Georgia Kudos

Deal recognizes Georgians for acts of heroism in public safety

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 00:39:00 +0000

Gov. Nathan Deal announced today the recipients of the Governor’s Public Safety Awards at a ceremony at the state Capitol, recognizing eight public safety professionals for acts of heroism and five for contributions to the profession. The recipients were given medallions and their names were added to the GPSA monument at the Georgia Public Safety Training Center.

“Georgia is proud to recognize our law enforcement officers and emergency responders for their commitment to Georgia’s public safety,” said Deal. “These individuals exhibit courage and dedication every day to keep us safe.”

The annual GPSA program began in 1998 to recognize the outstanding accomplishments and commitment of Georgia’s public safety community.

“We are honored to have the opportunity to pay tribute to Georgia’s public safety professionals who risk their lives daily and sacrifice time away from their families to protect our citizens,” said Timothy J. Bearden, GPSA committee chairman and GPSTC director.

The GPSA program recognizes public safety professionals in the following two categories:

Act of Heroism – Recognizes those who performed an exceptional deed which resulted in saving lives and/or protecting property.

Outstanding Contribution which Enhanced the Profession – Job performance which had an overwhelming positive effect on the overall profession.

Personnel from each discipline of public safety as well as state employees with public safety authority were eligible to receive the award. Nominations were submitted by local governments, state agencies, associations, police departments, sheriff’s offices, correctional facilities, fire departments, 9-1-1 communications, emergency medical services and emergency management agencies.

Recipients of the 2011 Governor’s Public Safety Awards are as follows:

Heroism Recipients

· Jonathan Barton, Hall County Fire Services

· J.A. Baileym, Gwinnett County Police Department

· D.J. Mitchem, Gwinnett County Police Department

· Jeremy Battle, Gordon County Sheriff’s Office

· Chad Phillips, Gordon County Sheriff’s Office

· Josh Cochran, Gordon County Sheriff’s Office

· Eric Wilkes, Georgia Department of Public Safety

· Jeff Shoemaker, Hall County Sheriff’s Office

Contribution to Profession Recipients

· Jimmie R. Murkerson, Early County Sheriff’s Office

· Tim Brogdon, South Georgia Medical Center

· John E. Harrison, Georgia Department of Public Safety

· Mark C. McLeod, Georgia Department of Public Safety

· Frederick D. Snellings, Jr., Georgia Department of Public Safety

For further details on each of the honorees, please visit the Georgia Public Safety Training Center’s web site at www.gpstc.org and click on the link marked Governor’s Public Safety Awards.

Gatorade® National Girls Soccer Player of the Year: Morgan Brian

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 26 May 2011 14:15:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- In its 26th year of honoring the nation's best high school athletes, The Gatorade Company, in collaboration with ESPN RISE, today announced Morgan Brian of Frederica Academy (St. Simons, Ga.) as its 2010-11 Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year. Brian was surprised with the news in a meeting with her teammates by Atlanta Beat (Women's Professional Soccer) and former U.S. Women's National Team defender Cat Reddick Whitehill, also a two-time Gatorade State Girls Soccer Player of the Year.

"It felt great to surprise Morgan with the Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year award and welcome her into one of the most prestigious legacy programs in high school sports," said 2004 gold medalist Cat Reddick Whitehill. "Gatorade has been on the sidelines fueling athletic performance for years, so to be recognized by a brand that understands the game and truly helps athletes perform is a huge honor for these kids."

As the recipient of the 230th Gatorade National Player of the Year trophy to be awarded since 1985, Brian becomes the first student-athlete from the state of Georgia to earn Gatorade National Girls Soccer Player of the Year honors. Only three other Georgians have earned Gatorade National Player of the Year recognition in any sport—highlighted by NBA superstar Dwight Howard of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy (2003-04, Atlanta) and 2011 WNBA Draft No. 1 pick Maya Moore of Collins Hill HS (2006-07, Suwanee).

The award, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence, but also high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, distinguishes Brian as the nation's best high school girls' soccer player. A national advisory panel comprised of sport-specific experts and sports journalists helped select Brian from more than 356,000 girls soccer players nationwide. Brian is now a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year award, to be presented at a special ceremony prior to The ESPY Awards in July.

The 5-foot-7 senior midfielder led the Knights to a 17-2-1 record and a fourth straight Georgia Independent School Association Class AA state title. Brian scored 71 goals and passed for 30 assists this past season. A two-time Gatorade Georgia Girls Soccer Player of the Year, she was the 2010 National Soccer Coaches Association of America Youth Player of the Year for club competition and the 2010 PARADE National Player of the Year. She recorded 186 goals and 95 assists in her prep soccer career, which began as an 8th grader, helping Frederica Academy to five consecutive state finals. Brian has been a regular call-up to U.S. Soccer's youth national teams, playing in the 2008 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in 2008 and captaining the U.S. U-17s squad in 2010.

Brian has maintained a 3.81 GPA in the classroom, and served as Class President from 2008-10 and Class Secretary from 2006-08. She is also a co-founder and the one of the lead fundraisers for the Many Hearts One Goal Foundation, which won an AT&T National Sportsmanship Award in 2011 for the work done to benefit the Under-17 Haitian Women's National Team displaced by that country's 2010 earthquake. Brian has also volunteered locally on behalf of Habitat for Humanity, the Relay for Life and the Manna House, providing meals for the needy. A member of her local Fellowship of Christian Athletes chapter and Sevenoseven Ministries, a faith-based youth mentoring group, she is also a licensed youth soccer coach, donating her time as an instructor for Florida's Clay County Soccer Club.

"I think she will be an important player with the U.S. Women's National Team moving forward," says Mike Dickey, Technical Advisor for U.S. Soccer. "Her brain is as good as anyone's we have playing that position right now. She's special. If she stays healthy, she's got a chance to be very influential in U.S. Soccer. Her commitment and make-up are tremendous and she continues to make great strides. There's nobody like her."

Brian has signed a National Letter of Intent to play soccer on scholarship at the University of Virginia this fall.

"Without question, Morgan is deserving of recognition as the nation's best high school girls soccer player based on her statistics on the field and the impact her accomplishments have had on Frederica Academy's success," said Gatorade Senior Vice President of Sports Marketing Jennifer Storms. "But she is also a shining example to peers and aspiring young athletes of what a leader and a student-athlete should be. She represents everything we hope for in a Gatorade Player of the Year recipient."

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by ESPN RISE and the Gatorade high school sports leadership team, which work with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

For more information on the Gatorade Player of the Year program, including nomination information, a complete list of former winners, and future announcement dates, visit the Gatorade Player of the Year web site at http://playeroftheyear.gatorade.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/GatoradePOY or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Gatorade.

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Top 20 Finalists Selected in WFN: World Fishing Network's Search for the Ultimate Fishing Town USA Presented by Eagle Claw

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 11 May 2011 15:20:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- After a nationwide vote for more than 300 towns across the USA, 20 have earned a spot in the final round of voting for WFN's Ultimate Fishing Town USA which begins today. Online voting at www.WFNFishingTown.com closes May 31 and the winner will be announced in June at a ceremony in the winning community.

In addition to national recognition, the top town will earn a $25,000 community donation for fishing-related cause(s), 10 WaveSpin Reels and a feature about their town, airing on WFN: World Fishing Network, North America's only 24/7 fishing channel. The second and third place communities will earn a $5,000 and $2,500 donations respectively.

The Top 20 towns are: Annapolis, MD; Bainbridge, GA; Baudette, MN; Boulder Junction, WI; Bradford, PA; Denver, CO; Destin, FL; Florence, AL; Gladstone, MI; Gold Beach, OR; Grand Isle, LA; Hartsel, CO; Homer, AK; Kissimmee, FL; Richmond Hill, GA; Roscoe, NY; Seward, AK ; Waddington, NY; Winthrop Harbor, IL; and Zapata, TX.

"We were overwhelmed with the heartwarming photos, videos and stories sent in support of more than 300 towns," said Shauna Gosevitz, Sr. Director of Marketing for WFN. "Communities with barely 1,000 residents earned a spot alongside highly populated cities, underscoring the unique spirit and camaraderie of anglers from destinations both large and small. It is now up to the voters to determine WFN's Ultimate Fishing Town USA ."

The promotion is being supported by Eagle Claw, proud manufacturers of fishing gear and tackle in the USA since 1925 and WaveSpin Reels, the only reel with a tangle-free guarantee. Charter Communications is supporting the contest through multiple marketing tactics. In addition, Knology will promote WFN's Ultimate Fishing Town USA in various markets and AT&T u-verse will be supporting the contest by broadcasting promo spots on their barker channel.

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Two Georgia Youth Honored for Volunteerism at National Award Ceremony in Washington, D.C.

