CrossRoadsNews, January 29, 2011

www.crossroadsnews.comJanuary 29, 2011Copyright © 2011 CrossRoadsNews, Inc.

COVER PAGEFor babies in needYOUTH

Local Girl Scouts and Brown-ie troops have been collecting bottles, bibs and blankets to be de-livered to newborn babies in Haiti and a homeless shelter in Atlanta. 12

The story of Peter Pan – The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up – comes to life in spectacular fashion in the big tent adjacent to Atlanta’s Centen-nial Park. 13

Fantasy takes flightSCENE

Thousands of men, women and children will descend on the Mall at Stonecrest for our annual Health & Well-ness Expo on Saturday. 9

Health takes center stageWELLNESS

Volume 16, Number 40

Furniture Policy costly For DeKalb$17,466 to furnishDistrict 7 office twice in three years

New Super District 7 Commissioner Stan Watson found a stripped-down office on his first day. Predecessor Connie Stokes bought the contents at a discount.

Parents attending a Jan. 25 meeting at McNair High on a redistricting and consolidation proposal for DeKalb County schools called for caution and recommended finding a superintendent first.

Carla Parker / CrossroadsNews

Curtis Parker / CrossroadsNews

Parents tackle redistricting and consolidation with gusto

By Jennifer Ffrench Parker

When DeKalb’s newest county commis-sioner showed up for work on Jan. 3, he found an office stripped down to its bare walls.

“I was ready to hit the ground running, but I had no furniture,” said Stan Watson, the new Super District 7 commissioner.

“There were no chairs, no desks. The office was bare. Even the meeting table was gone. The computers and the flat-screen television were gone.”

Not the kind of welcome an elected of-ficial or any new employee expects the first day on the job.

“That didn’t make me feel good at all,” Watson admitted. “I was ready to go to work, but they just weren’t really prepared for me to go to work.”

Watson found an empty office not be-cause the county was being mean to the former state legislator, DeKalb delegation chairman and DeKalb CEO candidate.

It just turned out that Watson fell victim to a longstanding county practice in which elected officials – commissioners and judges – are allowed to buy the furniture in their office for pennies on the dollar and take it with them when they leave office.

During the last week of the year, Watson’s predecessor – Connie Stokes, who held the job for six years – moved out and took all the furniture and supplies with her.

Stokes bought everything in her office, from the desk and credenza she used during her last two years in office to the paper tray.

The sale of the contents of the District 7 office was all legal and aboveboard.

On Dec. 14, all but one of her colleagues on the Board of Commissioners declared the entire contents of her office “surplus” and voted to sell it to her for $1,306.

Just two years earlier, in February 2008,

the county had furnished Stokes’ office at a cost of $8,968.13.

Practice dates to MaloofAmong metro Atlanta county govern-

ments and businesses, DeKalb stands alone in the practice of selling county furniture at deep discounts to elected officials when they resign, retire or lose their re-election bid.

In corporations and businesses, employ-ees and managers leave their offices the way they found them, leaving only with a box of their personal effects – family photos, plants and other mementos.

DeKalb Chamber of Commerce Presi-dent Leonardo McClarty said he knows of no businesses or companies that sell their furniture to departing employees.

He said that companies sell furniture when they have a reduction in force and a surplus and that the sale is open to all em-ployees.

“In my experience, when I left a company,

I packed my box and left the furniture where I found it. When I leave the Chamber I won’t be taking my furniture either.”

Replacement furniture has been ordered for the District 7 office at a cost of $8,498.03, bringing the price tag for furnishing the Dis-trict 7 office to $17,466.16 in three years.

This new expenditure on furniture comes at a time when the county budget for services like public safety, the courts, parks and trash pickup has shrunk $75 million over the same three years.

This year, DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis has proposed a 2.32 mill property increase to bal-ance his proposed $563.3 million budget.

County commissioners say the practice of selling county property to elected officials without a bid process opened to all citizens dates back to the county’s first CEO, Manuel Maloof, who purchased his car at a heavily discounted price when he left.

Stokes, who was the Board of Commis-sioners’ Budget Committee chair for two

years, said the practice is longstanding.“I followed the practice,” she said. “I have

lots of office furniture. I took the furniture because if you decide to, one day, you can replicate your office.”

When she took office in 1993, Liane Levetan, the county’s second CEO, said she kept the desk and credenza that Maloof had used and used her personal funds to buy a sofa, lamp, mirror, round table and artwork for her office.

“I bought my stuff and I took them with me when I left,” she said in a June 9, 2009, CrossRoadsNews story.

When she left the county in 2000, Levetan said she bought a filing cabinet and the 8-year-old car that she had used as CEO from the county with the approval of the Board of Commissioners.

Other recently departing elected officials who have bought the furniture from their

Please see FURNITURE, page 5

Please see SCHOOLS, page 12

By Carla Parker

Slow it down.That’s the word from some DeKalb

parents to the DeKalb School System on its redistricting and consolidation proposal.

Instead, parents want the district of 90,000 students to focus on finding a super-intendent first.

At the end of their two-hour discussions at the Jan. 25 meeting at McNair High School in Atlanta, table after table of participants called for caution.

“Make a decision [on redistricting] when

a permanent superintendent is here,” one group said.

More than 600 people showed up at Mc-Nair High to talk about the school system’s plan to consolidate and redistrict 14 schools, impacting 16,000 elementary, middle and high school students.

The McNair meeting was one of six public input forums hosted by the school system across the county since Jan. 18. The final meeting was held Jan. 27. Interim Su-perintendent Ramona Tyson will make her

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Inside-Cvr PgCrossRoadsNews January 29, 20112

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Community PG

Community “Domestic violence is a crime that affects people of all ages, races, socioeconomic levels and backgrounds.”

Wanted: Gadgets, games and crafts

Grant to help staff DV UnitMeetings on budget continue

PRISM meeting focuses on seniors

Homestead applications due by April 1

Robert James

Families who want to downsize now have a place to donate extra goods and gadgets that are gathering dust in their homes.

The DeKalb Community Service Board, which provides community-based behav-ioral health care, mental health services, substance abuse treatment and develop-mental disabilities programs at more than 20 locations, is collecting a range of items for its programs.n Personal items – Small lotions, slipper socks, wallets, jewelry, makeup and beauty supplies. n Music and media items – DVD players, CD players, cassette players, radios, digital and disposable cameras, keyboards, and guitars. n Games – Monopoly, Parchesee, Uno, Taboo, Sorry, Chess, Catch Phrase, Scat-tergories and Pictionary.

A $50,786 federal grant will help the DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office continue its fight against domestic violence and sexual assault.

The funds, from the 2011 Vio-lence Against Women Act grant, will be used to partially staff the DA’s Domestic Violence Unit.

“Domestic violence is a crime that affects people of all ages, races, socio-economic levels and backgrounds,” District Attorney Robert James said.

“Our DV Unit is comprised of experi-enced attorneys, investigators and advocates who are specially trained to assist victims of domestic violence and their families.”

The Domestic Violence Unit includes

two prosecutors, two investiga-tors and two part-time victim advocates. The DV Unit provides specialized services, information, and support to victims of violent crimes including murder, rape, aggravated sodomy and aggra-vated assault. The DA’s Office has received the VAWA grant since 2006.

The Criminal Justice Coordinating Council’s grant was unanimously accepted by the DeKalb County Board of Commis-sioners on Jan. 25.

“This grant is essential in enabling our office to fight domestic violence and provide additional attention to both our DV cases and the victims we serve,” James said.

n Arts and crafts and educational supplies – ABC flashcards, colored pencils, crayons, markers, paints, canvas, writing tablets, con-struction paper, puzzles, beads for jewelry making, and stickers.n Outdoors items – Grill, leaf blower and shrubbery.n Exercise equipment – Exercise and yoga DVDs, tennis rackets and balls, basketballs, treadmill, weights, and jump ropes.n Kitchen items – Toaster oven, can open-ers, blender, small refrigerator, freezer, big spoons, tongs, smoothie machine, and pots and pans.n TV that’s at least 25 inches.n Household items – Indoor plants, flash-lights, and vacuum cleaner.

For more information or to donate, contact Michelle Porter, community rela-tions manager, at [email protected] or 404-508-7875, Ext. 7875.

DeKalb homeowners, property owners and other taxpayers can still comment on the county’s proposed $563.3 million budget.

A number of budget hearings are being held this month, ahead of the Feb. 22 dead-line for the DeKalb Board of Commissioners to approve the budget.

The meetings, which are hosted by Dis-trict 4 Commissioner Sharon Barnes Sutton, will be held across the county.

The 2011 budget is $86 million lower than the 2009 budget and includes a proposed 2.32 mill increase in the property tax.

This year, the county anticipates tax revenue falling another $12.8 million. In his

Jan. 6 State of the County address, CEO Bur-rell Ellis said that while revenues are falling, operating costs have increased more than $39 million to meet legally mandated expenses.

Upcoming meetings include:n Feb. 2 – Berean Christian Church, 2201 Young Road, Stone Mountain; 6:30 p.m. n Feb. 3 – Maloof Auditorium, 1300 Com-merce Drive, Decatur; 6:30 p.m. n Feb. 5 – Community Cabinet Meeting, Chapel Hill Middle School, 3535 Dogwood Farm Road, Decatur; 9 a.m. n Feb. 10 – Southland Community Clubhouse, 759 Southland Court, Stone Mountain; 7 p.m. For more information, call 404-371-4907.

