Author: On Common Ground News

 John Lewis Feb. 21, 1940- July 17, 2020 ATLANTA—A crowd of spectators gathered outside of the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church as Georgia’s Congressman John Robert Lewis’ casket arrived for his 11 a.m. homegoing celebration on Thursday, July 30. Nine soldiers from the nation’s four military branches carried the casket inside the church, where the private service was officiated by the Rev. Raphael Warnock, Ebenezer’s senior pastor and tributes were paid by four former U.S. Presidents: George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama.  The Rev. Bernice King, daughter of the late Nobel Peace prize winner, Dr.…

Photo: Brenda Cornelius via ZOOM City Council meeting, July 27, 2020 Stonecrest Mayor Jason Lary has appointed Brenda Foye Cornelius as Liaison for External Affairs to the City of Stonecrest. Cornelius, who has over two decades of leadership roles in local, state, and national politics,  has been hired as an independent contractor for the city. She will be responsible for building and maintaining working relationships with community groups and stakeholders through meetings and events, and conveying the city’s priorities to the community at large. Cornelius will earn $15,000 for six months in the amount of $2,500 monthly. The contract…

Free training will prepare students for cybersecurity jobs   ATLANTA—The National Science Foundation has awarded Georgia State University’s (GSU) Evidence-Based Cybersecurity Research Group (EBCS) nearly $300,000 for a pilot program to teach students advanced cybersecurity research skills and match them with chief information security officers (CISO), with whom they will test tools to improve organizations’ security. Sixty students from throughout the Southeast will train in the “Evidence-based Cybersecurity-Training and Mentorship Program for Students” in groups of 30 over two summers. The training is free to the students, who will also receive cost-of-living stipends. EBCS Director David Maimon leads the academic side of the…

Gov. Brian Kemp and State Superintendent Richard Woods Gov. Brian P. Kemp and State School Superintendent Richard Woods have announced that Georgia will dedicate $6 million to help school districts connect their K-12 students to the internet. Georgia has allocated $6 million of its CARES Act funding to purchase equipment for local school systems to improve connectivity options for students who do not have sufficient internet access at home. “While the internet access gap has come into sharper focus during the COVID-19 pandemic, securing connectivity for all of Georgia’s students…

State Rep. Dar’shun Kendrick (D-Lithonia) and Transforming Faith Church will host a back-to-school drive-thru giveaway event for residents of House District 93.  The event will be held on Friday, Aug. 14, 8 – 10 a.m., at Rock Chapel Elementary School in Lithonia. Participants should register by Tuesday, Aug. 11 at www.TransformingFaithChurch.com. Participants will be able to drive through the school parking lot to pick up teacher care packages and/or student study kits, while supplies last. Participants must wear masks in order to receive supplies. Rep. Kendrick will be joined by Everton Blair, Gwinnett County School Board District 4; Diijon DaCosta,…

The DeKalb County Police Athletic League (P.A.L.) Plus Unit will host a free drive-up backpack giveaway on Saturday, Aug. 1, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at Exchange Parks and Recreation Center, 2771 Columbia Drive, Decatur. Although DeKalb County schools will begin virtually this year, students still will need the tools to help them succeed, P.A.L. said in a news release. Backpacks will be given away while supplies last. For more information, visit www.dekalbcountypalplus.org or call 404-218-4734.

The Georgia Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) has partnered with the Georgia Department of Education (GaDOE) to provide an additional food benefit to needy families with children. The Pandemic-Electronic Benefit Transfer Program (P-EBT) will be issued to families who receive free or reduced school lunches, those currently receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits (SNAP, formerly known as Food Stamps) as well as needy families who are not currently receiving SNAP. The P-EBT, which will provide a one-time allotment of $256.50 per eligible child, will be issued at the end of July, along with the Pandemic SNAP assistance. The Family First Coronavirus…

Rockdale County Board of Education Vice Chairwoman Pam Brown was unanimously elected as the Georgia School Board Association (GSBA) District 4 Director, representing public school districts in Rockdale, Newton, and DeKalb counties. GSBA district directors serve three-year terms. Rockdale County Board of Education Chairwoman Mandy North commended Brown for her leadership. “We are proud of Vice Chairwoman Pam Brown on the unanimous selection by her peers to serve as GSBA’s District 4 Director, continuing the leadership of Rockdale’s school board in the region and state,” North said. “Her experience and passion for public education make her a wonderful champion for…

DeKalb County will celebrate the end of the DeKalb Virtual Career Academy (DCVA), its inaugural virtual summer youth employment program, on Friday, July 31, 10:30 a.m. to noon.  The celebration will highlight innovative strategies and concepts learned during the summer program and honor interns who participated. The celebration will be broadcast live on DCTV, Comcast Cable Channel 23 in DeKalb County.  Those without Comcast or outside of DeKalb County can watch the full event live on DCTV’s UStream page https://video.ibm.com/channel/dctv-channel-23. The county’s annual summer youth employment program was revamped into a virtual academy in response to the COVID-19 economic crisis.…