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Tue, 03 May 2011 18:24:00 +0000

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Two Georgia students, Andrew Mirolli, 18, of Acworth and Tiffani Alexander, 13, of Covington, were honored in the nation’s capital last night for their outstanding volunteer work during the presentation of The 2011 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards. The two young people – along with 100 other top youth volunteers from across the country – received $1,000 awards as well as personal congratulations from Academy Award-winning actress Susan Sarandon at the 16th annual award ceremony and gala dinner reception, held at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History.

Drew and Tiffani were named the top high school and middle level youth volunteers in Georgia last February. In addition to their cash awards, they received engraved silver medallions and an all-expense-paid trip with their parents to Washington, D.C., for this week’s recognition events.

“The Prudential Spirit of Community honorees have seen problems in their communities and around the world and have taken action,” said Ms. Sarandon. “Their compassion to help others should give us all a lot of hope for the future.”

Drew, a senior at North Paulding High School, launched an educational and fund-raising campaign to fight poverty both locally and internationally, built around an annual “challenge week” during which teens in his community voluntarily experience poverty by living on $2 a day. Three years ago, while listening to a presentation about displaced students in Uganda, “I was personally asked, “How far would you go to help children with no voice?” said Drew. He took the question very seriously. Drew and two friends put away their cell phones and car keys, gathered firewood, and lived in the woods for five nights to see what it’s like to survive on $2 a day – the amount that 60 percent of the world lives on. “I experienced five days of headaches, an empty stomach growling, my mind not being able to concentrate, and a sore body from sleeping on the ground,” he said. Nevertheless, Drew and his friends still attended school every day, while collecting donations for a charity serving children in Uganda.

After the experience, Drew researched poverty in Georgia and, disturbed by what he found, was determined to raise money and awareness to fight poverty both at home and abroad. He formed a leadership team to help plan a second week of self-imposed poverty and fund-raising, and challenged all of the students in his school to take part. Drew and his team found homes to host “ChallengeWeek” participants, created registration and permission forms, shopped for food, and set up a nonprofit organization, Operation Poverty, and a website at www.operationpoverty.com. Forty-seven students signed up, and during the week, Drew coordinated an all-school assembly focusing on poverty in Uganda, and held class competitions for donations. Last year, 97 students from area high schools participated in the challenge and all schools throughout Paulding County collected 32,000 canned food items for a food pantry along with 750 articles of teen clothing. In addition, Drew and his team have raised $12,480, with half going to a local food pantry, and the other half helping to rebuild a girls’ dormitory in Uganda.

Tiffani, a member of the Rockdale County 4-H and a homeschooled eighth-grader, created and presided over a “bug club” for children through Prevent Child Abuse Rockdale (PCAR), a family strengthening and abuse prevention program offered at a local church. Tiffani has been volunteering with PCAR in the church’s nursery since sixth grade. “There were 197 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect in Rockdale County in 2008,” Tiffani said. “I am appalled at the thought of children being abused. I volunteer with PCAR to help combat this vicious abuse.” While she enjoyed being a nursery helper, she wanted to do more. As a teen leader in her local 4-H club, Tiffani has always been interested in entomology. So she decided to share her knowledge and appreciation of bugs with the children at the center in a club she calls “Butterflies, Beetles, and Bees, Oh My!”

After receiving permission for her club, Tiffani had to spend about three hours a week planning and organizing lessons that were age appropriate for children from 6 to 12 years old. She also caught insects in her backyard to share with the children and brought her pet beetles, Jersey and Huron. Some of the club’s activities included designing butterflies to reflect the children’s personalities, creating pictures of insects out of seeds, and learning the process of insect metamorphosis. In addition to learning how bugs affect the world and how to stay safe around them, Tiffani also attempted to teach the children to be more sensitive to one another through their gentle handling of the insects. “It is very rewarding to give back to your community,” said Tiffani. “There is no pay or accolades, just the joy of knowing that you made a difference in someone else’s life.”

“Drew and Tiffani represent young Americans who have a strong sense of community and who are dedicated to improving our neighborhoods, our nation and our world,” said John R. Strangfeld, chairman and CEO of Prudential Financial, Inc. “With great anticipation, we look forward to their future achievements as they continue to spread the spirit of community.”

More than 29,000 young people participated in the 2011 awards program last fall through schools, Girl Scout councils, county 4-H organizations, American Red Cross chapters, YMCAs and affiliates of the Points of Light Institute’s HandsOn Network. The top middle level and high school applicants in each state were selected in February, and were flown to Washington this week with their parents for four days of special recognition events.

Conducted in partnership with the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP), The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards were created 16 years ago by Prudential Financial to encourage youth volunteerism and to identify and reward young role models.

“The young women and men in America’s schools are nothing short of amazing, and nowhere is this more evident than amongst this year’s award recipients,” said NASSP President Jana Frieler. “They possess a keen intellect, servant hearts, capable leadership skills, and are filled with energy and ambition. NASSP and Prudential are honored to recognize them.”

More information about The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards and this year’s honorees can be found at http://spirit.prudential.com or www.nassp.org/spirit.

NASSP is the leading organization of and national voice for middle level and high school principals, assistant principals, and all school leaders from across the United States and more than 45 countries around the world. NASSP provides research-based professional development and resources, networking, and advocacy to build the capacity of middle level and high school leaders to continually improve student performance. Reflecting its longstanding commitment to student leadership development as well, NASSP administers the National Honor Society™, National Junior Honor Society®, National Elementary Honor Society®, and National Association of Student Councils®. For more information about NASSP, located in Reston, VA, visit www.nassp.org.

Prudential Financial, Inc. (NYSE: PRU), a financial services leader, has operations in the United States, Asia, Europe, and Latin America. Prudential’s diverse and talented employees are committed to helping individual and institutional customers grow and protect their wealth through a variety of products and services, including life insurance, annuities, retirement-related services, mutual funds, investment management, and real estate services. In the U.S., Prudential’s iconic Rock symbol has stood for strength, stability, expertise and innovation for more than a century. For more information, please visit http://www.news.prudential.com/

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UGA announces 2011 Georgia Science and Engineering Fair winners

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 17:41:00 +0000

Six-hundred-fifty Georgia middle and high school students won more than 400 awards at the 63rd Georgia Science and Engineering Fair hosted by the University of Georgia recently at the Classic Center in Athens. Prizes ranged from savings bonds and educational trips to an engraved geologist’s pick.
The highest honor, the Jackson Electric Membership Corporation Pinnacle Award, went to Spencer Wilson of Moultrie for his project “Construction of a Feasible Einstein-Szilard Refrigerated System.”

Four top students were selected to advance to the 2011Intel International Science and Engineering Fair in Los Angeles May 8-13. They are Raja Selvakumar, Alpharetta; Charles Ramey, Newton; Elliott Chung, Duluth; and Uchenna Anunobi, Conyers. Yash Mehta, Roswell, will attend as the Merial Biological ISEF Trip Observer.

Twenty-four other students selected directly from the State Affiliated Regional Fairs also will attend. These Georgia students will compete against winners from more than 1,600 high school students from all 50 states and 60countries, regions and territoriesto display their independent research.

In addition to the grand awards, entrants in the GSEF competed for prizes honoring best achievements in specific scientific areas. There were more than 100 special award donors from government, professional and educational organizations, colleges, universities, corporations and individual sponsors.

In other major prizes, Andy Kim, Athens, and Spencer Wilson, Colquitt County, were selected to represent Georgia at the 2011 National Youth Science Camp June 30-July 24 in West Virginia.

The Junior Division Student Choice Awards were new this year. Winners were selected by their sixth through eighth-grade peers.

The awards included Students’ Choice, received by Kyanna Simone Simpson, Chapel Hill Middle School. The I Never Would Have Thought of That Award was received by Austin Hyder and Trevor Ruhl, Carver Road Middle School, for “Electromagnetism of Nonmagnetic Metals Prove Lenz’s Law.” The Grossest Project Award was received by Akira Stobaeus, St. Francis Xavier School, for his project “Effectiveness of Two Different Dewormers in a Goat Population.”

Exhibits in the fair included projects in 17 categories, including animal behavior, biochemistry, engineering, physics and astronomy. Participants earned the opportunity to compete in the state fair by winning first or second place in their category in one of the 21 affiliated regional fairs.

More than 200 volunteer judges from the University System of Georgia, other institutions, contributing organizations and industry judged the projects on scientific merit and process, engineering goals, and presentation. Joe Hughes of Georgia Institute of Technology served as judging chairperson, supervising three tiers of judges.

Donors who presented awards included Christopher Hovorka with the Applied Prosthetics and Orthotics Award, Kay Parks of Jackson EMC, and Antonio Figueras with the National Aeronautics and Space Awards.

UGA has coordinated the Georgia Science and Engineering Fair since 1948. It is made possible by the support of the Jackson Electric Membership Corporation, Merial Inc., the Georgia Center for Continuing Education, Georgia Institute of Technology and dozens of other Georgia corporations and businesses.