Seniors can find out about programs and services available to older Georgians at a Feb. 10 PRISM meeting at St. Timothy’s United Methodist Church in Stone Mountain.

Presenters at the 7-to-9 p.m. meeting include the Atlanta Regional Commission, the Area Agency on Aging and Probate Judge Jeryl Rosh.

The discussion, “Programs, Services and New Trends for Seniors,” will offer informa-tion on the importance of having a will, what

it means to have an estate in probate for lack of a will, and where seniors can go for help. There also will be information on resources for seniors.

The free event is sponsored by Pride Rings in Stone Mountain. St. Timothy’s United Methodist Church is at 5365 Memo-rial Drive in Stone Mountain.

For more information, contact state Rep. Michele Henson, program chair, at 404-296-1442 or [email protected].

DeKalb homeowners who owned and occupied their property on Jan. 1 can qualify for homestead exemption this year.

Tax Commissioner Claudia G. Lawson said there are also special exemptions for citizens 62 years of age and older and for those who are 100 percent totally and per-manently disabled.

To receive the exemptions during the

2011 tax year, eligible property owners must apply by April 1.

Applications received after April 1 will be applied to the 2012 tax year.

The Tax Commissioner’s Offices are at:n 4380 Memorial Drive, Suite 100, Decatur n 1358 Dresden Drive, NE, Atlanta n 2801 Candler Road, in the Gallery at South DeKalb, near Macy’s.

CrossRoadsNewsJanuary 29, 2011 3

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INDEX PAGE

Forum

index to advertisers

Meetings on budget continue 3DeKalb homeowners, property owners

and other taxpayers can still comment on the county’s proposed $563.3 million budget.

Grant to help staff DV Unit 3A $50,786 federal grant will help the

DeKalb County District Attorney’s Office continue its fight against domestic violence and sexual assault.

Agencies serving homeless to share $25.4 million grant 6

Five DeKalb-based agencies serving the homeless are among 137 Georgia pro-grams awarded more than $25 million by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help keep their programs operating.

Veggie, fruit characters talk up healthy eating at expo 8

An interactive puppet show will be extol-ling the virtues of eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day at the Cross-RoadsNews Health & Wellness Expo.

Ceremony to celebrate life of activist 10

Family and friends of Ron Marshall will celebrate his life with a walk to the top of Stone Mountain on Feb. 12.

Two makeup days set for February 11

DeKalb students who got a week off be-cause of the Jan. 9 snowstorms will have to make it up in February.

24 employees reassigned in wake of CRCT scandal 12

Twenty-four DeKalb school employees have been removed from their positions in the wake of an internal investigation into the April 2009 CRCT cheating scandal.

Spectacular Peter Pan flying over London in Atlanta 13

Peter Pan, Wendy and all his other bud-dies are taking flight in a state-of-the-art theater tent adjacent to Centennial Park.

Trumpet awards for celebrities 13

Television Judge Greg Mathis, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and The O’Jays are among celebri-ties picking up 2011 Trumpet Awards.

AT&T .............................................................. 7Bobby L. Scott & Associates ..........................15Browns Mill Civic Athletic Assoc. ...................15Caravan Travel ..............................................15Comfort Suites Northlake ..............................13DeKalb County One DeKalb Office .............. 10

DeKalb County School System ...................... 11Felicia V. Anderson CPA LLC .........................6Gibbs Garage ................................................14Hands On Business .......................................15Henry Mitchell, CPA, PC ................................15Kaiser Permanente ........................................9

Kiddy Kompany ............................................14Laurencin’s Home Services ...........................14Mechanixx Corporation .................................14Mystery Valley Golf Club ................................6Newburn Reynolds Photography ..................15No rth DeKalb Mall .......................................13

Premier Women’s Healthcare & Aesthetics ...8Soapstone Center for Clinical Research .........8The Gallery at South DeKalb .......................... 2The Law Office of B.A. Thomas ................... 10Threesixty Entertainment / Peter Pan ...........13Wells Fargo .................................................... 3

QuiCk read

I also hope that this is not another bait and switch game where commissioners reject something publicly and later approve it behind closed doors.

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LOCAL

SERVICES!LOCAL

GOODS!

Consolidation, though painful, has long-term benefits

Bravo to commissioners for opposing CEO’s tax hike

Bob Miles

Listening to the debate about the DeKalb County Schools Sys-tem’s (DCCS) need to redistrict to fill its schools is amusing at times, and frustrating at others.

As a product of DCCS, Hooper Alexander ES, Miller Grove MS, and Southwest DeKalb HS, I know the district is far overdue for a good hard look at district lines.

The only time I’ve seen DCCS look at attendance zones is when a new school is built to relieve over-crowding. But with antiquated rules and a shifting population the time has come. As a soon-to-be first time homeowner, school performance is a pivotal point in deciding where to buy. But to think that school performance will suffer as a result of redistricting is becom-ing increasingly perplexing.

As a student at one of DCCS’s “underperforming” schools I was able to succeed and eventually went into the high achiever’s magnet program. Now before you say there you go leaving your neighborhood

school for a “better education” I’ll be the first to admit that was one of my parent’s reasons for busing me 30 minutes from our home.

The other was the urging of the teachers at Hooper that admit-ted that my home school wouldn’t have offered the courses I was being recommended to take. But what I saw in the magnet program – at least the ones in S. DeKalb – was that parental involvement, while high in the magnet programs, was somewhat of a missing link with many resident students.

Parental involvement will make the difference, even in redistrict-ing. I know some parents have put years of effort into bettering schools, organizing private fund-

raisers, and supplementing what DCCS can’t or doesn’t provide.

Will the redistricted schools not have the same ability? Will parents pull back their support of their child’s school? Hardly. Instead, this allows for DCSS to provide maxi-mum support to every student.

Let’s be honest, getting up 15 minutes earlier will hardly wreck a child’s life. Having to travel 10 min-utes instead of five to school won’t decrease a child’s ability to learn.

Having a school system that has full schools and excellent pa-rental support will translate into higher property values, increased test scores, and a premier school system.

I know change is hard. Take

it from me, being 13 years old and having to catch a bus at 6:45 a.m. was no fun, but I wouldn’t regret one day of it. It provided me with a great education with students that shared my zeal for learning.

Would I have wished I could have received the same at my home school, you bet. But this redistrict-ing plan is the first step in making that possible. Now the question is timing. A phased approach is the best way to eliminate the 11,000 empty seats. Target low perform-ing, under enrolled schools first, next go to under enrolled schools, and finally develop a compre-hensive approach to the magnet programs.

There is no doubt that there needs to redistricting. I want parents to ponder this. Can your school cluster’s tax base support the schools in it? If it can’t, DCCS needs to supplement that with help from the state.

Gregory Woodall lives in At-lanta.

Having a school system that has full schools and excellent parental support will translate into higher property values,

increased test scores, and a premier school system. Gregory Woodall

It has been many years since I have had any reason the say anything positive about the com-missioners serving South DeKalb. However, today I must applaud them for hav-ing the intesti-nal fortitude to reject CEO Ellis’ 2.32 mill tax in-crease.

Many of us sincerely hope that Commis-sioner Lee May and the other commissioners remain steadfast in their rejection. I also hope that this is not another bait and switch game where commissioners reject some-thing publicly and later approve it behind closed doors.

In my opinion, Commissioner Boyer is correct in suggesting that nonessentials be terminated dur-

ing this economic crisis. I believe that the CEO should cut some of the high-paying, nonproductive positions.

I believe that the county should immediately cut the costly B.E.T. (Burrell Ellis Television) channel and staff. I view this TV expendi-ture as a non-revenue producing liability. At this time we cannot afford to provide the CEO, com-missioners and citizens TV cameras to enhance their egos and make them feel good.

I also agree with Commissioner Boyer that the county should move away from the traditional bud-geting system and embrace the zero-based budget concept during these tough times. Some of the ad-vantages of zero-based budgeting are that it drives managers to find cost-effective ways to improve op-erations, it identifies and eliminates wasteful spending and obsolete op-

erations, it detects inflated budgets, and it forces managers to identify and justify the objectives and cost along with their relationship to the overall goals.

Perhaps the CEO could use this process to reduce costs rather than raising taxes.

I think that the CEO should realize that he cannot have “a pie in the sky” budget at this point. It appears to me that he would rather take the easy way out by placing more and more taxation on DeKalb citizens who are losing jobs and homes. Many who are working are experiencing wage freeze and pay cuts.

I get the feeling that the CEO is trying to escape his duty to make tough and unpopular decisions. In my opinion, he should be tak-ing action to keep as many people working as possible; he might consider freezing wages. He might

also consider reducing salaries of everyone including himself by 2 percent to 5 percent depending on the level of income.

I know that county employees will be angry but it is better to earn some money rather none at all. I doubt that many would walk off their jobs. If they did, there are thousands of people waiting and willing to replace them. These are tough economic times that require leaders to public servants instead of self servants.

Finally, it is has been more than 12 years since I seen South DeKalb’s commissioners reject a CEO’s tax or any other proposal. In my opinion our commissioners have a reputation of going along to get along with the CEO.

