The crowd that turned out for a listening session on the desired characteristics of the next superintendent of Oconee County Schools on Wednesday night came well prepared to pass along insights to the Oconee County Board of Education.
They also clearly were pleased to have a chance to talk about the topic.
The Oconee County Board of Education has placed an opt-in questionnaire on the Oconee County Schools web site asking community members, parents, and students for their input on its search for a new superintendent.
All of the 32 items on the survey instrument are closed-ended, meaning there is no opportunity for participants to make any comments.
The crowd on Monday filled the rows of seats on the Oconee Veterans Park gymnasium floor and the bleachers on the side as, for the second year in a row, the Memorial Day Program was moved indoors because of rain.
Guest speaker Dr. Henry Heard, a retired United States Air Force Colonel, focused on memory in his presentation, telling the audience that “if you don’t remember something, it’s as if it never happened.”
Only one persons showed up to speak at the first of two required public hearings on the $120.5 million General Fund Budget the Oconee County Board of Education has tentatively approved for Fiscal Year 2026.
Pam Hendrix used the three minutes she was allowed to complain about increased spending when student enrollments are deceasing and about the size of the system’s cash reserves.
The chairs of the Oconee County Democratic and Republican parties sent out emails to their followers on Friday encouraging them to vote in the upcoming Public Service Commission elections–something voters have not had a chance to do since 2020.
Early voting in the June 17 party primaries begins at 8 a.m. on Tuesday (May 27) at the Oconee County Administrative Building, 7635 Macon Highway, north of Watkinsville, and runs through June 13.
Oconee County commissioners on Tuesday decided to postpone a decision on the county’s 2025 millage rate pending further details on the size of the county tax digest.
As a result, the Annual Assessment Notice that goes out from the Oconee County Tax Commissioner, usually in May, will use the current millage rate in estimating property taxes for the county, as it has in the past.
Daniel Shaver was given the opportunity by Oconee County Republican Party Chair Kathy Hurley on Monday night to make the case for Tim Echols, who is seeking re-election to the Public Service Commission from District 2, which includes Oconee County.
Echols has opposition in the June 17 Republican Party Primary, but neither Echols, challenger Lee Muns, nor incumbent District 3 Commissioner Fitz Johnson had accepted an invitation to appear at the May 19 meeting, Hurley said.
