOTAL - RISK MANAGEMENT $121,203,916


BUDGET RESOLUTION


Unemployment Compensation $500,000

Group Health & Life 99,845,898

Buildings & Contents 1,326,500

Boiler & Machinery 51,000

Non- Immunity Expenses 2,000,000

Vehicle 4,452,655

Airport Liability 6,588

Helicopter 150,000

Money & Securities 35,000

Loss Control 478,000

Other 12,358,275

TOTAL - RISK MANAGEMENT $121,203,916

WORKERS' COMPENSATION




TOTAL - WORKERS' COMPENSATION FUND $6,634,316


REVENUE BONDS LEASE PAYMENT FUNDS

BUILDING AUTHORITY LEASE PAYMENTS




TOTAL - BUILDING AUTHORITY $3,852,373


PUBLIC SAFETY AND JUDICIAL FACILITIES AUTHORITY LEASE PAYMENTS



Fund Balance Carried Forward (906,279)

TOTAL - PS&J FACILITIES AUTHORITY $3,106,601


URBAN REDEVELOPMENT AGENCY BONDS DEBT SERVICE


Miscellaneous $950,165


TOTAL - URA DEBT SERVICE FUND $1,161,532


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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 18AEDUCATION

Youre thinking about bottomines and how you can make sure

people are paid and can provide forheir families, Morgan said. But if

we do not have a workforce who isprepared and ready to go into careersor go into college we are in trouble.

Morgan said there are incredibleopportunities for business leaders tobecome partners in schools.

Giving money to support a schoolevent or project is good, cute andnice, Morgan said.

Its time out for schools to just

see businesses as a paycheck, shesaid. Whats more important isgiving your expertise to young peo-ple who need to see what it meansto be an entrepreneur [and] whatit means to be able to employ otherpeople [and] sign somebody elsescheck to make sure they can paytheir mortgage.

Business owners can help studentshave the skills that they need togrow and do good things in the com-munity [and] to build the economyto ensure that they a successful fu-

ture.Morgan said, We have an op-portunity to create some incredible

change. What it is going to take is forus to believe that it is possible. Whatis it going to take for us to take thepolitics out and decide that were go-ing to stand in the gap for our kidswhen other people wont?

Morgan said she supports theCommon Core State Standards, aninitiative to provide a consistent,clear understanding of what studentsare expected to learn, so teachers andparents know what they need to doto help them, according to the initia-tives website.

I dont care where a child comesfrom, what they look like, whichneighborhood in DeKalb they live,

every child has to have access to ahigh quality education, Morgan said.

Common Core gives us that op-portunity. The challenge I have foryouis to block out what some ofthe haters are sayingthe peoplewho want to make this political.When we allow politics to get in-volved with education, our kids lose.

And at the end of the day, if weregoing to have kids who are preparedto go into your businesses and begood employees and if theyre goingto start their own businesses, they

have to have a high quality educa-tion, Morgan said.

Georgia Piedmont Technical Collegeooking for south DeKalb site

MorganContinued from page 6A

Youth Commission begins sixth year

DeKalb student onAmerican Idol

by Caleb Wade

Bria Anai Johnsonhas a lot to be proud o. Calledthe the girl with the sparkling lips by her ans, she en-tertainedAmerican Idoljudges and audience with herpowerul voice during the Atlanta auditions, pushing herorward through the competition.

Bria, a student at the DeKalb School o the Arts,shared her experiences Feb. 7 with her ellow students.

When you go to Hollywood, its really intense, Briasaid. Its just like they show on V, but much, muchworse.

Once in Hollywood, Bria said, she was placed withothers to do a group perormance or the judges. hatwas her hardest perormance, she said, because she

had chosen a song that was very close to her. Her voicecracked with emotion during the song, she said.I thought I was going to get sent home, she said.Ater her group perormed the song or their vocal

coach, the singers soon discovered that they would needmuch more practice, she said.

We decided to strip it down and make it an intimateperormance, [where] we just sat there and perormed orthe judges, Bria said.

Bria said that during that perormance she cried; hervoice coach told her that she had taken a risk by choosingthe song.

Bria said she has signed a contract withAmerican Idoland hopes to continue her success on the show.

American Idol contestant Bria Johnson talks to fellow students atDeKalb School of the Arts. Photo by Caleb Wade

by Andrew [email protected]

his college has not

served south DeKalb to theextent that it should and tohe extent that it is going to.

hats what Jabari Si-mama, president o GeorgiaPiedmont echnical College,old south DeKalb busi-

ness owners during a Feb. 7breakast.

What were looking orright now is space where wecan expand our campus intosouth DeKalb, he said.

I know many o you

have your businesses insouth DeKalb, Simamasaid. Im asking you thismorning that i you know o

space that would make orgood educational utilization,please contact me.

Simama said GeorgiaPiedmont is searching orspace to expand our adulteducation and some o ourtechnical education pro-grams.

Our college is $85 acredit hourthe cheapesthigher education in the stateo Georgia, Simama said.You cant get anywhere

cheaper. But more impor-tantly, with community col-lege education at $85 a cred-it, where you start on your

GED and then enter collegeupon completion o yourGED, there is no reason whyany o our young people orany o our adults should notat least have an associatesdegree.

