Education Notebook: CGTC picks up $3.2 million in federal grants
Central Georgia Technical College is the recipient of more than $3.2 million from two grants from the U.S. Department of Education. Both grants took effect Oct. 1 for the college’s 2015 fiscal year.
The larger of the two awards is a competitive Predominantly Black Institution grant for just more than $2.9 million. The grant funds will be disbursed over a five-year period in amounts of more than $500,000 each year through 2020.
CGTC will use the money in partnership with the Bibb County school system and Fort Valley State University to aid in removing barriers, setting benchmarks and improving student access to programs in engineering technology, which has been identified as a high-demand career field.
The second grant award of $332,919 was awarded in continuation of the PBI Formula grant award. These funds are used to increase the persistence rate and academic achievement levels of students of color enrolled in learning support courses.
BIBB SCHOOLS EARN HEALTH AWARDS
Four Bibb County schools received Bronze awards in the Alliance for a Healthier Generation’s Healthy Schools Program. Brookdale, Bruce, Carter and Jones elementary schools were all honored among the 376 schools chosen.
The award-winning schools come from 31 states, and more than 75 percent serve high-need student populations, defined as those with more than 40 percent of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program.
WESLEYAN’S PIERCE CHAPEL GETS LEED CERTIFICATION
Wesleyan College received LEED certification to the Silver level for the new construction of Pierce Chapel. The LEED rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, built, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance.
Pierce Chapel is Wesleyan’s second LEED-certified green building. Taylor Hall, renovated in 2011, is LEED certified to the Gold level.
LAMAR LECTURES RESCHEDULED AT MERCER
Patricia Sullivan, professor of history at the University of South Carolina, will deliver three lectures on the theme “What Happened to the Civil Rights Movement” as part of Mercer University’s 58th annual Lamar Lectures.
The lectures, presented by Mercer’s Center for Southern Studies, have been rescheduled for Oct. 19 and 20 in the Medical School Auditorium on the Macon campus. They were originally set for Oct. 5-6 but were postponed due to the recent flooding in South Carolina.
HOUSTON COUNTY HOLDING BAND NIGHT
The 22nd annual Houston County Band Night will be Oct. 20 at 7 p.m. at McConnell-Talbert Stadium. Every Houston County middle school band and high school marching band, 13 in all, will be represented. The show is free and open to the public.
Band Night began as a high school event to showcase the marching bands from every high school. Young musicians from all eight middle schools have been added to the program to display the growth and popularity of instrumental music within the school system.
About 1,200 students will perform a mass band rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” At the conclusion of the national anthem, the middle school students will remain on the field and perform two selections together. After the middle school performance, the high school marching bands will entertain the audience with their individual fall shows.
In the event of inclement weather, Band Night would be rescheduled for Oct. 22. For more information, call Todd Howell, band director at Warner Robins High, at 478-929-7877.
Telegraph writers Oby Brown, David Schick and Jeremy Timmerman contributed to this report.
This story was originally published October 11, 2015 at 9:59 PM with the headline "Education Notebook: CGTC picks up $3.2 million in federal grants ."