I appreciate being informed that they have stood up for the average citizens at least once.

Bob Miles lives in Decatur.

CrossRoadsNews January 29, 20114

5

Community PG

Hank Johnson

office include former District 5 Commissioner Hank John-son and Superior Court Judges Anne Workman and Robert Castellani.

When Johnson left the county in April 2006 to run for Congress, the Board of Commissioners approved the sale of the desk, credenza and chairs from his office for $1,106.75. Those items of furniture cost the county $4,626 in 2000 and 2001.

Johnson has said that the furniture is now in his congres-sional office on Hillandale Drive.

In April 2009, the board approved the sale of chairs, a TV/VCR/DVD combo and stand, and an HP laserjet printer to Workman for $335.

On Nov. 22, the board also approved the sale of two Herman Miller Aeron chairs, a lectern and a sofa for $475 to Judge Castellani, who retired from the county in Decem-ber.

The county has no written policy for selling furniture to commissioners and judges and its handling of the surplus sale memorandum is inconsistent. In some, it lists the origi-nal purchase price of the items. In others, it doesn’t.

In the case of Stokes’ furniture, it provided the original cost of the items.

While the original purchase prices of the furniture bought by Workman and Castellani were not provided, an Internet search showed that new Herman Miller Aeron chairs sell for $579.99 to $1,399.99.

Theresa Walker, widow of District 7 Commissioner Lou Walker, who died in office, said she didn’t ask to purchase the furniture from his office because she didn’t need it.

“The practice has been going on forever, but I had plenty of furniture from our business that I was trying to get rid of,” she said. “I didn’t need county furniture.”

Stokes, who succeeded Walker and served out his term, said she kept the furniture that was in his office until the 2008 remodel of commissioners’ offices when everyone got new furniture.

In 2009, former CEO Vernon Jones tried to buy the desk and credenza from his office, but Ellis refused to sell them to him.

In a May 2009 letter to Jones, Ellis said that DeKalb County, like other local governments across the country, is being called upon to do more with less.

“Accordingly, we cannot afford to turn over the furniture in the CEO’s office and sell it at a loss. I trust that you un-derstand this decision,” he wrote.

While Stokes is not the first elected official to buy fur-niture from the county, records show that she is the first to get the entire contents of her office.

“It wasn’t every single thing,” she said Tuesday.Still, she did not name anything that she did not buy.

Practice is forbidden elsewhereThe city of Atlanta and Gwinnett, Cobb and Fulton

counties all have policies forbidding the sale of furniture to their elected officials.

Joe Sorenson, a spokesman for Gwinnett County, said the county hasn’t replaced furniture for its commissioners in years.

“When they leave, only personal equipment purchased by the commissioners with their own personal funds can be removed from Gwinnett officials’ offices,” Sorenson said.

In the city of Atlanta, city furniture stays put through administrations.

For example, Reese McCranie, Atlanta’s deputy director of communications, said much of the furniture in Mayor Kasim Reed’s suite was there when Andy Young was mayor.

He also said the council members have been known to purchase paint with their own funds to paint their offices.

In Cobb County, selling county-bought furniture to elected officials is illegal.

“County policy prohibits the transfer of government property to individuals unless it is sold through a public auction or donated to another governmental agency,” said Robert J. Quigley, Cobb County government’s director of communications.

“Only exception would be a public vote by the board

give an item away. I do not recall that happening with office furnishings.”

Quigley said office furnishings purchased by Cobb re-main in the county and incoming elected officials typically inherit the desk and furnishings of their predecessor.

“They cannot be sold or transferred to the private ownership of the departing official,” he said. “Any furnish-ing purchased with personal funds of the official remains the property of that person and may be taken when they leave.”

The only exception for new furniture is if the incoming elected official has a physical need for a modified piece of furniture in compliance with the Americans With Disabili-ties Act.

Policy needs to change?McClarty of the Chamber of Commerce said it’s time for

DeKalb County government to look at the practice of selling office furniture to departing officials.

“Government often gets a bad reputation for not spend-ing money wisely when they may be prudent and fiscally responsible 90 percent of the time,” he said. “These incidents raise questions and make people say, ‘Yes, see they are wasting taxpayers’ money.’ ”

McClarty said a practice can become dated or could just become a better practice.

“You modify, change and implement policies when you see a problem,” he said. “I definitely think it’s something that should be looked at.”

Even though she had supported previous furniture sales to elected officials and was even the sponsor of the 2009 motion to sell chairs, a television and laser printer to Work-man, District 6 Commissioner Kathie Gannon broke rank on the sale to Stokes.

She was the lone commissioner to vote against the Dec. 14 motion.

“I thought it was totally inappropriate,” she said.Gannon said she has come to believe that the practice

needs to stop and that she will push for a written policy. Gannon, who was the board’s Budget Committee chair

in 2008 when the commissioners’ offices were relocated to remodeled offices on the fifth floor of the county’s office building, said the hope at the time was that with all seven offices now uniform in size and furnishings, the offices would stay intact despite the comings and goings of com-missioners.

The county is furnishing the District 7 office at a cost of $8,498.03. While he waits for new furniture to arrive, Watson is holed up in a temporary office with his secretary, using castoff furniture. Between the two of them, they have one desk and one chair, and Watson is using his personal laptop to represent his constituents and do county work.

FURNITURE, FRom pagE 1

Community “You modify, change and implement policies when you see a problem. I definitely think it’s something that should be looked at.”

Elected officials get sweep price for furniture and equipment

Furnishings, equipment sold as ‘surplus’

Connie Stokes

Robert Castellani

Anne Workman

Connie StokesDec. 14, 2010 FairItem description market valueDesk, bridge, credenza, overhead storage with tack board ................................$250

Honey cherry finish, with drawers, pedestal locking installed key, different center drawer installed

Two-drawer lateral file with bookcase hutch, honey cherry .................................$50 finish, pedestal locking installed ............................................................................

36-inch round table with base & (4) armchairs ....................................................$50 Chair, executive swivel, black ................................................................................$50 Lamps, wooden floor (2) ...................................................................................... $20 Television, Sharp, flat-screen, black, 40-inch with mounts & brackets ...............$250Monitors, Dell (2 @ $50 each) ........................................................................... $100 Towers, Dell, PC (2 @ $250 each) .....................................................................$500 Keyboards, Dell computer (2 @ $2 each) ............................................................... $4Speakers, Dell computer (4 speakers) .................................................................... $5 Mouse, Dell computer (2 each) .............................................................................. $2 Shredder, paper, PC Fellowes ............................................................................... $20Tray, paper .............................................................................................................. $5 Items total ......................................................................................................$1,306

DeKalb Superior Court Judge Robert CastellaniDec. 14, 2010Item description Fair Market Value Herman Miller Aeron chairs (2 @ $125 each) ...................................................$250Lectern .................................................................................................................$125Sofa ..................................................................................................................... $100Items total .........................................................................................................$475

DeKalb Superior Judge Ann WorkmanApril 14, 2009Item description2 task chairs at $5 each......................................................................................... $10 5 office chairs at $15 each .................................................................................... $75 1 each TV/VCR/DVD combo; 1 each stand ..........................................................$200 at $200 for both ......................................................................................................... 1 each HP laserjet 2100 printer @ $50 each .......................................................$50Items total .........................................................................................................$335

Henry C. “Hank” Johnson Jr.May 9, 2006Itemized list was not availableItems total was $1,106.75

Since 2006, DeKalb County government has declared thousands of dollars of furniture and equipment “surplus” for the purpose of selling them to departing elected officials. Here are some of the recent sales:

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Georgia Speaker of the House David Ralston will be the featured speaker at the annual Lincoln Day Dinner on Feb. 11 at the Druid Hills Golf Club in Atlanta.

The 6 p.m. event is sponsored by the Senator Jim Tysinger Breakfast Forum.

Sixth District U.S. Rep. Tom Price will be a special guest.

The nonpartisan event is in its 35th year and is open to the pub-lic for discussion of current events.

Tickets are $50 and can be purchased at the DeKalb Republican Party, 3583 Cham-blee-Tucker Road in Atlanta, on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10 a.m. or by calling 770-451-4174 or 770-934-1635. Reservations are required no later than Feb. 7.

The Druid Hills Golf Club is at 740 Clifton Road N.E. in Atlanta. For more information, visit www.dekalbgop.org.

FinanCe “These programs help people reach their personal goals and establish independence.”

Agencies serving homeless to share $25.4 million HUD grant

Make dating part of your monthly budget

Congressman Hank Johnson (from left); Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed; and Mtamanika Youngblood, president/CEO of Sustainable Neighborhood Development Strategies Inc., met with HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan in Atlanta last year.

David Ralston

Ralston to speak at the Lincoln Day Dinner

Dear Dave,I’m a recent college graduate, and I’m

determined to follow your plan and get out of debt. My biggest problem is when it comes to dating. Things aren’t cheap today, so aside from not dating, how do you handle this area of your life when you’re trying to get your finances in order?

