Author: On Common Ground News

By Valerie J. Morgan There were a lot of questions and concerns about Georgia’s new hands-free law at the June 27 panel discussion hosted by State Rep. Doreen Carter, whose House District 92 includes parts of DeKalb and  parts of Rockdale counties.  Carter, in partnership with Pastor Eric Lee, Sr. of Springfield Baptist Church in Rockdale County, said she held the forum to inform the community about the new law, which becomes effective July 1.  Carter served on Georgia’s Distracted Driving Committee. She conducted the panel discussion with State Rep. Pamela Stephenson, who is a defense attorney; DeKalb State…

By Valerie J. Morgan Senior Connections is shutting down after 45 years of delivering meals and other programs to senior citizens throughout metro Atlanta.  DeKalb County officials say, however, the county government is contracting with vendors to ensure DeKalb seniors continue receiving services effective July 1.  Open Hand Atlanta will manage congregate and home-delivered meals. Jo Jo Home Healthcare Providers Inc. and Rem-Kits Health Care Services Inc., will handle in-home senior services. Rem-Kits Adult Day Care Services Inc.  will handle adult day care and respite services. The county’s Department of Human Services Office of Aging will provide senior center management…

The DeKalb County State Court Traffic Division is offering an amnesty program to individuals facing penalties for delinquent traffic tickets.  This waives contempt fees for failure to appear in court for individuals facing penalties due to delinquent traffic tickets. The registration period for this program ends on July 9. “The goal of our citation amnesty program is to provide individuals with open or delinquent citations an opportunity to efficiently resolve their matters and restore their driving record,” said Presiding Judge Shondeana Morris. The program is available to any individual with citations issued from January 2010 to December 2017. Court sessions…

Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04) congratulated four Redan High School graduates from the winning team for this year’s 2018 National SIFMA Capitol Hill Challenge’s Stock Market Game at his Washington, D.C. office. “These young minds deserve to be recognized and celebrated,” said Congressman Johnson, who hosted the students on June 13. “We must continue to foster all of our students’ interests in the financial market and support their efforts to become self-sufficient with their finances and their understanding of the global markets.”  The Stone Mountain team competed against thousands of students from across the country to bring the first place honor…

The DeKalb County Board of Education approved the adoption of the DeKalb County School District’s (DCSD) proposed $1.832 billion budget—including $1.097 billion for the General Fund—for the 2019 Fiscal Year on June 26 at two concurrent meetings. The proposed budget focuses DCSD’s financial resources toward transportation; an increase in school resource officers; new textbooks; the new DCSD Early Learning Academy; and two new administrative regions, among other items. Also, DCSD employees will receive a total 2.5 percent pay increase during the fiscal year and a new salary step structure for both classified and certified employees will be instituted. Salary steps…

The DeKalb County School District (DCSD) is reorganizing the leadership of its schools increasing the number of academic regional superintendents from five to seven in order to provide more support to underperforming schools.    Sean Tartt, who served for 12 years as principal of Narvie J. Harris Elementary School, and Bernetta Jones, principal of Clarkston High School, have been appointed as the two new superintendents. DeKalb’s five regions were reorganized into smaller regions and Superintendent R. Stephen Green has appointed the following leaders to the new regions: Sherry Johnson, Region 1 Superintendent;  Trenton Arnold, Region 2 Superintendent;  Sean Tartt, Region…

Avondale Estates Avondale Estates will host its Fourth of July celebration on Independence Day. The schedule of events are as follows: 9:15 a.m. –  Parade lineup at DeKalb School of the Arts, located at 1192 Clarendon Ave. 10 a.m. –  Parade begins and ends one hour later at the intersection of Clarendon Avenue and South Avondale Road Dusk – Fireworks at Lake Avondale Conyers Kick off your Fourth of July festivities on Saturday, June 30, with Conyers’ second annual Celebrate Community Parade at Conyers First United Methodist Church on Main Street at 10 a.m. Awards will be given to…

By Mackenzie N. Morgan  Volunteers from across Rockdale County and Atlanta including students, teachers, and volunteers from the Rockdale County Sheriff’s Office Explorers program teamed up to help a special group of campers learn to ride a bicycle. The iCan Bike Camp, now in its fifth year, hosted 21 campers ranging from 8 years old to 43 years old, at Memorial Middle School in Conyers June 25-29. The volunteers offered a hand spotting riders during the weeklong camp. “By Day 3, we had six riders riding on two wheels without assistance. It’s amazing to see their faces filled with such…

The Office of Youth Services is currently seeking applicants who are interested in serving on the DeKalb County Youth Commission. The Youth Commission is a leadership program that provides youth with opportunities to learn about the roles of county government, participate in civic and community activities, and represent the views of DeKalb County youth. There are currently 14 scheduled vacancies on the DeKalb County Youth Commission. To apply, applicants must be DeKalb County residents entering grades 10-12. The application deadline is Wednesday, July 18. To register, go to www.dekalbcountyga.gov/youth-services/upcoming-events and click on the “student application” graphic. For more information on…

DeKalb County Emergency Management Agency is hosting two free Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Training Workshops.  The first nine-week workshop begins on July 10 and will be held on Tuesday from 7–9:30 p.m. at DeKalb Fire Rescue Headquarters, 1950 West Exchange Place, Tucker. A second nine-week CERT workshop for the deaf and hard-of-hearing, with certified American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters, begins on July 12 and will be held on Thursdays from 7–9:30 p.m. at DeKalb Fire Rescue Headquarters. Participants of the DeKalb CERT program coordinate their response during the search and rescue exercise. Participants learn what to do before, during…