Award	County	Student
Outstanding Sustainability Project Award	Baldwin	Kenneth Mcgill
Stockholm Junior Water Prize Regional Award - 1st Place Senior Div.	Baldwin	Kenneth Mcgill
Inspiring Excellence Award - Student	Baldwin	Geovic Jadol
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Barrow	Brooke Oxley
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Barrow	Charley Denmark
H. O. Lund Entomology Club Award 1st Place Senior	Bibb	Carolyn Krauss
American Association For Clinical Chemistry Se Region Award Junior Div.	Bibb	Kyrie Hugdahl
Ga. Academy of Aviation, Math, Engineering & Science Student of Promise, Junior Div.	Bibb	Kyrie Hugdahl
Regional Fair Director Honors Award Senior Div.	Brooks	Sunnie Dee Wynn
Merial Biotechnology Award 2nd Place Senior	Bulloch	Supriya Immaneni
National Association Of Biology Teachers Award Senior Div.	Bulloch	Supriya Immaneni
UGA Microbiology Department Award Junior Div.	Butts	Brianna Deraney
Ga. Microscopical Society Lucy B Mccrone Student Science Award Junior Div.	Camden	Irina Rochon
UGA Microbiology Department Award Senior Div.	Carroll	Jonathan Zot
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Chatham	Allen Charles Williams
National Aeronautics And Space Administration Award Junior Div.	Chatham	Allen Charles Williams
UGA Geology Department Award	Chatham	Grace Darling
American Meteorological Society Award	Chatham	Eric Lau
U.S. Air Force Achievement Award	Chatham	Eric Lau
U.S. Navy And U.S. Marine Corps Award - Senior Div.	Chatham	Eric Lau
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Chatham	Eric Lau
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Chatham	Eric Lau
U.S. Metric Association Award	Chatham	Grant Shillington
American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics Award 2nd Place Junior	Cherokee	Cameron Buice
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Junior Div.	Cherokee	Cameron Buice
Georgia Veterinary Medical Auxiliary Award	Cherokee	Kate Haruch
National Association Of Biology Teachers Award Junior Div.	Cherokee	Kate Haruch
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Cherokee	Yash Mehta
Merial Biological Isef Trip Observer Award	Cherokee	Yash Mehta
UGA Crop & Soil Sciences Department Agronomics Award Senior Div.	Cherokee	Mary Margaret Penniman
National Youth Science Camp Award	Clarke	Andrew Kim
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Clarke	Andrew Kim
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Clarke	Andrew Kim
American Water Works Association Georgia Section Award 1st Place Junior	Clarke	Evan Newman Marco Newman
UGA Warnell School of Forestry & Natural Resources Award Junior Div.	Clarke	Evan Newman Marco Newman
UGA Biomedical Health And Sciences Institute Award Junior Div.	Clarke	Angelina Choi
U.S. Navy And U.S. Marine Corps Award - Junior Div.	Clarke	Serena Mon
Inspiring Excellence Award - Student	Clayton	Quang Phuc Kieu N.
UGA Mathematics Department Award Junior Div.	Clayton	Quang Phuc Kieu N.
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Clayton	Emmanuel Ojo-Osagie
National Aeronautics And Space Administration Award Senior Div.	Cobb	Samantha Daigle
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Cobb	Caroline Poston
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Cobb	Praveen Doluweera
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Cobb	Connor Barre
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Cobb	Charles Sexton
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Cobb	James Sexton
UGA Crop & Soil Sciences Department Agronomics Award Junior Div.	Cobb	James Sexton
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Junior Div.	Cobb	James Sexton
Georgia Engineering Foundation Award Senior Div.	Colquitt	Spencer Wilson
National Youth Science Camp Award	Colquitt	Spencer Wilson
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Colquitt	Spencer Wilson
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Colquitt	Spencer Wilson
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Pinnacle Award	Colquitt	Spencer Wilson
Stockholm Junior Water Prize Regional Award - 2nd Place Senior Div.	Colquitt	Stephen Bozeman
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Colquitt	Jacob Lynch
Inspiring Excellence Award - Student	Colquitt	Jacob Lynch
Inspiring Excellence Award - Student	Coweta	Charles Ramey
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Senior Div.	Coweta	Charles Ramey
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Senior Div.	Coweta	Charles Ramey
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	Coweta	Charles Ramey
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Isef Trip	Coweta	Charles Ramey
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Coweta	Charles Ramey
Inspiring Excellence Award - Teacher	Coweta	Warren Bernard
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	DeKalb	Jessica Simon
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	DeKalb	Stephen Woolfitt
Broadcom Masters Nominee	DeKalb	Aomeng Cui
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Junior Div.	DeKalb	Kyanna Simone Simpson
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Kyanna Simone Simpson
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Student Choice Award	DeKalb	Kyanna Simone Simpson
Georgia Biogeneius Challenge Award Alternate	DeKalb	Kathleen Dinapoli
Natural Resources Conservation Service Award of Excellence Senior Div.	DeKalb	Kathleen Dinapoli
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	DeKalb	Kathleen Dinapoli
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Brian Song
Broadcom Masters Nominee	DeKalb	Conner Reinhardt
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Conner Reinhardt
Advanced Academy of Georgia - Science/Creativity Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Jonathan Yaeger
Broadcom Masters Nominee	DeKalb	Jonathan Yaeger
U.S. Navy And U.S. Marine Corps Award - Junior Div.	DeKalb	Jonathan Yaeger
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Jonathan Yaeger
Broadcom Masters Nominee	DeKalb	Sang-Chan Kim
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Sang-Chan Kim
Advanced Academy of Georgia - Science/Creativity Award Senior Div.	DeKalb	Joshua Traynelis
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	DeKalb	Joshua Traynelis
Association of Women Geoscientists Award	DeKalb	Mallory Larson
Broadcom Masters Nominee	DeKalb	William Moise
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Junior Div.	DeKalb	Alix Valcin Iii
UGA Artificial Intelligence Institute Award Junior Div.	Dougherty	Steven Feng
UGA Computer Science Department Award Junior Div.	Dougherty	Steven Feng
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Dougherty	Steven Feng
Sapps Award For Excellence in Botany 1st Place Senior	Fayette	Omar Martinez-Uribe
UGA Physics & Astronomy Department Award Junior Div.	Fayette	Matthew Harmon
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Junior Div.	Fayette	Matthew Harmon
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Fayette	Nicholas Powell
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Fayette	Jonathan Ciecka
Inspiring Excellence Award - Student	Fayette	Tommy Erbe Drew Halbert
Natural Resources Conservation Service Award of Excellence Junior Div.	Forsyth	Gabriel Shook
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Forsyth	Samantha Hudock
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Forsyth	Samantha Hudock
Regional Fair Director Honors Award Junior Div.	Forsyth	Trent Wagner Zachary Williams
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Ananth Punyala
Georgia Microscopical Society Walter C Mccrone Student Science Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Keith Jones
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Jason Lathbury
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Zoe Schneider
Georgia Biogeneius Challenge Award	Fulton	Jessica Allison
Sapps Award For Excellence in Botany 2nd Place Senior	Fulton	Jessica Allison
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Anirudh Tadanki
Spie - International Soceity for Optical Engineering Award 3rd Place	Fulton	Anirudh Tadanki
Agricultural Research Service Award for Excellence in Ag Science Senior Div.	Fulton	Raja Selvakumar
Georgia Biogeneius Challenge Award	Fulton	Raja Selvakumar
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Raja Selvakumar
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Isef Trip	Fulton	Raja Selvakumar
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Fulton	Raja Selvakumar
Spie - International Society For Optical Engineering Award 2nd Place	Fulton	Samuel Eppstein
American Meteorological Society Award	Fulton	Ja’sharee Bush
American Water Works Association Georgia Section Award 1st Place Senior	Fulton	Julia Abelsky
Broad River Watershed Association Award	Fulton	Julia Abelsky
UGA Eco-Reach Environmental Achievement Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Julia Abelsky
American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics Award 1st Place Senior	Fulton	Anthony Chen Siva Movva
Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Atlanta Chapter Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Anand Srinivasan
Prosthetics and Orthotics Wearable Technology Award	Fulton	Anand Srinivasan
UGA Artificial Intelligence Institute Award Senior Div.	Fulton	Anand Srinivasan
U.S. Air Force Achievement Award	Fulton	Anand Srinivasan
Armed Forces Communications & Electronics Atlanta Chapter Award Faculty Sponsored	Fulton	Megan Nettuno
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Junior Div.	Fulton	Nicole Izmaylov
American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics Award 2nd Place Senior	Fulton Gwinnett	Kirill Psarev Brandon Whitlatch
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 2nd Place Senior	Futon	Raja Selvakumar
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Glynn	Jason Michael Bennett Jr.
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair “Grossest Project” Award	Glynn	Akira Stobaeus
UGA Foundation Scholarship Award	Gordon	Hunter Pruitt
UGA Warnell School of Forestry & Natural Resources Award Senior Div.	Gordon	Hunter Pruitt
American Association for Clinical Chemistry Se Region Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Vivek Patel
UGA Cellular Biology Department Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Vivek Patel
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Vivek Patel
UGA Cellular Biology Department Award Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Andrew Ford
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Gwinnett	Elliott Chung
UGA Foundation Scholarship Award	Gwinnett	Shawn Albert
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Shawn Albert
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Gwinnett	Amanda Mayo
H. O. Lund Entomology Club Award 1st Place Junior	Gwinnett	Amanda Mayo
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Amanda Mayo
Ga. Academy of Aviation, Math, Engineering & Science Student of Promise Award Sr. Div.	Gwinnett	Sitan Chen
UGA Mathematics Department Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Sitan Chen
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Sitan Chen
American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics Award 1st Place Junior	Gwinnett	Marian Metzger
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Gwinnett	Marian Metzger
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Marian Metzger
American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics Award 3rd Place Senior	Gwinnett	Samuel Gauspohl; Daniel Ting
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Samuel Gauspohl; Daniel Ting
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Gwinnett	Vikram Varadarajan
U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Award - Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Vikram Varadarajan
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Andrew Ford
Intel Excellence in Computer Science Award	Gwinnett	Elliott Chung
UGA Computer Science Department Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Elliott Chung
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett	Elliott Chung
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Isef Trip	Gwinnett	Elliott Chung
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Gwinnett	Sitan Chen
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Gwinnett	D. Ryan Bhowmik
Stockholm Junior Water Prize Regional Award - Junior Div.	Gwinnett	Emma Carlson
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Gwinnett	Evann Brantley
UGA Physics & Astronomy Department Award Senior Div.	Gwinnett Jackson Gwinnett	Guillermo Bautista; He Sun Kim; Sunyoung Wang
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 2nd Place Junior	Harris	Robert "Kyle" Newman
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 2nd Place Junior	Henry	Darius Cleary
National Aeronautics and Space Administration Award Junior Div.	Houston	Jacob Elliott
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Houston	Kenny Higginbotham
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Junior Div.	Houston	Kenny Higginbotham
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Houston	Cullen Shope
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Houston	Justin Saetina
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Houston	Sabina Banit
Agricultural Research Service Award for Excellence in Ag Science Junior Div.	Houston	Shivani Dhir
Georgia Health Sciences University Award	Paulding	Jamie Bingham
Merial Biotechnology Award 1st Place Senior	Paulding	Jamie Bingham
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Isef Trip Alternate	Paulding	Jamie Bingham
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Paulding	Jamie Bingham
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Pin Design Award	Rabun	Sarah Barr
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Rockdale	Alexis Mack
Spie - International Society For Optical Engineering Award 1st Place	Rockdale	Ana Sofia Tuttle
U.S. Air Force Achievement Award	Rockdale	Ana Sofia Tuttle
Outstanding Sustainability Project Award	Rockdale	Faustine Li
UGA Biomedical Health And Sciences Institute Award Senior Div.	Rockdale	Lauren Reagin
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 1st Place Senior	Rockdale	Uchenna Anunobi
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Rockdale	Uchenna Anunobi
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair/Jackson Emc Isef Trip	Rockdale	Uchenna Anunobi
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Rockdale	Uchenna Anunobi
Georgia Biogeneius Challenge Award Alternate	Rockdale	Vander Harris
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Senior Div.	Rockdale	Vander Harris
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Grand Award Top Ten State Recognition	Rockdale	Vander Harris
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best In Category Award Junior Div.	Rockdale	Carlan Ivey
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Rockdale	Mai Nguyen
Georgia Engineering Foundation Award Junior Div.	Rockdale	Mai Nguyen
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Junior Div.	Rockdale	Mai Nguyen
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair “I Never Would Have Thought of That” Award	Spalding Pike	Austin Hyder; Trevor Michael Ruhl
Merial Biotechnology Award 2nd Place Junior	Thomas	Jacob Rieber
Iota Sigma Pi Promethium Chapter Award - Women in Chemistry Junior Div.	Walton	Christina To
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 1st Place Junior	Walton	Christina To
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Walton	Christina To
Georgia Science & Engineering Fair Best in Category Award Junior Div.	Walton	Christina To
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Walton	Claudia Gaither
Merial Biotechnology Award 1st Place Junior	Walton	Annie Miller
American Chemical Society Georgia Section Award 3rd Place Senior	Washington	Elizabeth Layton
Iota Sigma Pi Promethium Chapter Award - Women in Chemistry Junior Div.	Washington	Elizabeth Layton
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Washington	Meghan Toler
Broadcom Masters Nominee	Washington	Stariel Oberry