– Roland

Dear Roland,First of all, you definitely need to date

people. I couldn’t have gone without dating, especially at your age. So, I’m not going to tell you to do something I couldn’t do.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with dating inexpensively if you’re thoughtful. Just don’t be so cheap that you’re freakish about things. There are plenty of nice, styl-ish places that don’t cost an arm and a leg. A picnic and a Frisbee will go a long way on a pretty day! Your efforts to be a gentleman and make things happen in creative ways will be a lot more charming to any lady worth dating than throwing down an extra $100 at a snooty restaurant you can’t afford.

The other thing is to make dating part of your monthly budget. In your situation, it’s a legitimate expense, and you need to make

it part of your financial game plan. Then, if you’re seeing someone on a regular basis, and the money in the “dating” envelope is getting low, you can explain to her that you’re work-ing hard to manage your money properly so you’ll be wealthy one day.

This will make you even more attractive to the right kind of person, because it shows that you’re mature enough and responsible enough to be thinking toward and planning for the future!

– Dave

‘Luxury’ depends on incomeDear Dave,

We currently pay to have our lawn mowed each week. This expense is figured into our monthly budget, but we’re not quite out of debt yet. My wife says this is a luxury at this point, and I should cut the grass myself until

we’re out of debt. What do you think?– Ty

Dear Ty,I think it depends a lot on your income.

If you’re a surgeon making $350,000 a year, then making lawn care part of your monthly budget is probably pretty reasonable. Now, if you’re only making $26,000 a year, you probably need to get behind the mower and start pushing it yourself!

Is this a snobbish attitude? I don’t think so. It’s a simple matter of math. What is your personal time worth in the marketplace, and should you be plying your trade out in the world rather than mowing the lawn?

Let’s say you’re an attorney who charges $400 an hour. In that case, you’re probably going to be better off out there lawyering—especially if you’re trying to get out of debt—than you would pushing a mower. But if you make $12 an hour, it’s a good idea for you to be cutting your own grass, isn’t it?

Whether or not something is a “luxury” depends on your own personal income and financial situation. That’s how I look at it.

– DaveFor more financial advice, visit dave

ramsey.com.

Five DeKalb-based agencies serving the homeless are among 137 Georgia programs awarded more than $25 million by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to help keep their programs operating.

The DeKalb groups are among nine funded in the 4th Congressional District. Our House Inc., Initiative for Affordable Housing, Georgia Coalition Against Do-mestic Violence and Progressive Redevel-opment in Decatur and Zion Keepers in Stone Mountain are among the 4th District groups receiving funding. The others are the Salvation Army, Jerusalem House, Ac-tion Ministries, and Rainbow Village Inc. They will share $2.2 million of the $25.4 million announced by HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan for Georgia’s local homeless assis-tance programs on Jan. 19.

Donovan said the grants will help provide a lifeline.

“There is a tremendous need on our streets and in our shelters among those expe-riencing both long-term homelessness as well as families confronting a sudden economic crisis,” he said.

The “Continuum of Care” grants will help provide permanent and transitional housing to homeless persons, job train-ing, health care, mental health counseling, substance abuse treatment and child care.

Fourth District U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson said they will help homeless Americans break the cycles of homelessness and poverty.

“As our economy recovers, we must ensure everyone – no matter their circum-stances – benefits from our efforts,” he said. “These programs help people reach their personal goals and establish independence.”

In January 2009, volunteers nationwide counted 643,000 homeless people during a given night. HUD also found that during that year, 1.54 million people used emergency or transitional housing programs.

The typical homeless person seeking shelter is a single, middle-aged man and a member of a minority group.

The DeKalb recipients include Our House Inc., which provides day care for homeless families in Decatur.

Tyese Lawyer, its executive director, said children are often forgotten in the homeless-ness crisis.

“These funds allow us to provide a lov-ing, safe, early learning environment, where parents can confidently leave their child while Our House helps parents seek employ-

ment and permanent housing,” she said. Donovan said the grants are the life blood for thousands of local housing and service programs that are doing the heavy lifting to meet President Barack Obama’s goal of ending homelessness.

Barbara Poppe, the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness executive director, said the council is aligning mainstream pro-grams across federal agencies toward a goal of preventing and ending homelessness.

“While we continue to strengthen public-private partnerships in Washington and across the country to meet this goal, today’s grants provide essential support to continue the progress and meet critical needs of those who experience the crisis of homelessness.”

HUD’s Southeast regional administrator, Ed Jennings Jr., welcomed the grants.

“The main focus for these grants is to get homeless individuals and families off the street into safe housing, where they may access supportive services that will assist them in maintaining affordable housing,” he said.

Based on HUD’s latest homeless assess-ment, chronic homelessness has declined since 2005 due to significant investments to produce thousands of units of permanent supportive housing for those who had been living on the streets.

For more information, visit www.hud

the atlaNta VoiCe


7

©2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other AT&T marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or affiliated companies.

we shape history.

together. today.

11-ATTW-002_CRNG CROSS ROADS NEWS 1/28/2011 / 10.5X16

The AT&T 28 Days Speaker Series is coming to Atlanta — hosted by Common, and featuring a special guest speaker. It’s happening at 7 p.m. on Monday, February 7th

at the Atlanta Symphony Hall. Find out how to get your free tickets to this inspiring event at att.com/thebridge.


8

part of the HMO’s ongo-ing initiative to improve access to health care for its members statewide.

“This medical office allows us to better serve our growing Kaiser Per-manente membership in and around Rockdale County,” he said.

The Conyers office will employ eight to 12 health care professionals, including Drs. Bhagy Papudesu and Carla Holder of the Southeast Permanente Medical Group.

Colorful veggie, fruit characters talk up healthy eating at expoWellness “This medical office allows us to better serve our growing Kaiser

Permanente membership in and around Rockdale County.”

Premier Women's Healthcare LLC5404 Hillandale Park Court

Lithonia, Georgia 30058678-418-6990 office

678-418-6986 faxwww.premierwomens.com

Principal: Dominique J. Smith, MD FACOG

Dr. Tyrone Malloy, a board-certified OB/GYN, brought Soapstone Center for Clinical Research to our community almost 10 years ago.

In addition to Women’s Health, Soapstone also enrolls patients in clinical trials for diabetes, hypertension, anemia, incontinence, fibromyalgia, and obesity, among others.

Through our studies, patients who cannot afford healthcare resources or those we have inadequate insurance can get medical and surgical treatments for their illnesses without out-of-pocket expenses.

Volunteers are needed now for clinical studies in:• Anemia • Diabetes• Oral Contraception • Endometriosis• Hot Flashes • Abnormal Pap Smear• Contraception (Transdermal Patch)

All medications and laboratory studies are free and all patients are financially compensated for their time and travel. All data from our studies can be made available to your private physician.

You don’t have to be patient of our practice to participate.

Our educational department is available to both speak to groups or individuals about participation in clinical trials, as well as to train people to work in this growing fulfilling field of medical research.

Soapstone Center for Clinical Research • 4201 Rainbow Dr. • Decatur, GA 30034

For current or upcoming studies, visit www.soapstoneresearch.com,

or contact us at 404-534-9359Tyrone C. Malloy, MD, JD,

has more than 25 years of clinical experience.

Soapstone is excited to be participating in the 2011 Health Wellness Expo on Jan. 29th at the Mall at Stonecrest. Our staff will be available at the Expo to answer your questions.

“Give Peas a Chance,” an interactive puppet show, will be extolling the virtues of eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day at the CrossRoadsNews Health & Wellness Expo on Jan. 29 at the Mall at Stonecrest.

The perky veggie and fruit characters are stars of the Kaiser Permanente Educa-tional Theatre interactive puppet show that addresses the growing childhood obesity epidemic.

The dramatic production hones in on the epidemic, pumps up foods that are great for growing minds and body, and teaches youth and adults about the importance of good nutrition and physical activity.

Nationally, obesity is on the rise, and the U.S. surgeon general says the percentage of U.S. children who are overweight has nearly tripled in the past decade.

Kaiser Permanente, a health maintenance organization with 230,000 Georgia members, is a title sponsor with Children’s Healthcare at Hughes Spalding of the expo that is in its sixth year.

The expo, which takes place from noon to 5 p.m., will be on the mall’s lower level.

The “Give Peas a Chance” cast of veggie characters like Wanda B. Healthy and Cris P. Broccoli will appear on the Main Stage in front of Macy’s at 2:30 p.m.

Nurse Blueberry, a Kaiser mascot, will be promoting the health benefits of eating blueberries, which pack a huge cancer-fighting punch.

Kaiser Permanente also will celebrate the opening of its newest office in Conyers dur-ing the expo. The 6,700-square-foot facility opened Jan. 27 in suites B and C at 1478 Dogwood Drive.

Peter Andruszkiewicz, Kaiser Permanente of Georgia’s president, said the new site is

Internal medicine, pediatrics and laboratory services are offered at the location and other specialties may be added. It has an on-site pharmacy.

A new 6,400-square-foot facility also is planned for Fayetteville this quarter.

Together they are part of more than $4.6 million that Kaiser Permanente is investing this year in new Georgia facilities.

The two locations will bring to 10 the number of new medical offices. With their addition, Kaiser Permanente will have a total of 27 medical facilities in its 28-county service area.

Kaiser Permanente operates four centers in DeKalb County.

Its newest, a 5,442-square-foot office, opened January 2010 at 201 W. Ponce de Leon Ave. in Decatur at a cost of $1.8 mil-lion.

