News from Barrow News-Journal

News from Barrow News-Journal - Topics from August, 2014

Demographics shifting Georgia’s voting patterns

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Sunday, August 17. 2014

Two state races coming up on Georgia’s ballot could crack the door open to the state losing its Republican majority and becoming much more Blue. Two “legacy” candidates running as Democrats are on November’s ballot and either one could eke out an upset victory, a situation that would be the first crack in the Republican foundation. ... [Full Story »]

Citizen questions Auburn council

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BarrowJournal

Friday, August 15. 2014

Two old employment separation settlement agreements were apparently at the heart of several questions by a citizen and his lawyer at a recent Auburn City Council meeting. Lawrence Wade asked the council if it had received any racial or sexual discrimination cases that involved former city police chief Paul Nadeau. Mayor Linda Blechinger told ... [Full Story »]

EOCT results mixed for Barrow County

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BarrowJournal

Thursday, August 14. 2014

Results of the 2013-2014 high school End of Course Tests (EOCT), released last week by the Georgia Department of Education, indicates a mixture of successes and challenges for the Barrow County School System. When combining the pass rate for both winter and spring EOCT administrations, Barrow County students outperformed the state in both ... [Full Story »]

Bethlehem in the red, however still plenty of reserves on hand

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BarrowJournal

Wednesday, August 13. 2014

The Town of Bethlehem ended last year by spending more money than it took in in its General Fund, but that didn’t do any appreciable damage to the community’s balance sheet. Bethlehem took in $523,600 in revenues in 2013 and spent $713,800, leaving a deficit of $190,200. But that shortfall was more than covered by the town’s healthy ... [Full Story »]

The immigration debate; no peace in Middle East

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BarrowJournal

Saturday, August 9. 2014

As thousands of mostly unaccompanied children have crossed the U.S. border from Central America, another “crisis” has been declared in the ongoing immigration debate. And with the November elections looming, both Democrats and Republicans are using the issue in what can only be called a cynical attempt to leverage for political standing. ... [Full Story »]

Winder considers hiring grant writer

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BarrowJournal

Friday, August 8. 2014

Winder’s mayor and city council are considering the benefits of hiring a grant writer. At a work session held Monday, Aug. 4, councilman Bob Dixon recommended council consider hiring a person or company to write grants on behalf of the city. Dixon said there are grants available that the city may be missing out on. “There are so many grants ... [Full Story »]

First-day enrollment down for Barrow

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BarrowJournal

Thursday, August 7. 2014

First day enrollment was down by 101 students from last year at Barrow County Schools. Matt Thompson prepared the official numbers for the Barrow County Board of Education’s August meeting, but the report was not discussed. The first day of school brought in 12,682 students this year. Drops in first day enrollment were found in all school ... [Full Story »]

BOE seeks additional SPLOST funds

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BarrowJournal

Wednesday, August 6. 2014

After discussion at a special called meeting last Thursday, Barrow County school leaders voted to approve a resolution to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot asking voters to approve a 2016 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) to issue an additional $25,000,000 in new bonds. If voters approve, the new tax, or SPLOST V, would add ... [Full Story »]

BOE seeks to extend SPLOST funds

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BarrowJournal

Wednesday, August 6. 2014

After discussion at a special called meeting last Thursday, Barrow County school leaders voted to approve a resolution to place a referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot asking voters to approve a 2016 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) to issue $25 million in new bonds. If voters approve, the new tax, or SPLOST V, would extend a one ... [Full Story »]

‘Civilian’ deaths in Gaza a misnomer

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BarrowJournal

Sunday, August 3. 2014

Forgive my lack of empathy for the so-called “civilians” being killed in Gaza by Israeli firepower. When you support a terrorist group, Hamas, as your government, you have no legitimate claim to civilian status. They die, you may die, too. That’s always been true in war. Sherman marched to the sea here in Georgia to destroy the state’s ... [Full Story »]

Entries from August 2014