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SCAD Wins 7th Equestrian National Championship

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 13:39:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- The Savannah College of Art and Design equestrian team captured their seventh American National Riding Commission's National Intercollegiate Equitation Championship that was held April 15-17 at the Ronald C. Waranch Equestrian Center.

The Bees have also won ANRC team titles in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010, making 2011 four-in-a-row. Members of the team were Kelse Bonham, Paul Frederick and Caroline Ingalls. SCAD also had two other riders - Lydia Todd and Henrietta Armstrong - compete as individuals.

The championship was divided into three phases – dressage sportif, hunter trials equitation, and hunter seat. The dressage sportif portion counted 40 percent of the total score while the hunter trials equitation and hunter seat equitation counted 30 percent each.

SCAD's Kelse Bonham bested 34 other riders to defend her individual title that she won in both 2009 and 2010. It's the sixth time a SCAD rider has won the individual title in the event. Armstrong also was named reserved individual champion in the event. It's the first time in the program's history that the Bees claimed the top two honors at the event.

SCAD's team in the novice division were also named reserve champions. Members of the novice team included. Taylor Brown, Hayley Bolton and Erin Hickey. Annie Patterson also competed for the Bees as an individual in the novice division.

SCAD returns to action May 5 when the Bees will compete in the IHSA National Championship in Lexington, Ky.

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Mountain View High wins Northrop Grumman scholarship in UGA TEAMS competition

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 13:25:00 +0000

A team of students from Mountain View High School in Gwinnett County was awarded a Northrop Grumman scholarship in the Junior Engineering Technical Society’s 2011 Tests of Engineering, Aptitude, Mathematics and Science competition recently hosted by the University of Georgia.

Teams from Gwinnett School of Math, Science and Technology and Heritage High School joined the Mountain View High team in the academic competition that had the theme “Smart Energy. Clean Planet.”

The Northrop Grumman scholarship will fund TEAMS conference registration fees for Mountain View High.The Northrop Grumman Corporation is a leading global security company that provides innovative systems, products and solutions in aerospace, electronics, information systems, shipbuilding and technical services to government and commercial customers worldwide

“TEAMS brings math and science to life for students, fostering creativity, critical thinking, teamwork and problem solving,” said John Mativo, an assistant professor in the College of Education’s department of workforce education, leadership and social foundations, and a member of theUGA Faculty of Engineering, who co-directed the competition.

The event featured high school students, grades nine to 12, participating in teams of four to eight members, using real-world applications of math and science to solve some of today’s greatest engineering challenges. There were two parts: a 90-minute, 80-multiple choice question session, and a 90-minute, open-ended, four-question session.

Approximately 30 participating students also saw demonstrations of and interacted with robotics in a presentation by Chi Thai, an associate professor in the department of biological and agricultural engineering and member of the faculty of engineering who co-directed the event. They also learned about and participated in the creation of a virtual reality scenario by Kyle Johnsen, a member of the UGA Faculty of Engineering. Cindy Crawford, a representative of the UGA Admissions Office, also made a presentation.

The TEAMS event was assisted by Nancy Vandergrift, a program coordinator with the UGA Office of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Education and six UGA students from the department of workforce education, leadership and social foundations.

More than 14,000 students across the country participate annually in TEAMS competitions. Questions are aligned with national education standards. UGA is one of two sites hosting the competition in Georgia. The other site is the Atlanta University Center. The next Junior Engineer Technical TEAMS competition will be hosted at UGA on Feb. 22, 2012.

TEAMS competition site sponsors include Harvard University, Itasca Community College, National Education Partnership Alliance, Shell and Starbucks.

For more information about TEAMS, see www.jets.org/teams/. For more information about Northrop Grumman, see www.northropgrumman.com/. For more information about UGA College of Education see www.coe.uga.edu/.

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Congressman John Lewis to Receive the 2011 Louis E. Martin Great American Award from Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 16:33:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- The Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies has announced that it will honor U.S. Representative John Lewis (D-GA) with the 2011 Louis E. Martin Great American Award at its Annual Dinner on May 3 at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Washington.

