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Georgia House panel advances bill to increase grant access for state college and tech students • Georgia Recorder

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georgiarecorder.com – Ross Williams – 2025-01-30 00:00:00

Georgia House panel advances bill to increase grant access for state college and tech students

by Ross Williams, Georgia Recorder
January 30, 2025

More Georgia’s college and technical students may soon be eligible for grant money to help them complete their degree after a mathematical oversight made it impossible for many to qualify. A House committee unanimously passed a bill aimed at correcting the oversight Wednesday.

The Georgia College Completion Grant, signed into law in 2022, aims to help students who are close to graduation but are low on money. Students can be eligible for up to $2,500, and the total cost for the state is capped at $10 million, with unused funds rolling over to the next year. In the state’s 2024 fiscal year, 10,069 college students received a total $10.9 million through the grants.

Lynne Riley. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder

To qualify, students must have completed at least 80% of the credit requirements for their course of study, and that’s where the math problem comes in, said Georgia Student Finance Commission President Lynne Riley.

The requirement made it impossible for most Technical College System of Georgia students to take advantage of the grants.

“If you think about it, a TCSG program is typically one or two years, and to get to 80% completion of a one-year program, you’d be – if you only have two semesters, you’d be 50% completed halfway through your program, you would never meet that 80% threshold to be able to be an award recipient,” Riley said. “Similarly, for a two-year program, even after a third semester, you’d still only be 75% of the way on your credential attainment, and so would never be eligible for the program.”

Riley said students seeking four-year degrees at University System of Georgia institutions and private schools also experienced issues.

“USG and private post-secondaries also ran into that same problem that with a typical four-year program for students and the fact that most institutions package their financial aid on an annual basis, so they’d be looking at the possibility of awarding these completion grants at the end of a student’s third year, and they typically would only be 75% complete at that point,” she said.

The House Higher Education Committee voted unanimously to expand eligibility to students who had completed 70% of a four-year degree or 45% of a two-year degree, which would encompass more students heading into the last year of their program.

House Higher Education Chairman Chuck Martin. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder

“I stand here before you as embarrassed as anyone to say I don’t know why I didn’t notice that, but nobody on the House committee nor the Senate committee nor anybody thought about it,” said House Higher Education Committee Chair Chuck Martin, an Alpharetta Republican. “So the idea of the way these work is before you go into your last year, you’ve proven, you’ve put your shoulder to the wheel, you’ve done well, you’re completing, this is a completion grant.”

House Democratic Whip Sam Park, a Lawrenceville Democrat, said he would support expanding eligibility further.

“I think it’s continuing to move in the right direction, but ultimately, we’re also trying to address the needs-based aid type of issue with this bill, correct? Tell me why we’re not looking, why we’re so focused more on the back end as opposed to the front end. Is there data, for example, in which that $2,500 could ensure that folks are able to enroll and continue to go to school as opposed to focusing on that 70% threshold for a four-year institution?”

Martin said students in different situations can seek different grants and scholarships, but this program is narrowly tailored to help those who just need a little help to earn their diploma.

“This is not meant to be the ultimate catch-all, end-all for everything, but the best place to deploy the money and to get the most impact,” he said.

Before it can become law, the bill will need to pass both chambers and receive Gov. Brian Kemp’s signature. Martin said the Senate and governor’s office are comfortable with the bill and he hopes to fast-track it so that schools can plan ahead.

The bill also continues funding the program until 2029. If lawmakers don’t approve it, the program is set to expire this year.

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Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Georgia Recorder maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor John McCosh for questions: info@georgiarecorder.com.

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Club Car Championship’s 156 player field set to tee it up in Savannah

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www.wsav.com – Genevieve Lund – 2025-04-03 07:03:00

SUMMARY: The Club Car Championship, Savannah’s only professional golf tournament, begins today at The Landings, featuring 156 emerging golfers from the Korn Ferry Tour. This is the eighth annual event, offering a chance to win a $1 million purse while supporting local charities through ticket sales. Highlights include military appreciation day, a Spin Doctors concert, and the Seersucker Blazer award. Tickets start at $10, with free admission for military and first responders. The tournament runs from April 3-6, showcasing top talent and providing networking opportunities for sponsors, making it a significant event for the community and golf fans alike.

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Georgia Senate passes ban on DEI in schools and colleges as 2025 session winds down

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georgiarecorder.com – Maya Homan – 2025-04-03 00:48:00

by Maya Homan, Georgia Recorder
April 3, 2025

Lawmakers in the Senate concluded the 39th legislative day of the 2025 session in the early hours of Thursday morning by advancing a bill that would ban diversity, equity and inclusion programs or policies from all state public schools and universities.

The bill, which effectively hollowed out legislation originally aimed at increasing sick days and maternity leave for public school teachers, passed in a contentious 33-21 vote, restricting the freedom educational institutions have to discuss racial justice issues even as lawmakers across the hall voted to expand First Amendment protections based on religion only hours before.

House Bill 127’s sponsor in the Senate, Sylvania Republican Sen. Max Burns, argued that the bill was aimed at preventing discrimination in Georgia’s public educational institutions.

“DEI is the antithesis of equality,” Burns said on the Senate floor. “If you believe in equality, if you believe in equal opportunity, this bill does not strip you of that. It enhances it.”

Democrats swiftly condemned the bill, arguing that a ban on DEI would be a return to an era of “state-sponsored discrimination.” They also feared it could be used to censor topics like slavery’s role in the civil war and other ways that race and racism have shaped American history.

“I don’t want to say DEI, I want to talk about diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Derek Mallow, a Savannah Democrat. “If there is a need to ban DEI, then what is the opposite to diversity? Well the opposite to diversity is uniformity, and to be uniform means that you lack any other options for anyone to be different, to look different, to talk different, to walk different, to be different.”

They also proposed a total of 20 amendments — the most on any individual bill in living memory — but all 20 amendments were dismissed without a vote by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones. 

“This is a sad day for the Georgia state Senate, one of the saddest I’ve ever been in in 10 years, quite frankly,” said Senate Minority Leader Harold Jones II, an Augusta Democrat. 

“This doesn’t represent the people of Georgia,” he continued. “Tonight was a night the Republican Party said they’re going to take Georgia backwards — backwards to days when people did not have full rights.”

The bill now returns to the House, which must agree to the Senate’s amendments before the bill can advance to the governor’s desk. 

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Georgia Recorder is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Georgia Recorder maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor John McCosh for questions: info@georgiarecorder.com.

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Newest edition of The Little Guide Augusta being distributed just in time for Masters Week

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www.wjbf.com – Isabella Moody – 2025-04-02 18:49:00

SUMMARY: The Little Guide, a book showcasing local businesses, was launched in Augusta in 2018 and has since expanded to other locations like Macon and California. Its mission is to promote local shopping and support small businesses, highlighting their stories instead of just advertisements. Available in 120 spots across the CSRA, the book includes restaurants, shops, and services. Annual releases coincide with increased tourism, particularly during Masters Week. Local business owners appreciate the guide’s credibility and its ability to attract customers. This year, The Little Guide plans to franchise, offering opportunities for entrepreneurs to create editions in their regions.

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