In December 2007, it opened a $6.5 mil-lion 19,000-square-foot Stonecrest Medical Center. It also operates a center on Panola Road and one in Tucker.

For more information, visit www.kp.org. For information on the Educational Theatre Programs, visit www.etpga.org or call 770-220-3749.

The cast of “Give Peas a Chance,” an interactive puppet show of the Kaiser Permanente Educational Theatre, will appear at the Jan. 29 CrossRoadsNews’ Health & Wellness Expo at Stonecrest; Nurse Blueberry is a mascot. Kaiser Permanente has opened a new facility in Conyers.

P. Andruszkiewicz


9Wellness “What we eat and whether we exercise are entirely our individual responsibilities. Our doctors can’t make us do it.”

Free screenings, performances and giveaways at health expo

kp.org

Now it’s easier than ever to enjoy good health in DeKalb County. With five Kaiser Permanente medical centers in the area, convenient care from great doctors is close to home or work.

To learn more, call (404) 261-2590 (TTY: 1-800-255-0056), talk to your employer or broker, or visit kp.org.

Enroll in a Kaiser Permanente health plan, and you’ll learn what our many satisfied DeKalb County members already know: Kaiser Permanente is truly different.!" Choose your doctor from our own, carefully selected experts

who care exclusively for Kaiser Permanente members!" High-tech medical centers with doctors, specialists, lab, X-ray,

and even pharmacy—all coordinated, and all under one roof!" Secure access to your doctor and medical information online

GOOD HEALTH is just around the corner

60061412 01/11Nine Piedmont Center • 3495 Piedmont Road, NE • Atlanta, GA 30305 • (404) 364-7000©2011 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Georgia, Inc.

Crescent Medical Center 200 Crescent Centre Parkway Tucker, GA 30084

Downtown Decatur Medical Office 201 W. Ponce de Leon Ave., Suite A Decatur, GA 30030

Panola Medical Center 5440 Hillandale Drive Lithonia, GA 30058

Stonecrest Medical Center 8011 Mall Parkway Lithonia, GA 30038

Conyers Medical Office 1478 Dogwood Drive Conyers, GA 30013

New

CrossRoadsNews’ sixth annual Health & Wellness Expo will offer a Fitness FaceOff competition in addition to screenings and a cooking demonstration.

Thousands of adults and children will be heading to the Mall at Stonecrest on Jan. 29 for CrossRoadsNews’ sixth annual Health & Wellness Expo.

On tap are free health screenings for dia-betes, high blood pressure, and HIV/AIDS; exercise demonstrations; performances; and lots of giveaways.

Jennifer Parker, the newspaper’s editor and publisher, said that the expo offers resi-dents a perfect venue for sharing information and educating themselves about their health with people and organizations who are pas-sionate about good health.

“With so many out of work, this is a great

place for them to get screenings that could cost hundreds of dollars if you lack insur-ance,” Parker said.

Title sponsors for this year’s expo are Children’s Healthcare at Hughes Spalding, Kaiser Permanente and 100 Black Women of Decatur-DeKalb.

Dozens of individuals, health providers and organizations will offer information about being more active, eating healthy and taking better care of our bodies.

Parker said individuals have to empower themselves about being healthy.

“If we don’t take care of our bodies, where are we going to live,” Parker said. “What we

eat and whether we exercise are entirely our individual responsibilities. Our doctors can’t make us do it. Our spouses or children can’t do it for us. We just have to make up our minds that it’s better to be healthy than be sick.”

During the noon-to-5 p.m. event, expo goers will find out fun ways to stay active in the 2011 Fitness FaceOff competition that begins at 1 p.m. on the Main Stage in front of Macy’s. Eight metro Atlanta fitness instructors and personal trainers will dem-onstrate easy, fun routines they use to keep their clients active and fit and vie for the championship trophy and a table at the April

19, 2011, Best of East Metro Small Business Expo at the mall.

Life Chef Asata Reid will demonstrate quick healthy meals that diabetics and ev-eryone can make.

Congressman Hank Johnson will stop by to talk about the threats to the health care re-form law and what is being done in Congress to ensure that the law is not gutted.

Expo goers who visit at 15 exhibitors can enter to win a gigantic spa gift basket from the Mall at Stonecrest. Throughout the day, door prizes will include tickets to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and to “Peter Pan.”


10Family and friends of Ron Marshall will

celebrate the life of the late community activist and businessman with a walk to the top of Stone Mountain on Feb. 12.

A short ceremony will be held atop the moun-tain after the walk, which begins at 10 a.m.

The walk takes about an hour, and participants are advised to wear com-fortable shoes.

For those who want to attend the cer-emony but do not want to walk, a tram to the top of the mountain is available. The ceremony begins at 11:30 a.m.

Marshall died on July 9, 2010, at age 54 after a two-year battle with an inoperable brain tumor.

A memorial walk planned for July 31 was canceled because of poor weather.

Marshall’s birthday is Feb. 2 and his widow, Gwen Marshall, says DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis will proclaim Feb. 10 Ronald Marshall Day.

Paper heart sale for cystic fibrosis

Ceremony atop Stone Mountain to celebrate life of activist

Blood donors needed as winter storms take toll on supply

Wellness “We need to reverse this now. Donating blood or platelets now helps ensure immediate and future patient needs will be met.”

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www.dekalbhealth.net • 404-294-3700

445 Winn Way • Decatur, GA 30030

Curtis Parker / CrossRoadsNewsA memorial walk to the top of Stone Mountain on July 31, to honor Ron Marshall was canceled because of poor weather. Instead, family and friends gathered at the base of the mountain.

Southwest DeKalb High’s Future Business Leaders of America members are raising money for cystic fibrosis research throughout the month of February.

More than 175 FBLA members are par-ticipating in the “Have a Heart for Cystic Fibrosis” fund-raiser, which kicks off Feb. 1. Supporters can buy hearts from club mem-bers or their advisers – Latiquia Monday, Christye Johnson, Marquis Waring, Lucy Wright, Dr. Charlene Spurlock, and Dr. Ke-nyatta Arnette.

Arnette said they are selling the standard paper cystic fibrosis fund-raising hearts from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation for a dollar each.

“Southwest DeKalb is partnering with the foundation to help them in their fund-raising efforts,” she said. “Our initial goal is set for $500.”

Students will ask for support in the school cafeteria during lunch periods and also will take the hearts home. Parents, family

members and supporters can purchase the hearts from students or from the Decatur school’s main office.

The funds raised will help to further research into cystic fibrosis, an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs, causing life-threatening infections. The disease also affects the digestive system, obstructing the pancreas and the body’s ability to properly break down and absorb food.

The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation says there are about 30,000 adults and children in the United States who are affected by the disease. About 1,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, and more than 70 percent of patients are diagnosed by age 2.

The FBLA’s goal is to raise awareness about cystic fibrosis in addition to generat-ing funds for research and the identification of a cure.

For more information, visit Southwest DeKalb High School at 2863 Kelley Chapel Road in Decatur or call 678-874-2009.

The American Red Cross is urging healthy teens and adults to help replenish the blood supply after severe winter weather caused cancellation of thousands of blood and platelet donations in the eastern half of the nation.

In a Jan. 26 press release, the agency said that the January supply is at its lowest point in 10 years. More than 14,000 blood and platelet donations were canceled due to the weather, including over 3,000 in Georgia.

The severity of the impact has stressed even its robust national inventory management system, which can move blood products to where they’re needed most, such as when severe weather hits.

Randy Edwards, the Southern Blood Services Region chief executive officer, said that they have not seen the January supply drop this dramatically in a decade.

“We need to reverse this now,” he said. “You don’t wait to refuel once you’ve run

out of gas. Donating blood or platelets now helps ensure immediate and future patient needs will be met.”

Eligible donors in unaffected areas are urged to make an appointment in the com-ing days, and those in affected areas are asked to donate as soon as travel is deemed safe.

All blood types are needed, especially type O negative. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental permission in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds, and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements. Bring your Red Cross blood donor card or other form of positive ID.

Upcoming blood drives include:

n Feb. 2 – Agnes Scott College, Evans Build-ing, 141 E. College Ave., Decatur; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.nFeb. 2 – Bank of America-Tucker, 2059 Northlake Parkway, Tucker; 1 to 6 p.m.n Feb. 3 – Emory University Hospital, 1364 Clifton Road N.E., Atlanta; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.n Feb. 6 – Greater Piney Grove Baptist Church, Family Life Building, 1879 Glen-wood Ave. S.E., Atlanta; 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.nFeb. 7 – Emory Law School, 1301 Clifton Road, Atlanta; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.n Feb. 9 – Cedar Grove High School, 2360 River Road, Ellenwood; 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org.

She said Stone Moun-tain was one of his favorite places to visit.

“Ron loved Stone Mountain. We spent many hours looking out over DeKalb County from up there.”

She said the Feb. 12 walk will honor his com-mitment to health and wellness and his love for the peace found in nature.

During his life, Marshall championed Grady Memorial Hospital and fought for resources for the safety-net hospital. He was a prolific letter writer to CrossRoadsNews and other media and a regular visitor and speaker at DeKalb Board of Commissioners meetings where he held commissioners’ feet to the fire on issues affecting county residents.