Congressman Lewis will be recognized for more than 50 years of active service to the cause of human rights, civil liberties and the strengthening of the American community.

The award, named after the legendary journalist, presidential advisor and co-founder of the Joint Center, honors an individual who exemplifies Louis Martin's passion for justice, compassion and the bridging of racial and ethnic divides. Previous award recipients include former Presidents Jimmy Carter and William J. Clinton, Congressmen James E. Clyburn and Charles B. Rangel, Muhammad Ali, lawyer and civil rights leader Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., the late civil rights activist Dr. Dorothy I. Height, and the Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.

A member of the U.S. Congress for nearly a quarter-century, Congressman Lewis first came to national attention as one of the top figures in the civil rights movement, as well as an architect of and keynote speaker at the historic 1963 March on Washington. He has served in the House leadership as Senior Chief Deputy Whip for the Democratic Party since 1991 and has been a leading voice on a wide range of domestic and international issues. He has been referred to as "the conscience of the U.S. Congress" and "a genuine American hero and moral leader."

In announcing the selection, Joint Center President and CEO Ralph B. Everett cited Congressman Lewis' legendary courage and leadership in the struggle for full voting rights. "His refusal to flinch in the face of extreme adversity left an indelible mark on our history, and sent an unforgettable message to the world on the intrinsic value of the right to vote and the scope of sacrifice that is often necessary to secure it," he said.

"Today, Congressman Lewis continues to lead by example, working for racial harmony and to inspire all Americans to make the most of their right to engage in the nation's political and civic affairs," he added.

"Congressman Lewis fits well into the pantheon of leaders whom the Joint Center has recognized over the years with this high honor," said Roderick D. Gillum, Chair of the Joint Center's Board of Governors. "Few people in history have contributed more to helping America live up to its cherished ideals, and the difference he has made throughout his career is something that all of us can see and feel in our everyday lives."

Hosted by the Joint Center each year for more than a quarter century and with this year's theme of Forward Together – Engaging Our Future, the Annual Dinner is the organization's major fundraising event of the year and provides an opportunity for a broad range of elected officials, business, civic and community leaders from across the country to celebrate the success of the Joint Center and its impact on the lives of all Americans.

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UGA education researchers receive national award for developing measurement of math problem-solving skills

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 13:13:00 +0000

A team of University of Georgia education researchers has received a national award for the development of a statistical method for measuring the growth of students’ problem-solving skills in mathematics. This new method enables researchers to simultaneously measure both the different ways that students can reason about individual questions on a mathematics test and their overall growth in mathematics ability.

The researchers were named recipients of the 2011 Award for an Outstanding Example of an Application of Educational Measurement Technology to a Specific Problem from the National Council on Measurement in Education.

The team included UGA College of Education professors Allan Cohen, director of the Georgia Center for Assessment, and Seock-Ho Kim; lead author Sun-Joo Cho, a UGA doctoral graduateand assistant professor of educational psychology at Vanderbilt University; and Brian A. Bottge, the William T. Bryan Endowed Chair in Special Education and Rehabilitation Counseling at the University of Kentucky.

Current methods for detecting growth of students’ skills in math by score-level analysis may fail to reflect subtle changes that might be evident at the item level, said Cohen.This new method combines an analysis of individual performance on each test question, coupled with methods that provide a deeper analysis of the differences in reasoning that students use to answer each test question.

The team published two articles in 2010 describing how item-level changes could be measured using data from a multiwave experiment with a teaching method called Enhanced Anchored Instruction. EAI is a method specially designed for developing the math skills of low-achieving adolescents, including students with learning disabilities in math.

One article, “Latent Transition Analysis with a Mixture Item Response Theory Measurement Model,” appeared in the journal, Applied Psychological Measurement. A second article, “Detecting Cognitive Change in the Math Skills of Low-Achieving Adolescents,” was published in the Journal of Special Education.

The award will be presented to Cohen and his group at the NCME’s annual conference in April in New Orleans.

For more information on the UGA College of Education see http://www.coe.uga.edu/.

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Dalton Driver Examiner Honored for Customer Service

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 01:05:00 +0000

Receives Examiner of the Year Award from National Organization

The Department of Driver Services (DDS) announced today that Mary Dillard, a Dalton native, has been named Georgia’s Examiner of the Year by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA).

Mary is a manager in the Dalton, Whitfield County, Customer Service Center (CSC) and has been serving customers there for over 21 years. She was selected for her excellence in adhering to the principles and recommended practices of driver examining and for a high level of conduct in her profession.

“I proudly commend Mary for receiving this award. It is fitting that she should be honored for serving the citizens of the State while upholding and demonstrating the highest standard of dedication to customer service,” said DDS Commissioner Gregory C. Dozier. “It is apparent to all who know her that she loves caring for people and helping others,” he added.

Mary began her state service at the Dalton center as a driver examiner on June 30th, 1990. DDS driver examiners are responsible for all driver’s license issuance procedures and regulations including receiving applications for and issuing Georgia driver's licenses. After several promotions, Mary has been managing the Dalton office since November 1st, 2009. As a center manager, Mary is responsible for the daily operation of the center. DDS District Manager Sheila Miracle has worked with Mary for a number of years and commented, “Mary is always willing to help whenever she is needed. She regularly sacrifices personal time to ensure that the Dalton center is operating smoothly and is in tip top shape!”

Miracle joined with the other DDS center managers in the Dalton area to nominate Mary for promoting the DDS core values of Communication, Accountability, Respect and Ethics (CARE). Mary works diligently and professionally to ensure that each customer feels valued. She frequently assists special needs customers with patience and compassion.

Mary has lived in Dalton all her life. She is very active at Liberty Baptist Church, where she is a church matron. Mary, her brother and sister all spend time caring for their 89 year old mother, Emma Barksdale. In her spare time, she loves to cook and read books.

Georgia Lake Sturgeon Restoration Project Receives National Recognition

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 17:24:00 +0000

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division is one of four states recently recognized by the American Fisheries Society’s Fisheries Administrator’s Section for their efforts to provide the public with quality fishing opportunities and aquatic education programs. Other state agencies recognized include the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

“We had some excellent projects submitted for consideration this year and it is clear that state agencies are responding to both the needs of the anglers and the fish with Sport Fish Restoration Program funds” said Doug Nygren, president-elect of the American Fisheries Society’s Fisheries Administrators Section and the chief of fisheries for the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.

The Fisheries Administrator’s Section annually recognizes outstanding fisheries conservation projects and programs that are funded from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Sport Fish Restoration program, commonly known as the Wallop- Breaux or Dingell-Johnson grant program. The projects receiving recognition were selected from a score of outstanding proposals submitted from several state fisheries agencies.

Georgia received the “2010 Outstanding Sport Fish Restoration Access Award- Lake Sturgeon Reintroduction in Georgia.” This project benefits anglers in Georgia and Alabama with its far sighted and far reaching efforts to re-establish lake sturgeon in the Coosa River system.

Historically, the Coosa River supported a population of this prehistoric looking game species. However, none have been documented since about 1970. While the exact cause of the decline of this species in Georgia is not known, biologists believe that intense stocking efforts will result in a self-sustaining population in the future.   Lake sturgeon eggs are provided by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Warm Springs Hatchery in Georgia. Sturgeons have a slow growth rate, so biologists do not expect to allow anglers to harvest any fish until 2027. In addition to stocking, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources has also implemented an aggressive outreach effort to involve local school children with the project.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Sport Fish Restoration Program has provided more than $6 billion to state fisheries agencies since the program’s inception in 1950. The program provides critical funding to state agencies for their fisheries conservation and management programs. Additional information on this program can be found at http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/Subpages/GrantPrograms/SFR/SFR.htm.

The American Fisheries Society is the nation’s leading organization of professional fisheries scientists. Its membership includes fisheries scientists from all 50 states as well as international members.

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Georgia Youth Named National Epilepsy Spokesperson

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 15:31:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- Marie Mayhan, 12, of Lilburn, Ga., will travel to Washington, D.C. to raise awareness about epilepsy and how it affects the life of a child who experiences seizures. Mayhan will participate in the Epilepsy Foundation's annual Kids Speak Up! event from March 27 through March 29, and become a part of the democratic process to make a difference for the nearly 3 million people coping with the disorder.

Kids Speak Up! is a national program that rallies young ambassadors with epilepsy between the ages of 8 and 18 to become advocates in their local communities and in the nation's capital. Their mission is to personally petition congressional leaders for aid in assuring better access to care, improved public education and awareness about epilepsy and more research toward a cure.

As one of 45 Kids Speak Up! spokespersons, Mayhan will participate in a three-day training to learn more about epilepsy, develop her public speaking skills, and learn the importance of advocacy. The highlight of the trip will be a meeting with her state representative.