Work with me and othercolleges in making sure thatall o our young people andall o our adults who are un-employed or underemployedget an education, he said.


The DeKalb CountyYouth Commission, createdn 2008 by interim CEO Lee

May, is designed to provideyouth from varied socio-economic backgrounds andmulticultural neighborhoodswith opportunities to have avoice in their communities.

The program, which isn its sixth year, teaches theoles of county government

and the importance partici-pation in civic and commu-nity activities to high schooltudents. The commission is

open to all students, grades10-11, enrolled in any of thecountys high schools.

Since its inception, theprogram has sought involve-ment of DeKalb Countysyouth in the planning, devel-opment and implementation

of community activities andservices.

We believe that earlyinvolvement of our youth, inthe spectrum of governmen-tal mandates and processeswill increase their awarenessand enable them to becomemore effective leaders, Maysaid.

Selection for the DeKalbCounty Youth Commissionis based on a completed ap-plication with an essay, and areferral from a county com-missioner, school adminis-trator, teacher, counselor orcivic leader, a press releasestates.

Additionally, other fac-tors determining a studentsacceptance to the programincludes GPA, past commu-nity involvement and a pre-sentation during the inter-view process. Once they areaccepted, students remain

in the program until highschool graduation.

This years applicationlisted several goals, includingconducting peer and com-munity focus groups, host acommunity forum on DCTV,creating a youth ballot andagenda and giving presenta-tions to the DeKalb CountyBoard of Commissioners.

The youth commissionis administrated by DalePhillips, director of the Hu-man Services Division of theDeKalb County Communityand Human DevelopmentDepartment. Carolyn Frisbyis the youth commission co-ordinator.

Registration for theDeKalb County Youth Com-mission closes March 21, at5 p.m. For more informationvisit www.co.dekalb.ga.us.

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THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014 PAGE 19ABUSINESS

The Voice of Business in DeKalb CountyDeKalb Chamber of Commerce

404.378.8000 www.DeKalbChamber.org

Two Decatur Town Center, 125 Clairemont Ave., Suite 235, Decatur, GA 30030

by Kathy [email protected]

What would make todays stu-

dents sharp at mathematics? Howabout a device that dates back tomore than 2,300 years before thebirth of Jesus? The abacus, the an-cient tool for making calculationsusing rods and beads on a frame, ishe starting point for the ALOHA

Mind Math system created to train

childrens brains so that they even-ually perform calculations in theirminds without the aid of a calcula-or, abacus or pen and paper withpeed and accuracy, according to

materials published by ALOHA.Sabina Bijani, a teacher by

raining and experience, and herhusband businessman HassanBijanidecided to combine theirbackgrounds and open a businesscentered on education. We lookedat a lot of programs and decidedALOHA had what we were looking

for, so we bought a franchise andopened here in Decatur.

The couple are finding that hereducation skills and his businessskills complement each other asthey operate the learning center.ALOHA of Decatur opened in PatelPlaza in early 2013 and is doingwellbetter than we expected, ac-tually, Hassan said.

Started in Malaysia in 1993 andintroduced in the United States in

2006, ALOHAAbacus Learning ofHigher Arithmeticnow has learn-ing centers in 14 countries with atotal student enrollment of morethan 3 million.

The system, Hassan said, usesboth sides of the brainlogical andcreativeso along with math skillsyoungsters develop reasoning, lis-tening, attention, problem solving,memory and other skills that en-hance their ability to learn. Besidesthat, he added, students find itfun. They become more confident

and excited about learning.What the Bijanis, natives of Pak-

istan, say they like about ALOHAis that it doesnt just teach mathskills, it instills a passion for math.Most of the young people enrolledat ALOHA come looking for enrich-ment, they said.

Typically what were teachingis a grade level above what theyrebeing taught in the classroom, sothey excel at their classes, Hassan

said. He added that while many par-ents enroll children who are giftedlearners who want new challenges,the program is also beneficial to av-erage and struggling students.

In addition to ALOHA MindMath, the center also offer ALOHAReading/Writing. Both programsare open to students in first throughfifth grades. The programs are di-vided into 20 units and studentsprogress at their own rates. Oncestudents complete a unit, they areassessed to determine whether they

are ready to move on to the nextunit. Students may start at any pointduring the year.

Hassan noted that the benefits ofan academic enrichment programare both long-term and short-term.What the child learns now willmake him or her more competitivefor college admission and scholar-ships, but right now it simply makesschool more interesting and engag-ing, he said.

We have a student-teacher ratioof one to five, Hassan said, sostudents get a lot of individual at-tention.

He said he and his wife, who re-cently gave birth to their first child,find operating a learning center isan exciting business to be in. Weget to see children reaching theirfull potential. Located where weare, we get children from a widevariety of backgrounds, nationalitiesand ethnicities. Its wonderful to seethem all here learning together.

Couple combine skills to pursue the business of education

Businessman Hassan Bijani and his wife, educator Sabina Bijani, combined their professional backgrounds to open ALOHA, a business centered on education. Photo by Kathy Mitchell

8/12/2019 FreePress: 2-21-14

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PAGE 20A THE CHAMPION FREE PRESS, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

AUCTIONS

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ADVERTISE YOUR AUCTION inover 100 newspapers for only

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