Marshall, who co-owned the home in-spection firm RGM Management and De-velopment Co. with Gwen, was a candidate for DeKalb CEO in 2004.

For more information, contact Gwen Marshall at 770-981-5109.

Gwen Marshall

Ron Marshall


11Youth “The kids always read about the history of Pearl Harbor but they never get the experience of it.”

Toney Read-In needs volunteers

Two makeup days set for February

College fair at Chamblee Charter High

Meeting on school redistricting plan

Stephenson’s Marching Jaguars raising funds for Hawaii trip

Parents of High School Seniors - DeKalb County School System

Don’t Miss This Opportunity!The Office of School Improvement and

the DCBlazers Youth Organization PresentCollege Financial Aid Workshop - Session II

The FAFSA FormImportant Information

Your FAFSA form (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) will be completed by the end of this worksession. Parents and their HS senior students will be able to participate only if they have gone to the website www.pin.ed.gov to apply for a Pin number so that the application can be electronically signed. It is absolutely necessary that this Pin number be obtained, at minimum, one week prior to the date of the work session. Parents (and students if applicable) must also bring their 2010 tax return and 2010 W2 form or their 2009 tax return and their 2010 W2 form.

Saturday, February 12, 201110:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

DeKalb County School SystemThe Administrative & Instructional Complex – Room 201

1701 Mountain Industrial BlvdStone Mountain GA 30083

RSVP toAnderia Russell at the

Office of School Improvement 678-676-0312or The DC Blazers at 770-322-5273

Check this website for a sneak peek at the FAFSA Formhttp://www.fafsa.ed.gov/fotw1112/pdf/fafsaws12c.pdf

Stephenson High’s Marching Jaguars are among three metro high school bands invited to participate in the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.

Men are asked to share their favorite book about or written by African-Americans at Toney Elementary’s Feb. 11 Read-In for Black History Month.

African-American men have until Feb. 9 to sign up for Toney Elementary’s fifth an-nual African-American Male Read-In.

In celebration of Black History Month, fathers, grandfathers, brothers, uncles and male community leaders can help Toney Elementary celebrate and promote chil-

dren’s literacy on Feb. 11 by sharing their favorite book about or written by African-Americans.

Volunteers can sign up for the Read-In at Toney Elementary, 2701 Oakland Terrace in Decatur, or call Shundra Byron or Timothy Hatchett at 678-874-2102.

DeKalb students who got a week off be-cause of the Jan. 9 snowstorms that crippled metro Atlanta for days will have to make it up in February.

The School Board voted Thursday to make students go to school on Feb. 18, origi-nally a teacher workday, and Feb. 21, Presi-dent’s Day, to make up the missed days.

Because of treacherous traveling condi-tions that closed schools, businesses, and community and social activities, students missed a week of classes Jan. 10-15.

For more information, visit www.dekalb .k12.ga.us.

Parents can discuss the proposed school closings and relocations at a special South DeKalb Parent Council meeting on Jan. 29.

The 10:30 a.m.-to-12:30 p.m. meeting will be at the Redan-Trotti Library, 1569 Wellborn Road in Lithonia.

District 5 School Board member Jesse Cunningham will be in attendance to an-swer questions about school closings and relocations and its impact on the com-munity.

For more information, call Donna Priest-Brown at 404-386-8454.

on “College Tours: See for Yourself,” “College Admissions: What to Expect Before You Ap-ply,” “Financial Aid: The Value of Knowing the Cost,” and “How to Leave High School.”

The college fair is free and open to the public. Chamblee Charter High School is at 3688 Chamblee-Dunwoody Road in Chamblee.

For more information, e-mail CCHS [email protected].

High school students can get informa-tion about colleges, trade schools, technical schools and military options at a college fair at Chamblee Charter High School on Feb. 12.

The 1-to-5 p.m. college fair will feature a Parent Resource Center that will provide information on financial aid, career develop-ment, and college study habits.

Guest speakers will present their expertise

By Carla Parker

It’s fund-raising time for the Stephenson High School Marching Jaguars.

Between now and August, the band must raise up to $300,000 to help fly its 90 members to Hawaii to perform at the 70th commemoration of the bombing of Pearl Harbor and march in the Waikiki Holiday Parade in Honolulu.

Band booster member Cathy Blakeney said that with travel expenses of $2,400 to $2,800 per student, it will cost between $440,000 and $480,000 to cover air and ground transportation, meals, lodging, instrument shipping and storage for the six-day trip to the island in the central Pacific Ocean.

Since the November 2010 invitation from Jake Peppers, parade chairman of the Waikiki Holiday Parade, the Stone Mountain school’s band, which is known as the Sonic Sound, launched its “Operation Hawaii 2011” cam-paign.

Peppers first saw the band perform at the 2007 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in Manhattan, N.Y., and was so impressed he wanted it to be part of the Honolulu festivities.

So far, the band is selling Coca-Cola products, bed sheets and fruit and hosting garage sales. Band students also are doing individual fund-raising, but they are still far from their goal.

Blakeney said more fund-raising projects are on the way.

“We’re also going to send out letters to businesses to get some sponsorships,” she said.

Band director Quentin Goins said the band was supposed to make the trip in 2010, but was derailed by the economic

recession.“The timing was bad,” he said. “The

economy was bad, and ZIP codes 30058 and 30087, where a lot of our students reside, were hit hard with foreclosures. It would’ve been hard to come up with the funds for the trip then.”

With the economy looking a little better than it did two years ago, Goins believes the band will be able to get the money for the trip.

“I think we have a good base of parents that will help out however they can and we got a lot of corporate sponsors as well,” he said.

Stephenson is one of three metro Atlanta

high school bands invited to participate but the only band from DeKalb County. Nation-

wide, 17 high school bands were invited.The invitation asks Stephenson to per-

form in the Waikiki Holiday Parade the day after Thanksgiving and on Dec. 7 for the Pearl Harbor 70th Anniversary Commemo-ration. Goins said this trip is not just another performance for the students, but it will be an educational experience as well.

“The kids always read about the history of Pearl Harbor but they never get the ex-perience of it,” he said. “They will tour the Pearl Harbor memorial, visit the Polynesian Cultural Center, and perform at the USS Missouri battleship. It will be a big cultural experience for them. Experience is better than what you can read in a book.”

Before departing for Hawaii, Goins said the students will take four classes on Pearl Harbor and speak with a Pearl Harbor sur-vivor.

Donations can be mailed to the Stephen-son Band Booster at P.O. Box 1231, Stone Mountain, GA 30086. Donations also can be made online on the PayPal link at www .stephensonhighband.net.

For more information, contact Cathy Blakeney at [email protected] or 404-405-9233.


12

Brownie Scouts in Troop 9004 at Toney Elementary School in Decatur pack items donated for babies in Haiti and at an Atlanta homeless shelter.

Parents grapple with redistricting issues at a Jan. 25 public input meeting at McNair High School.

24 school employees reassigned in wake of CRCT scandal

Babies at home and in Haiti benefit from generosity of scouts

Youth “The Board of Education is committed to ensuring that we have an ethical, responsible and effective school system for our children.”

Parents want cost analysis of redistricting, consolidation

recommendations to the Board of Education on Feb. 7.

Walter Woods, a school system spokes-man, said that the first five meetings at-tracted nearly 7,000 people with thousands showing up in North DeKalb and hundreds in South DeKalb.

At the meetings, participants got to voice their opinion on the redistricting proposal and offered their own recommendations as to how the district can fix the issue of low enrollment schools that are costing it state funding.

The proposal, which was presented to the DeKalb School Board on Jan. 3, calls for 14 schools – 12 elementary, one middle and one high school – to close countywide by the start of the 2011-2012 school year to compensate for shifting demographics and declining enrollment. The closures will help the school district access maximum state funding for its schools.

The proposal will consolidate schools, dramatically change attendance lines, and reassign students to schools with enrollment of more than 450 students. It also will merge the district’s high achievers magnet schools and programs that serve 1,605 students countywide.

At Tuesday’s workshop, parents sat at tables and wrote down other options for the redistricting and consolidation plan for an hour.

A representative from each table had one minute and 15 seconds to present their group’s suggestions to the full room.

The recurring theme was that parents do not want the School Board to close any

the proposals,” Pressley said. “It’s like they’re asking us to make a blind decision.”

The PTAs for the Kittredge and Wads-worth Magnet School Program also voiced concerns about the lack of a cost analysis for the centralized option.

“It is not cost-effective and wastes re-sources,” the groups said in a joint e-mail to parents. “The centralized option would increase transportation costs and create significant new start-up/transition costs for the new location.”

William Carnes, a representative of MGT of America, which is spearheading the school system’s proposal, said the district will know by Jan. 28 how much money it will save with the redistricting plan.

schools and split up com-munities.

“The priority should be on academics and stu-dents, not facilities,” one group said.

“Make a decision [on redistricting] when a per-manent superintendent is here,” another said.

District 7 board mem-ber Donna Edler said she understand the concerns of the parents but believes the re-districting and consolidation proposal leads the school system in the right direction the board wants to go.

“I think both proposals attempt to elimi-

nate empty seats, which is what we want to do,” Edler said. “Whatever happens in the end will be better for the county, although it will be uncomfortable for people.”