"Children like Marie who experience seizures are often treated differently in their community and feel shunned by their peers," said Rich Denness, president and CEO of the Epilepsy Foundation. "Kids Speak Up! is vital because it connects youth who share the same dreams and face the same challenges, and it empowers the leaders of tomorrow."

Epilepsy is the most common neurological condition in children. It affects more than 326, 000 children under the age of 15 and each year approximately 45,000 children under age 15 are diagnosed with the disorder.

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Gwinnett County Commission Chair Candidate Will Costa Receives the George Washington Honest Government Award

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 23 Feb 2011 20:23:00 +0000

Gwinnett County Commission Chair hopeful Will Costa is honored for his life-long commitment to honest government by the State of Georgia Tea Party, LLC. The award is given to candidates that best embrace an understanding of our Founding Father principles of limited and honest government.

“The only legitimate function of government is to protect the Freedom and Liberty of the People. This is especially true of state and county governments, because these political entities are the most important to guarantee our Freedom and individual Liberty. Most citizens focus on the federal government apparatus, but county government touches the citizen far more intimately than the federal government. Gwinnett County is a large taxing authority that maintains dominion over your health and welfare in your home. We must control the growth of county government and nurture Freedom and Liberty at the grassroots level to truly achieve Freedom and Liberty.” Costa said.

Costa received an “A++” rating for his pledge of honest government.

Since May 2010, the State of Georgia Tea Party, LLC, a grass roots Tea Party services organization, has worked to give a voice to constitutional and fiscal conservatives living with the inspiration of the Founding Fathers. The organization has led a statewide movement to help elect constitutional and fiscally responsible Conservatives.

“I intend to make transparency in county government real. I will open the political process so that more Gwinnett citizens have ownership in their county government and as Chairman I want all to know their voices will be heard. I will shrink the size and scope of the Gwinnett County government without causing chaos in the institutions that protect our Life and Property -- the fire and police departments,” Costa says. “I’ll let the County Sheriff and Fire Chief determine the resources they need to protect the Life and Property of our citizenry and I will protect their Liberty by cutting non-essential government.”

Costa is the only candidate that has spent a lifetime in private industry and political advocacy. Costa served as the Legislative Director for the Libertarian Party assessing the impact of legislation on the Freedoms and Liberty of the citizens of Georgia. As Chairman of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners, Will Costa will bring this vast knowledge and experience to serve all the citizens of Gwinnett County.

The State of Georgia Tea Party, LLC is proud to name Will Costa as our George Washington Honesty in Government Award recipient on behalf of the citizens of Gwinnett County Georgia.

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Publix Closely Eyeing Students’ Recruiting Ideas

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Fri, 11 Feb 2011 16:35:00 +0000

The ideas two Whitewater High students from Fayette County have for getting more Generation X and Y persons to apply for positions at Publix Supermarkets have captured the attention of the company’s top brass.

DECA students Yanna Banks and Lia Poulson are one of three teams, and the only one in Georgia, to make it through to the third and final round in the Publix Brand Champion Challenge, a competition open to DECA students that involves creating a fully integrated marketing program to attract 16-25 year-old applicants to the stores. DECA is a student organization that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management.

Publix is flying the students to its headquarters in Lakeland, Florida, all expenses paid, to make a formal presentation to top officials in March or April. The judges will pick first, second and third place teams, and award them cash and prizes totaling over $3,000 to more than $4,000.

The students began the competition by submitting a 10-minute video of their ideas based on a hypothetical budget of $250,000. Their video earned them one of 12 team semi-finalist spots along with an opportunity to submit a written plan of their employment branding program.

Having made the cut to round three, team Yanna and Lia are already winners, but they are ready to give their live presentation and nail first place in the competition.

“All three of these teams are special to be able to beat out the competition. Congratulations on their hard work and strong results. They should be proud of themselves,” says Patti Breckenridge, recruiting manager for Publix Supermarkets.

The Publix Brand Champion Challenge was open to students in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

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Georgia's Fayette County High Wind Ensemble Invited to Perform at Clinic

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 15:33:00 +0000

The Fayette County High Wind Ensemble has the honor of being the only out-of-state school invited to perform at the 34th Annual University of South Carolina Band Clinic in February.

The ensemble is one of three invited as guest performers; the other two are local bands from Columbia, South Carolina. Fayette County High’s wind ensemble will perform “Toccata Marziale” by Ralph Vaughan Williams, “Ballade” by Darren Jenkins, “Third Symphony, Mvt. 4 Finale” by James Barnes, “Strange Humors” by John Mackey, and “The Black Horse Troop” by John Philip Sousa edited by Fredrick Fennell.

The performance will take place at the Koger Center Concert Hall in Columbia, South Carolina on February 19 at 1:30 p.m.

Since its inception, the school’s wind ensemble has received numerous invitational performances, including the University of Georgia’s January High School Music Festival in 2010 and the Georgia Music Educators In-Service Conference in 2009.

Dr. Myra Rhoden is the director of the Fayette County High Wind Ensemble.

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Music by UGA faculty, student and alumnus to be featured at Super Bowl

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 15:12:00 +0000

The Declaration of Independence, a film created for broadcast before Super Bowl XLV on Feb. 6, features a score by Steve Dancz, University of Georgia professor and director of the Jazz Studies program in the Hugh Hodgson School of Music.

The score, which features UGA master’s student Chuck Arnold as trumpet soloist, will be released on iTunes this week as “Declaration Anthem.”

UGA alumnus Ben Leathers served as an assistant to Dancz on the score. Leathers, who earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a music business certificate in 2008, took several improv courses with Dancz. Prior to the Super Bowl, Leathers’ latest credit was as an orchestrator on the feature film, Rabbit Hole, starring Nicole Kidman.

“The Declaration of Independence” features an introduction and perspective from retired Army Gen. Colin Powell and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. It was filmed at The Rotunda for the Charters of Freedom at The National Archives in Washington, D.C., home of the Declaration of Independence.The reading features current and former NFL players reading excerpts from the document, with participants chosen for their extraordinary service to team and country.

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Rees Named Georgia SAR Teacher of the Year

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 13:52:00 +0000

The Georgia Society Sons of the American Revolution has selected a Fayette County middle school teacher as their Georgia Teacher of the Year for the second consecutive time.

Salli Rees, an eighth grade Georgia history teacher at J.C. Booth Middle School in Peachtree City, has been selected from a pool of exemplary middle and high school history teachers throughout the state, both public and private, as an example of whose instruction on the Revolutionary War demonstrates educational efforts in the classroom that exceed and excel above current and accepted curriculum requirements. She will receive her award at a special program on February 5.

As the state winner, Rees will represent Georgia at the national competition for the Tom & Betty Lawrence American History Teacher Award. The national winner will receive an all expenses paid trip to one of four seminars. Each seminar provides a professional education opportunity to an educator who will bring back to the classroom a heightened level of creativity and enthusiasm about the American Revolutionary era.

Last year the Georgia Veterans of Foreign Wars named Rees the Georgia Citizenship Education Teacher of the Year for middle schools.

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Radio Disney AM 590 Atlanta and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia Announce Winners of the 'Get Active Get Fit!' School Challenge

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 14:20:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- Radio Disney AM 590 Atlanta, part of the number one radio network for kids, tweens and families, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia (BCBSGa) announce the winners of the "Get Active Get Fit!" School Challenge. The 20 Georgia schools with the highest percentage of participation in the program have won a special dance party hosted by Radio Disney AM 590. In addition, five schools were awarded new gym equipment valued at $500 for being the first to sign up and complete the program.

The "Get Active Get Fit!" School Challenge was designed to motivate kids and families to achieve fitness together by engaging in fun activities. The program has been implemented in more than 150 elementary schools in 127 districts throughout the Fall 2010, furthering a commitment to encourage a healthy and active lifestyle among 61,000 of Georgia's school-age children.

The winning schools with the highest percentage of participation are:

Adrian School of Performing Arts	Emanuel County
Bacon County Elementary	Bacon County
Brookview Elementary	Fulton County
Burnette Elementary	Gwinnett County
Cusseta Road Elementary	Muscogee County
Edgewood Elementary	Muscogee County
Glen Haven Elementary	Dekalb County
Hannah Academy	Muscogee County
Hubbard Elementary	Monroe County
Lake Oconee Academy	Greene County
Lamar County Primary School	Lamar County
Marlow Elementary	Effingham County
Social Circle Elementary	Social Circle City
Social Circle Primary	Social Circle City
South Dodge Elementary	Dodge County
Stonewall Tell Elementary	Fulton County
Tolbert Elementary	Gordon County
Venetian Hills Elementary	Atl Public Schools
Whitesburg Elementary	Carroll County
Whitlow Elementary	Forsyth County

The schools awarded new gym equipment are:

Lamar County Primary School	Lamar County
Social Circle Primary	Social Circle City
South Dodge Elementary	Dodge County
Stonewall Tell Elementary	Fulton County
Venetian Hills Elementary	Atl Public Schools

"It is truly amazing to see how many schools participated in this challenge," said Morgan Kendrick, President, BCBSGa. "They are all winners and we couldn't be more thrilled with the incredible success that Radio Disney's 'Get Active Get Fit!' program has experienced in engaging Georgia's children in healthy fitness activities."

