L.E.A.R.N Foundation Inc. Celebrates Grand

Opening

On May 9th, 2023 the L.E.A.R.N. Foundation Inc. celebrated the grand opening of their new location in downtown Dallas, Ga., with a ribbon cutting ceremony held in partnership with the Paulding County Chamber of Commerce.

In addition to their new location, they have launched the Veterans Upward Bound program. Therefore, this new location will serve as a resource center for the veterans of Paulding, Polk, Bartow, Carroll, Floyd, Douglas and Haralson counties.

The L.E.A.R.N. Foundation Inc. is a nonprofit organization that has a mission to provide innovative and structured community outreach programs and activities to enhance individuals and families.

The LF wants to help veterans bridge the gap from service to scholarship, and they are able to do so with the Veterans Upward Bound Program that is a free educational program for veterans of the qualifying counties. With this new location, veterans will have access to resources to help them overcome barriers to achieve success by receiving free educational resources, first-hand experiences and community. Dr. Dalton Lemelle Jr., CEO and enlisted Air Force Veteran stated, “We will provide veterans with over 200 years of educational experience, which will allow veterans the opportunity to gain trust and obtain the academic success that they truly deserve.”

By partnering with the community, local agencies, and using additional collaborative methods like Leadership, Education, Accountability, Respect, and Nurture, the LF is able to provide resources for individual needs, self-sufficiency, and lifelong learning. The LF hopes to serve about 250 veterans and their families through the Veterans Upward Bound Program.

For more information about the Veterans Upward Bound Program, go to www.learnfoundationinc.org or call 678.428.1076.

Carroll County Schools Relocating Transportation Department as Start of New Operations Center

Carroll County Schools is relocating its transportation department and bus yard to the 26acre site of the VFW Fairgrounds as the start of a multi-phase operations center that ultimately will house the transportation, maintenance and school nutrition departments.

The entire project could take several years to fully complete, but it will begin immediately with relocation of the transportation department and bus yard from its longtime home on Horsley Mill Road.

“This is a wonderful opportunity for our system to provide much needed space for our transportation department while also preparing for future growth,” Superintendent Scott Cowart said. “We very much appreciate our Board’s foresight and their investment to improve our infrastructure.”

Cowart said the Carroll County Board of Education last year set aside $3.5 million of existing funds toward a transportation facility. The system hopes to invest an additional $1.5 million toward the project in the next budget year.

The former fairgrounds at 1625 Bankhead Highway consists of two separate parcels. The tract nearest Bankhead Highway is a 4.4 acre parcel including the old restaurant and events center not included in this purchase. The second parcel has been purchased by the school district and includes the actual fairgrounds, barns and exhibition buildings, which the school system plans to renovate into a transportation shop and office space.

The new 26-acre site is currently accessed through a driveway to Bankhead Highway, but Cowart said the school system is in negotiations with nearby property owners to gain direct access to the traffic light at Old Airport Road.

“It will be much safer for our buses and other vehicles to use the traffic light to access Bankhead Highway, and that access to a four-lane highway makes this an ideal centralized location to house our bus fleet,” Cowart said.

Assistant Superintendent of Administrative and Support Services Terry Jones said construction of the road to intersect with the traffic light will be completed first, and bus and truck traffic will use that new road to access the property.

The school system’s transportation department including mechanics shop and bus yard is now located on a 4-acre tract of what some people refer to as “the county farm.” The property is owned by Carroll County government but has been used by the school system for decades.

“The County has let us know that they would like to have this facility back for use by their public works department,” Jones said. “So this project to relocate our operations will assist them as well. We appreciate our longstanding partnership with the County and all that they do to support our school system”

Jones said the current transportation facility is an 11,000 square foot building that houses vehicle bays, shop facilities and office space for about a dozen staff people including route supervisors and dispatchers. The new site includes an existing 11,000 square foot building that will be converted into a new shop and repair facility. A separate existing 5,000 square foot building at the new site will be converted into office space for the transportation department. A third structure will be used for a bus wash station, something the current site doesn’t offer.

“We will be able to configure the new facility to be more efficient and better meet the needs of our staff,” Jones said. “Since our current facility is landlocked and owned by the county government, we are definitely limited on what we can do there.”

Jones said of a fleet of around 180 school buses, 150 are in use on a daily basis, and the task of keeping those buses staffed and running is a major operation.

Work on the connection to the traffic light at Old Airport Road should begin this summer, and Jones said he hopes the entire transportation portion of the project can be completed by the end of by early 2024.

Long-term, the property purchase will allow the school system space to relocate its maintenance and facilities department from the Burwell community to the new Bankhead Highway site, as well. There is also space for eventual relocation of the school nutrition department currently located in the basement of the Board of Education on Independence Drive.

“We are certainly excited about the opportunity to provide a modern transportation facility at a site with direct highway access for our buses,” Cowart said. “The opportunity to do more there over the long term is a definite positive, as well. When you think about the fact that our bus facility has been in the same location for multiple decades, I think this investment can also serve our system for many years to come.”