Magnet school parents like Michelle Pressley of Decatur, who has three children in the magnet program, want to keep the magnet program as is and not centralize it.

“There is no justification of what cen-tralization will do for the program,” she said. “The magnet program is already a large program. Instead of making it smaller by centralizing it, they should maximize it and put it in more schools.”

Parents also wanted to see a cost analysis of the proposals.

“We have no financial information for

Carla Parker / CrossRoadsNews

SCHOOLS, frOm page 1

Donna Edler

By Carla Parker

Twenty-four DeKalb school employees have been removed from their positions at nine elementary and middle schools countywide in the wake of a DeKalb School System internal investigation into the April 2009 Criterion-Referenced Competency Test cheating scandal.

The district said Thursday that they were among 29 employees – principals, assistant principals and teachers – referred to the Georgia Professional Standards Commission. Five employees already have been terminated or have left or retired from the district.

The 24 – five principals, five assistant principals and 14 teachers – still employed by the district have been reassigned to non-teaching positions in transportation, IT and other central office departments pending

review of their teaching certificates by the Professional Standards Commission.

Interim Superintendent Ramona Tyson informed the School Board on Thursday morning of the staff changes after receiving the results of internal investigation done by the Governor’s Office of Student Achieve-ment.

School officials declined to identify the employees or nine schools.

But seven DeKalb schools – Atherton, Glenhaven, Shadow Rock and Stoneview elementary and DeKalb Path Academy Char-ter, Cedar Grove and DeKalb Truancy middle schools – were originally implicated by the state in the June 2008 CRCT mathematics cheating probe that involved schools in Ful-ton County, Atlanta and Glynn County.

In June 2009, Dr. James L. Berry, principal of Atherton Elementary School in Decatur,

and the school’s assistant principal, Doretha Alexander, were arrested by the DeKalb Dis-trict Attorney on charges of falsifying and altering a government document.

Six months later, Berry pleaded guilty and was fined $1,000 and placed on probation for two years.

Alexander was sentenced to 40 hours of community service at a local food bank.

Thursday’s action follows the investiga-tions and feedback from Governor’s Office of Student Achievement.

The school district said it also is setting up individual learning support plans for students who may have been affected by irregular testing administration and need assistance to improve their CRCT perfor-mance.

Thomas Bowen, chairman of the School Board, said the board will continue to re-

spond to the test irregularities based on what’s best for the students.

“The DeKalb Board of Education is com-mitted to ensuring that we have an ethical, responsible and effective school system for our children,” he said.

The Organization of DeKalb Educators, which represents 7,000 school system em-ployees, said Thursday that while it does not condone cheating, it expects a fair process, and its members’ rights honored.

ODE president David Shutten, said he has not seen any evidence of of cheating in DeKalb County Schools.

“We are standing up for the rights of students to be in good learning environments and educators to be in good teaching envi-ronments,” he said. “ Our ultimate goal is that good teachers are back in their classrooms and good educators back in their schools.”

Newborn babies in Haiti and at an Atlanta home-less shelter will get new bottles, disposable diapers, bibs and blankets, all through the efforts local Brownie and Girl Scout troops.

The South DeKalb-based troops collected and packed the items for children who are less fortunate as part of the Girl Scouts of America Journey projects, “Brownie Quest” and “Agent of Change,” that are inspiring Scouts to discover, connect and take action to make the world a better place.

Brownie leader Niketa Mason said the 10 girls in Troop 9004 at Toney Elementary in Decatur came up with the idea of helping babies in Haiti.

“They were really excited about helping the new moms and babies in Haiti,” Mason said. “They even wanted to know if they have Girl Scouts in Haiti.”

The girls, ages 7 and 8, collected bottles, bibs, blan-kets, baby wipes, pacifiers, baby powder, baby combs and brushes and used their troop meetings to pack the supplies in Ziploc bags. They also sent clothes and dry food to the Haiti orphanage’s 300 children.

As part of the project, the troop also made picture frames out of foam and plastic and donated them

to 10 baby girls born on Oct. 31 – the birth date of Girl Scout founder Juliette Gordon Low – at DeKalb Medical in Decatur.

The troop also put little messages on the back of the frames, telling the babies that they share the same birth date as Low and expressing the hope that they will become Girl Scouts.

“It was so cute and very sweet of the girls to do that,” Mason said.

For their “Agent of Change” project, the South DeKalb Junior Girl Scout Troop 26408 donated thou-sands of disposable diapers to the Genesis Home-less Shelter for families with infants and babies in Atlanta.

The Scouts, who had volunteered as baby sitters at the shelter in the past, collected and donated 22,000 disposable diapers and baby wipes to the shelter.

With the help of Mainstreet and Brook Glen sub-divisions’ homeowner associations, hair salons and barbershops in the Pine Lake and Stone Mountain, and other Girl Scout troops in the Southeast DeKalb Service Unit, the girls exceeded their goal of collect-ing 17,500 between September and Dec. 16, 2010.


13

Television Judge Greg Mathis, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and The O’Jays are some of the celebritie picking up awards at the 2011 Trumpet Awards on Jan. 29.

Mathis will be hon-ored for his work as a humanitarian. Sharp-ton will receive an award for his work in civil rights, and The O’Jays will receive the Lifetime Achieve-ment award.

Other honorees at the 4 p.m. event include Drs. Andre’ Churchwell, Keith Churchwell and Kevin Churchwell, who are being recognized for their work in medicine; The Honorable Eric H. Holder, Jr., Alfred C. Liggins III, Paula Madison, Richard Roundtree, Chief Justice Georgina

And they are off, Wendy and Peter Pan taking off for Neverland in the threesixty theater tent, near the WOrld of Coke in Atlanta.

Al SharptonRaymond and Elizabeth Chenault

scene One night, Peter filies into the London nursery of the Darling Children and teaches them to fly.

Trumpet awards for celebritiesCouple organists to kick off series

Spectacular Peter Pan flying over London in Atlanta

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Wood, and Harry E. Johnson, Sr. for The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Project, who will receive the President’s award.

The evening’s co-hosts are Boris Kodjoe, Nicole Ari Parker, and Niecy Nash.

The Trumpet Awards will be held at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Center, 2800 Cobb Galleria Parkway in Atlanta.

As part of the festivities, the Interna-tional Civil Rights Walk of Fame got 10 new footprints on Jan. 28 at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site on Auburn Avenue.

Among the new additions are Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, James Brown, the Rev. Dr. Gerald Durley, Bishop Neil C. Ellis, Leon Hall, Bishop Barbara King, Marc H. Morial, Mayor Carl Stokes, Congressman Louis Stokes and Henry “Hank” Thomas.

For more information, call 404-505-8188.

Husband and wife organ-ists Elizabeth and Raymond Chenault will kick off the 2011 Harreld-James Organ Recital Series on Jan. 30 at Spelman College in Atlanta.

The series, which is in its fifth year, celebrates the clas-sical sounds of organ music through the performances of distinguished organists.

The Chenaults began their duet career in 1979 when Arthur Wills of Eng-land’s Ely Cathedral composed “Toccata for Two” for them.

Since 1975, the Chenaults have been or-ganists and choirmasters of All Saints’ Epis-copal Church in Atlanta. After 31 years, they retired in 2007 from the Lovett School where they taught choral music. Since then, the pair

has earned an international reputation.

The Chenaults complet-ed music degrees at Virginia Commonwealth Univer-sity. They have been named “Organists of the Year” by Sacred Music USA.

The free series, which begins at 4 p.m., will run through March 27 at the Spelman College Sisters Chapel, 350 Spelman Lane S.W. in Atlanta.

Other performers include Timothy Al-brecht, Atlanta’s Emory University organist and professor of music; and Wayne Barr, director of choral activities at Tuskegee University.

For more information, visit www.spelman.edu.

Peter Pan, Wendy and all his other buddies are now taking flight in Atlanta in the state-of-the-art threesixty theater tent adjacent to Centennial Park.

Fresh from a successful run in Orange County, California, the stage production of J M Barrie’s classic story kicked off Jan. 21 featuring 23 actors, stunning puppets, epic music, dazzling flying sequences, and the world’s first 360-degree CGI theater set.

The multi-media production dra-matizes the story of Peter Pan, The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up. One night, Peter flies into the London nursery of the Darling children, Wendy, John and Michael, teaches them to fly and leads

them over 400 square miles of virtual London and beyond.

The Atlanta shows mark the US East Coast premiere of the threesixty Peter Pan. Atlanta is only the fourth location in the world to host this production, af-ter London, San Francisco and Orange County. Peter Pan landed in the US last April last year in San Francisco.

The show captivated audiences in London where more than it was seen by more than 200,000 people.

Special behind-the-scenes “Into Neverland” tours are available weekly. All seats for the show are $50 at www.peterpanshow.com/atlanta, or by call-ing 1-888-772-6849.

them to the magical Neverland, “second to the right and straight on till morn-ing,” where they live with Tinker Bell, the Lost Boys and meet the notorious Captain Hook.

The threesixty Theatre, allows for performance “in the round” in a 1,300 seat theater-tent, standing between the World of Coca-Cola and the Georgia Aquarium in Pemberton Place.