Nearly 500,000 students nationwide signed up to participate in the "Get Active Get Fit!" School Challenge in states including California, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Missouri, Upstate New York, Virginia, and Wisconsin. For Radio Disney, the network's involvement in the program demonstrates its commitment to inspiring healthier lifestyles for kids and families supporting Disney's Magic of Healthy Living effort.

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The Top 20 Most Frugal Cities of 2010 Revealed

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:25:00 +0000

(BUSINESS WIRE)--Attention, shoppers: Atlanta residents are saving more money than you are. When it comes to whittling down that grocery bill and tackling rising food prices, Atlantans are doing it best by using coupons.

“Especially in the South and Midwest, shoppers know how to keep their pennies in their pockets, racking up substantial savings throughout the year.”

For the second year in a row, Atlanta takes the top spot on the ‘Most Frugal U.S. Cities’ list, according to the 2010 Savings Index1 released today by Coupons.com, the premiere Web destination for coupons and savings. On average, regular users of Coupons.com in Atlanta printed more than $1000.00 dollars in coupon savings from the site in 2010. That is almost twice as much as during 2009, when they printed $531 in savings.

Tampa cashed in with coupons and maintained its position as the city with the second most savings. On average, regular users of Coupons.com in Tampa printed $863.00 in savings. Following on the savings heels of Atlanta and Tampa are, in order, Cincinnati, Saint Louis and Minneapolis, according to the Index.

“Across the country Americans are incorporating couponing into their shopping routine to alleviate rising food costs and keep their grocery bill in check,” said Jeanette Pavini, Coupons.com household savings expert. “Especially in the South and Midwest, shoppers know how to keep their pennies in their pockets, racking up substantial savings throughout the year.”

The South is a mega-saver: more than one-third of the top 20 frugal cities are in the Southern region of the United States. In addition to Atlanta and Tampa, other Southland cities on the list include Charlotte (#6), Nashville (#7), Raleigh (#10), Oklahoma City (#13), Miami (#13) and Dallas (#14).

Once again, Ohio is the country’s most frugal state. The Buckeye state is represented three times on the ‘Most Frugal U.S. Cities’ list – Cincinnati (#3), Cleveland (#8) and Columbus (#19).

North Carolina is Ohio’s biggest challenger, climbing the penny-pinching ladder with two cities in the top 10: Charlotte and Raleigh.

For the first time it was raining green in the Pacific Northwest as Seattle (#18) joined the list. Seattle is the only city on the West Coast that made the cut.

In 2010, regular users of Coupons.com hailing from the top 20 most frugal cities printed or added more than $1023.00 in savings to their store loyalty cards, which is almost twice the amount from 2009 of $535.00. Nationwide, more than $1.2 billion in savings was printed or saved to loyalty cards from Coupons.com and the Coupons.com network during 2009.

The Top 20 couponing cities are below.

2010 Rank	Change Since 2009	City	State	Savings Index
1	—	Atlanta	GA	997
2	—	Tampa	FL	569
3	—	Cincinnati	OH	497
4	—	Saint Louis	MO	420
5	—	Minneapolis	MN	329
6	↑ 1	Charlotte	NC	303
7	↓ 1	Nashville	TN	291
8	—	Cleveland	OH	289
9	—	Pittsburgh	PA	250
10	↑ 1	Raleigh	NC	235
11	↓ 1	Kansas City	MO	233
12	↑ 3	Washington	DC	207
13	↓ 1	Miami	FL	202
14	↑ 4	Dallas	TX	198
15	↓ 2	Oklahoma City	OK	198
16	↓ 4	Boston	MA	192
17	—	Denver	CO	170
18	↑ 5	Seattle	WA	153
19	↑ 1	Columbus	OH	147
20	↓ 1	Wichita	KS	146

Table 1: Top 20 Frugal U.S. Cities

Most On-the-Go Frugal U.S. Cities

Super-savers are tapping into savings via mobile apps for their cell phones, including Coupons.com’s Grocery iQ and the Coupons.com mobile apps.

When it comes to saving on-the-go, the citizens of Atlanta have the most frugal fingertips, based on use of the Coupons.com apps according to the Index2, which is reflected in the city’s top position on the Most On-the-Go Frugal Cities list in Table 2. The rest of the South is also smart when it comes to cellular savings. In fact, the South is home to 10 cities represented on the top 20 cities using mobile apps to access, browse, print and save coupons.

“More and more, people are taking advantage of coupons using mobile devices,” comments Pavini. “People are not just clicking for coupons from their computer, they are accessing them on-the-go and even at the supermarket.”

Some cities have a higher propensity to access coupons via mobile phones. For instance, savers in Oklahoma City, New Orleans, Las Vegas and Philadelphia are quick to look to their mobile device to maximize savings and advance on the On-the-Go list relative to their position on the ‘Most Frugal U.S. Cities’ list.

While they’re on the couponing wagon, Minneapolis, Cleveland and Seattle missed the mobile train: these cities ranked high on ‘Most Frugal U.S. Cities’ list, but each moved down several pegs on the On-the-Go list.

Top 20 Most On-the-Go Frugal Coupon Cities are below.

2010 Rank	City	State	Savings Index
1	Atlanta	GA	906
2	Tampa	FL	531
3	Saint Louis	MO	490
4	Cincinnati	OH	374
5	Oklahoma City	OK	363
6	Dallas	TX	282
7	Charlotte	NC	280
8	Pittsburgh	PA	246
9	Tulsa	OK	241
10	Miami	FL	238
11	Minneapolis	MN	235
12	Washington	DC	232
13	Nashville	TN	226
14	Raleigh	NC	222
15	Wichita	KS	219
16	Kansas City	MO	214
17	New Orleans	LA	198
18	Cleveland	OH	196
19	Denver	CO	177
20	Memphis	TN	165

Table 2: Top Frugal U.S. Cities - Mobile

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GeoVax Labs CSO Dr. Harriet L. Robinson to be Honored at 2011 Georgia Bio (GaBio) Community Awards Ceremony

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:13:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- Harriet L. Robinson, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer at GeoVax Labs, Inc. (OTCQB/OTC Bulletin Board: GOVX), a biotechnology company that creates, develops and tests innovative HIV/AIDS vaccines, is one of three recipients of the 2011 Georgia Bio (GaBio) Community Awards. Dr. Robinson will be honored at the GaBio Annual Awards Dinner to be held Thursday, January 20 at Atlanta's Fox Theater.

Dr. Robinson is the developer of GeoVax's HIV-1 AIDS vaccine technology. One of the world's leaders in AIDS vaccine research, she was Chief of the Division of Microbiology and Immunology at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center and the Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Emory University before joining GeoVax, of which she is a co-founder.

Dr. Robinson's early work with HIV vaccines demonstrated that DNA alone would likely not be sufficient to raise protective immunity for HIV. She combined DNA with protein boosters or live viral-vectored boosters to show that effective control might be achieved through a combination of DNA prime and viral-vectored boosters. It is these vaccines that GeoVax licensed for commercial development and now has in Phase 2 clinical trials. Dr. Robinson received her B.A. from Swarthmore College and her PhD in Microbiology from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Commenting on the award, Robert T. McNally, Ph.D., President and CEO of GeoVax, said, "We are delighted that Georgia Bio has seen fit to honor Harriet this year. We at GeoVax have long been aware of her extraordinary talents, and we are lucky to have her on staff as we continue to pursue the development of our preventative and therapeutic HIV vaccines."

Each year, Georgia Bio recognizes individuals, companies or institutions for significant contributions to Georgia's life sciences industry with its GaBio Community Awards. Georgia Bio (www.gabio.org) is a private, non-profit association representing nearly 300 pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device companies, medical centers, universities, research institutes, medical centers, government groups and other business organizations involved in the development of products that improve health and well-being of people animals and the environment.

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Jim Lientz Honored for Service in Governor’s Office

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 02:51:00 +0000

Former state Chief Operating Officer Jim Lientz has been named a 2010 Purpose Prize Fellow by Civic Ventures. Lientz was recognized as a social entrepreneur over 60 who, in his encore career, used his experience and passion to make an extraordinary impact on society’s biggest challenges. Now in its fifth year, the six-year, $17 million Purpose Prize program is the nation’s only large-scale investment in social innovators in the second half of life.

Lientz was named a Fellow due to his time serving as Georgia’s COO, where he helped Governor Sonny Perdue create a customer friendly, people-oriented state government through the leadership, management, and supervision of state departments, agencies, and their respective boards and commissions. Lientz was instrumental in Georgia’s growth as a best managed state including recognition from the Pew Center on the States and Governing magazine.