Carroll EMC Communications Spotlighted Nationally

The communications department for Carroll Electric Membership Cooperative (EMC) brought home an award in the 2023 Spotlight on Excellence Awards program, a national competition among communications and marketing professionals from America’s electric cooperatives. Carroll EMC received a Silver Award in the Best Individual Ad category for an advertisement in support of those battling breast cancer.

The annual Spotlight on Excellence Awards program, which is sponsored by the Council of Rural Electric Communicators and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), recognizes the best communication and marketing efforts by electric cooperatives and related organizations nationwide. More than 650 entries were submitted across 18 different categories, including writing, graphic design, digital communications, campaign development and more. Faculty members from the University of Missouri Columbia, as well as noted professionals in the fields of marketing and digital communications and newspapers, judged the entries.

“I am extremely proud of our communications team and the invaluable work they do each day for our co-op members,” said Jay Gill, Senior Vice President of Member and External Relations for Carroll EMC. “Their efforts deliver exceptional results, have a lasting impact and are critical to serving our community. Because of our team’s strong communication efforts, we can further the cooperative mission to promote, support and protect the community we serve.”

The department has been recognized nationally for its communications efforts more than a dozen times in the past decade through the Spotlight on Excellence Awards program. This year’s winners were recognized during NRECA’s Connect Conference held in Jacksonville, Florida, this May.

Carroll EMC is a Member-owned cooperative providing electricity to approximately 54,000 homes and businesses. The co-op serves Members in Carroll, Haralson, Heard, Paulding, Polk, Floyd and Troup counties. This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer. For more information visit the cooperative’s website at carrollemc.com or follow Carroll EMC on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn. Carroll EMC: Community Built. Community Builder.

Multi-Platinum Country Singer-Songwriter Michael Ray to Perform at WGTC’s Black Tie & Boots

The West Georgia Technical College Foundation has announced that country singer-songwriter Michael Ray will perform at its 21st annual Black Tie & Boots concert. The event will be held on Sept. 15, 2023, at West Georgia Technical College’s Murphy Campus in Waco.

Multi-platinum hitmaker Michael Ray has garnered four No. 1 songs: “Get to You,” “Think A Little Less,” “One That Got Away” and “Whiskey And Rain” and has performed at the Grand Ole Opry over 65 times. As a traditional country fan and cultured in ‘90s country, Ray is heavily influenced by qualities found in both, noting heroes such as Gary Stewart, Earl Thomas Conley, Tim McGraw and Steve Wariner.

Besides boasting a talented headliner, Black Tie & Boots offers guests the opportunity to support the WGTC Foundation while enjoying dinner, drinks, and dancing. All proceeds of the event benefit WGTC Foundation’s mission that includes supporting its gap funding program, need-based student scholarships and general institutional needs of the College.

WGTC Foundation Executive Director Brittney Henderson said she’s thankful for the continued support that has made Black Tie & Boots a successful event over the past 20 years. Last year was the most profitable Black Tie & Boots event to date, with a net profit of over $150,000 in support provided to the WGTC Foundation.

“West Georgia Tech is so fortunate to have such influential community and business leaders as advocates and supporters,” Henderson said. “We work every day to ensure we are preparing tomorrow’s skilled employees to meet the needs of these businesses and industries. Black Tie & Boots, our signature annual gala, is one way for us to recognize and thank them for that support. With food, music and fellowship, it’s a fun time for everyone.”

Opportunities for partnership are now available. Please contact Brittney Henderson at brittney. henderson@westgatech.edu or 678.664.0515. More information about Black Tie & Boots is available online at www.westgatech.edu/black-tie-boots.

West Georgia Technical College, with campuses in Carroll, Coweta, Douglas, Haralson and Troup counties and class sites in Heard and Meriwether counties, offers more than 120 associate degree, diploma and technical certificate programs of study. A unit of the Technical College System of Georgia, West Georgia Tech is the fourth largest of the state’s 22 technical colleges. For more information, please visit www.westgatech.edu.

About Michael Ray: Forged on the small stages of Florida’s rural communities, Michael Ray has created an impressive foundation. Four No. 1 songs – RIAA Platinum-certified “Think a Little Less,” RIAA Platinum-certified “Whiskey And Rain,” RIAA Gold-certified “Kiss You in the Morning,” RIAA Gold-certified “One That Got Away” -- with over 1 billion global streams, over 650,000 album equivalents, and over 150 million YouTube views, he is a true country star who’s performed at the Grand Ole Opry more than 65 times. Looking to expand his sound, Ray sought out CMA Album of the Year Award-winning producer Michael Knox. The pair have taken Ray’s brand of country to a new level for Dive Bars & Broken Hearts, Ray’s six song EP arriving June 23 via Warner Music Nashville. Currently on the road headlining shows through the summer, he’s taking his music where it matters: to the people. For more information, visit MichaelRayMusic.com or follow him on Instagram and Twitter @ MichaelRayMusic and Facebook.com/MusicMichaelRay.