The entire interior of the tent is lit with more than 15,000 square feet of Hi-Resolution video -- three times the size of Imax screens -- so that both cast and audience are immersed in a CGI Neverland. When Peter and Wendy fly to Neverland, the audience flies with


14youth PG

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October 9, 2010

COVER PAGEFight the bite

WELLNESS

With bedbug infestations on the increase, the Environmental Protection Agency has released a database of ap-proved pesticides to battle the blood-sucking pests. 7

The chain-link fence around the former Wachovia Bank on Wesley Chapel, which violates overlay district ordinanc-es, is temporary, the building’s owner says. 3

Fence under fire

COMMUNITY

Fresh fruits and vegetables will find a home at the Mall at Stonecrest Plaza this fall when a Farmer’s Market opens there for six weeks. 5

Freshness at Stonecrest

FINANCE

Great DeKalb Cleanup unDer Way

County launches cleanup of ugly, neglected areas

Ramp closures to cripple commute on I-20 east this weekend

Get ready South DeKalb. It’s cleanup

time.After years of litter and neglect of public

spaces, DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis and the

Board of Commissioners have launched the

Great DeKalb Cleanup.The effort kicks off Oct. 9 at 7a.m. at the

DeKalb Community Achievement Center, on

Flat Shoals Parkway in Decatur.The county says the cleanups will be held

every weekend through Oct. 31. “As part of a committed effort to stabilize

property values throughout the county, the

Great DeKalb Cleanup will address areas of

unincorporated DeKalb County that have

not been maintained,” the CEO’s office said

in a statement. “The cleanup is designed to

have the maximum level of impact on the

worst affected areas by encouraging the in-

volvement and investment of the community

in policing and maintaining these areas in

the future.” The Great DeKalb Cleanup comes on the

heels of a Sept. 25 CrossRoadsNews front

page article that documented longstanding

neglect of sidewalks and medians across

south DeKalb County, including its commer-

cial corridors and most travelled arteries.

In its Aug. 28 issue, the newspaper also

spotlighted an overgrown media on Turner

Hill Road leading to the entrance to the Mall

at Stonecrest. It was cut days later. The county’s Sanitation Department

began the cleanup on Oct. 2.Crews cleared the kudzu-covered side-

walk on Flat Shoals Parkway pictured on the

newspaper’s Sept. 25 front page, and picked

up trash along portions of Flat Shoals and

Wesley Chapel Road. Crews also mulched

portions of the median on Wesley Chapel

Road.South DeKalb Neighborhoods Coalition

president Gil Turman was on his way to a

football game Saturday morning when he

was pleasantly surprised to see people fanned

out along Wesley Chapel Road and Coving-

ton Highway picking up trash. “I saw trucks,” he said. “I saw people,

some looked like prisoners working off their

fines, trying to do something to beautify this

ugly situation. I saw people picking up trash

on these streets.”He said it was a beautiful thing to be-

hold.Turman said that he is working with an

organization of residents to put in place a

plan to ensure that going forward, the county

is better maintained.CEO spokesman Burke Brennan said

that cleanup effor was part of the Sanitation

Department’s scheduled cleanup.

On Oct. 9, county employees and com-

munity service workers will document and

remove illegally posted signs on the right-

of-ways, cut back overgrown weeds and

shrubs, pick up litter and place debris near

the roadway for sanitation pickup the fol-

lowing day. The Quality of Life Improvement (QOL)/

Great DeKalb Cleanup (GDC) Team will

Interstate and local motorists will find their I-20 east

commute through south DeKalb County nightmarish

this weekend.Starting at 9 p.m. on Friday, weather permitting,

Georgia Department of Transportation said that the

ongoing I-20 resurfacing project will close ramps at

Columbia Drive, and Evans Mill and Turner Hill roads.

It will also cut off access from I-20 eastbound lanes to

I-285 north and south.Thomas Parker, DOT’s area engineer, said that there

will be significant delays throughout this corridor.

“We would ask the public to avoid the area if pos-

sible,” he said. “And if they must drive through it, allow

themselves extra time and be extremely careful.”

The $28.6 million resurfacing project has been

under way since June 18. It is resurfacing 9.8 miles of

I-20 between Columbia Drive and Turner Hill Road.

The project has snarled traffic and made the weekend

commute difficult for residents and interstate travelers.

Weekend work wraps up at 5 a.m. on Monday.

Motorists traveling eastbound on I-20 who wish

to access either north or southbound I-285 should

continue east on I-20; exit at Wesley Chapel Road

(Exit 68), and return westbound on I-20 to I-285.

The resurfacing will continue for two miles between

Evans Mill and Turner Hill roads.

The eastbound entrance ramp from Evans Mill to

I-20 and the eastbound exit ramp from I-20 to Turner

Hill will be closed throughout the weekend, as will the

outside lane of I-20 between the two interchanges.

The resurfacing project will continue on weeknights

and weekends until temperatures get too cool to pave.

It will be completed in the spring. Work hours are

weeknights from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. and on weekends

continuously from Friday night at 9 p.m. until 5 a.m.

on Monday.For more information, call 511 or visit www.511ga.

org.

care of the existing

problem,” she said.

“Here we are still sit-

ting with thousands

of foreclosures that

nothing can be done

about.”Gil Turman, pres-

ident of the South

DeKalb Neighbor-

hoods Coalition, said he too thought

the ordinance was to help deal with the

sociation, said that

fact was kept from

residents.

“That was not

how it was presented

to us,” said Pace, who

attended a number

of public hearings

about the ordinance

and was eagerly

awaiting its implementation to help

her neighborhood deal with more than

50 vacant foreclosed homes.

“We thought this was going to take

A plan to erect a 154-foot-high T-Mobile

cell phone tower on the Lincoln Funeral

Home property on Candler Road is facing

major opposition from residents who say it

would be located too close to their homes in

violation of existing county codes.

Three J Holdings LLC, which owns the

5.1-acre Lincoln Funeral Home property at

2321 Candler Road, wants DeKalb County

to reduce the distance for the telecommu-

nications tower from a residentially zoned

property to 70 and 85 feet from the required

200 feet. It also wants to waive the 10-foot

landscape buffer to allow

it to build the tower.

Judy Jackson, who will

see the tower from her

kitchen window and back-

yard on Ousley Court,

said there is a reason why

the county set the buffer

at 200 feet.

“It is to protect resi-

dents,” she said.

If the variance is approved, both the

property owner and T-Mobile say they will

lease space to more cell phone operators.

In a Sept. 1 letter accompanying the ap-

plication for the variance, Lannie Greene of

T-Mobile South LLC said T-Mobile plans to

locate two other providers on its tower for

a total of three users and that the property

owner intends to lease ground outside the

T-Mobile proposed fenced-in area to other

wireless providers.

Greene told the county that the purpose

of this facility is to provide safe, reliable,

uninterrupted in-building and in-car cover-

age in the area bounded by Second Avenue,

Candler Road, McAfee Road and I-20.

But residents of Ousley Manor and Toney

October 30, 2010

COVER PAGERice on RiceSCENE

Former

Secretary of

State Condo-

leezza Rice

will talk about

her and sign

memoir at

the Mall at

Stonecrest on

Nov. 3. 8MARTA

has dusted off

its proposal to

extend service

from the Mall

at Stonecrest

to downtown

Atlanta and is

gathering resi-

dents’ input. 3

Transit plan revisitedCOMMUNITY “Pride and

Passion: The

African-Amer-

ican Baseball

Experience”

will be on

exhibit at the

Decatur Library

from Nov. 6 to

Dec. 2. 8

The making of sports historySCENE

Residents oppose plan for new cell tower

Variance sought

for a T-Mobile

facility on Candler

Registry won’t affect 15,500 homes

Valley subdivisions say that reducing the

distance will literally put the tower in their

backyards and be a detriment to them.

“We strongly oppose the construction

of such a tower in our backyard,” they said

in an Oct. 5 letter to the county’s Planning/

Development Department and to the Zon-

ing Board of Appeals. Through Thursday, 73

residents had signed a petition opposing the

construction of the tower.

“We believe that this project will ad-

versely affect the health of already physically

challenged residents, endanger the health of

our children and grandchildren, negatively

impact our property values, and encour-

age the flight of younger families from the

Community groups and individuals

eagerly awaiting the implementation

of DeKalb’s new Foreclosure Registry

found out this week that it does not ap-

ply to the more than 15,500 properties

foreclosed before Oct. 27 – its effective

date.The law only requires owners of

properties foreclosed after Oct. 27 to

register them with the county.

Brenda Pace, president of the

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EARLY REGISTRATION (online only)Nov. 26 – Jan. 7, 2011

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Take advantage of the $10 sibling discount for Baseball (5-12 yrs)!$20 Fee for non-DeKalb County residents

Baseball (5-12 yrs) – $130 Softball (5-6 yrs) – $100Baseball (13-14 yrs) – $85 Softball (7-14 yrs) – $130

5099 Browns Mill RoadLithonia, GA 30038

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1.875x2Suburban_PANAMA.indd 1 1/12/11 12:56:25 AM


16CrossRoadsNews January 29, 201116

CrossRoadsNews, January 29, 2011

Documents

stokes office

office surplus

county furniture

dekalb county schools

longstanding county

commissioner stan watson

dekalb delegation chairman

dekalb ceo candidate