“Purpose Prize Fellows show what’s possible in our communities – and the world – when experienced adults apply their passion and skill to improve the lives of others.” said Alexandra Céspedes Kent, Director of The Purpose Prize. “Imagine the potential for society if tens of thousands of adults focused their know-how on the social causes they are most passionate about – it’s a tremendous opportunity.”

The 46 Purpose Prize Fellows of 2010 were honored at the Purpose Prize Summit in November in Philadelphia.

“I am honored that my passion towards building a more customer-focused, forward-thinking Georgia has earned me such recognition,” said Lientz. “I dedicated my life to success in the private sector and it was important to me to continue striving for results-oriented solutions in a public role.” The Purpose Prize, funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies and the John Templeton Foundation, is a program of Civic Ventures’ Encore Careers campaign (www.encore.org), which aims to engage millions of baby boomers in encore careers combining social impact, personal meaning and continued income in the second half of life. For more information, visit: www.encore.org/prize.
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The Office Depot Foundation Honors Mark Dobosz with Listen, Learn, Care Award

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 23:48:00 +0000

The Office Depot Foundation presented the Listen, Learn, Care Award to Mark Dobosz, Executive Director of The SCORE Foundation and Vice President of Development at SCORE “Counselors to America’s Small Business”, for his outstanding creativity, innovation and achievement in serving the community of mankind.

Mark Dobosz received the Listen, Learn, Care Award at the Fourth Annual Office Depot Foundation Tropical Holiday Celebration on December 10, 2010. This annual event celebrated the outstanding work of the Office Depot Foundation and featured the presentation of the annual Listen, Learn, Care Award to five exceptional individuals.

Mark Dobosz has spent more than 26 years working in a variety of leadership roles and areas for non-profit organizations. He has been responsible for developing new fundraising programs as well as expanding several annual giving, planned giving and special event programs. Mark has helped raise more than $27 million for the organizations he has served.

SCORE CEO Ken Yancey says, “Mark Dobosz has demonstrated foresight and vision for SCORE’s future through his commitment to SCORE fundraising. He has tirelessly worked to ensure that the message of securing outside support becomes widespread across SCORE”. Yancey adds, “Mark has been integral to SCORE’s effort to expand its mission of serving small businesses across America and building the economic strength of local communities.”

Tift County 4-H declared national poultry judging champions

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 16:19:00 +0000

On Nov. 19, the local sheriff’s department escorted four Tift County teenagers into Tifton, Ga. It might sound like a parent’s nightmare, but the escort actually made parents proud. The reason for the eventful arrival: poultry.

The Tift County 4-H Poultry Judging Team was named the national champion at the National 4-H Poultry & Egg Conference in Louisville, Ky., Nov. 18. The high school seniors were greeted with sirens and police cars on their homecoming.

'Cool' win

“It was pretty cool. People pulled off on the side of the road. It was an honor to have that much attention,” said Sarah Harrison, one of the team’s members.

Harrison received the highest individual score in the national contest, and her twin sister, Rachel, came close behind in second place. Other members of the team included T.J. Chestnut, who placed seventh, and Michael Corbin, who ranked in the top 25.

Not a first

Coached by Brian Tankersley, Andrea Milton, and George Lee, this was Tift County 4-H’s sixth national championship in poultry judging. Tift County teams won the national championship in 1988, 1991, 1992, 2003 and 2005, too. The team placed second in 2008. Georgia teams have won at least eight times in the history of the competition.

“They have really fallen in love with poultry judging here, they do well with it,” Tankersley said.
He attributes the county’s continued success to experience. Between the members, this year’s winning team carried 25 years of experience to the national competition. Offering multiple teams allows Tift County youth to begin participating in poultry judging as early as sixth grade and continue their involvement all the way through their senior year of high school.

Sarah Harrison began her poultry judging experience when she was in the sixth grade. “I was very active in many different 4-H activities, but poultry judging just happened to be something that I enjoyed and also was really good at,” she said.

Practice, practice and more practice

Starting the poultry team in 1987 with little experience in poultry, Tankersley has gained his knowledge by working with specialists and attending 4-H trainings. He says that their teams begin practicing for the local and state competitions in March with two practices each week through May.

Practices include simulated contests with eggs donated by United Egg in Blackshear, Ga. If a team qualifies for the national competition, then they take a break from May to September, when they begin six weeks of heavy practice before the national competition in November. Competition is keen, as teams come from all over the country including California, New York and Florida. This year’s competition included teams from 19 states.

Not just about chickens

Awards are not the only benefit of poultry judging. The event is designed to sharpen communication, leadership and decision-making skills. It spurs an interest in science, agriculture and nutrition. Alumni from Tift County’s poultry judging teams include two doctors, multiple veterinarians, many teachers and a few engineers.

Poultry judging competitions consist of three categories: production hens, market poultry and market eggs. All team members judge each division, and the three highest scores for each category are used to rank the team. This year the Tift County team won all three divisions.

Will Walker, who won the National Egg Preparation Contest, and Scott Walters, who placed seventh in chicken barbeque, also represented Georgia at the National 4-H Poultry and Egg Conference. Walker and Walters are from Turner County and were accompanied by Lynn Davis, the 4-H agent in that county.

To learn more about 4-H in your county, contact your local UGA Cooperative Extension office at 1-800-ASK-UGA1.

By Kristin Strickland

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Channel 2 WSB-TV Announces Angel Poventud as Atlanta's 2010 Cox Conserves Hero

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 15:44:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- Channel 2 WSB-TV and The Trust for Public Land (TPL) have announced that Angel Poventud is Atlanta's 2010 Cox Conserves Hero. He was nominated for the program, selected as a finalist by local environmental leaders and ultimately named as the Hero after receiving the most votes in an online public poll. Poventud has selected Trees Atlanta to receive the $5,000 award.

He was nominated for his volunteer work within Atlanta's environmental community. Poventud's weekends are spent planting and mulching with Trees Atlanta. He also frequently volunteers for BeltLine clean-up projects and helps the group convert abandoned rail corridors into parks.

"I started volunteering to plant trees, and I quickly realized it's the most rewarding thing I can do in the city," said Poventud. "It's important to utilize vacant lots. When you do, trees start getting planted and birds start chirping. Before you know it, nature happens."

Poventud was named Atlanta's 2010 Cox Conserves Hero at a reception held at and sponsored by the Hotel Palomar. Each of the other four finalists received $1,250 to donate to their environmental nonprofits of choice:

* Bryan Holloway (Revive Atlanta)
* James King (Keeping It Wild)
* Bruce Morton (Park Pride)
* Kit Sutherland (Historic Fourth Ward Park Conservancy)

This is the second year Cox Conserves Heroes has taken place in Atlanta. Don Wells - an advocate for conserving and enjoying the open spaces of the North Georgia Mountains – was named Atlanta's 2009 Cox Conserves Hero. As Wells' environmental nonprofit of choice, Mountain Stewards received $5,000 that was used to build new public trails and connect students with nature through outdoor classrooms.

The Cox Conserves Heroes program was created through a partnership between The Trust for Public Land and Cox Enterprises, the parent company of Channel 2 WSB-TV, to honor everyday conservationists. The program also runs in New Orleans, San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle. For more information, visit www.CoxConservesHeroes.com or find us on Facebook.

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Amerigroup Foundation Honors Georgia Career Center Manager as a 'Healthy Hero'

noreply@blogger.com (Georgia Front Page.com) — Fri, 05 Nov 2010 14:01:00 +0000

/PRNewswire/ -- The Amerigroup Foundation today (November 4) announced that it is designating Woodstock Goodwill Career Center Manager Christine Rankin a "Healthy Hero."

Rankin is passionate about helping residents of northern Georgia find employment. She coaches them every step of the way -- from helping create resumes to practicing interviews. This year, Rankin helped more than 400 jobseekers find work. In addition, Rankin educates jobseekers about living a healthy lifestyle. She invites health care experts to speak at the career center, and she searches for health programs that benefit residents in her community.

"Christine Rankin exemplifies a 'Healthy Hero,'" said John E. Littel, chairman of the Amerigroup Foundation. "Christine recognizes that a healthy community is a strong community. She does an outstanding job helping residents in her community find jobs, all the while empowering them to live healthier lives. The Amerigroup Foundation is pleased to recognize Christine for her important contributions."

Rankin donated the $1,000 "Healthy Hero" award to Goodwill. "These people come into our career center with the weight of the world on their shoulders," said Rankin. "I'm proud to do anything I can to help."

The Amerigroup Foundation periodically honors "Healthy Heroes" who have made a difference in the communities served by its corporate underwriter, Amerigroup Corporation, which administers publicly funded health care programs such as Medicaid and Medicare for state and federal governments.

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